Colonial Korea and Imperial Japan：Structure，Imbalance and Characteristics in Surviving Public Records

Abstract

This article examines the forest­resource approval system of the Japanese government in colonial Korea．Its purpose is to analyze the unequally distributed remaining public records as they were generated in imperial Japan and colonial Korea．As a result，the decision-making authority on laws，budget control and personnel affairs was the responsibility of the Japanese Cabinet and it became clear that those important policies also had to gain approval from the Emperor．As a result，all the originals of the important records are preserved at the National Archives of Japan，while the records related to forest resources held in the National Archives of Korea are merely records of executive action．In other words，one reason why the records of the Government General in Korea remain unequally distributed between Japan and Korea was the war，especially their resulting destruction or dispersal by the Japanese at the time of their withdrawal．However，as indicated already，an even more fundamental reason can be identified –the colonial ratification system．