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In a tit for tat for Shimane Prefecture designating a ¡°Takeshima Day¡± after the Japanese name for Korea's Dokdo Islets, Masan City in South Gyeongsang Province on Friday passed a bill designating a¡°Daemado Day¡±, after the Korean name for the Japan-controlled Tsushima Islands. Masan City Council said the islands belonged to Korea "legally and historically", in a backhanded reference to a remark by the Japanese ambassador to Seoul regarding Dokdo.
The 29-member Masan Council unanimously passed the Daemado Day bill at its 109th session Friday.
The bill, which comprises four articles, designates June 19 "Daemado Day" in celebration of the 15th-century departure of the Chosun-period general Lee Jong-mu and his troops from Masan to conquer the islands. The council says the bill aims to "declare and secure Korea¡¯s territorial jurisdiction over Daemado", much as Shimane Prefecture said its bill aimed to highlight Japanese claims to Dokdo.
Masan Council said Shimane Prefecture¡¯s passage of the bill was tantamount to an infringement of sovereignty, and in turn it would do its best to restore Korean jurisdiction over the Japan-controlled islands, which was clearly Korean territory from the point of view of history and international law.
Gen. Lee Jong-mu led 227 vessels and 17,000 soldiers to conquer Daemado and put the island under the jurisdiction of Gyeongsang Province.
Masan Council said it was natural for Korea to try to restore its sovereignty over Daemado, as the Chosun historical record ¡°Donggukyeojiseungram¡± states that the islands belong to Korea and it was never formally handed over to Japan.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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