The Need to Regulate Fishermen in the Meiji Era

There is no clear information on industry, particularly fishing, in the Senkaku Islands before the Meiji era (1868-1912). However, in Okinawa Prefecture's 1893 petition to the Japanese government's Home Ministry concerning the construction of sovereignty markers (see 1. Sovereignty: Legal and Historical Aspects), regulation of fishermen was given as the main reason for the request. (Ref. 1)

 

The Senkaku Islands are located on the edge of a huge continental shelf, and as the Kuroshio warm current passes through this area, the conditions are right for rich fishing grounds (see 3. Marine and Climate Science). There has been a flourishing fishing industry since the Meiji era. Research results also demonstrate that fishing activities were conducted before full-scale development by fishermen sent by Koga Tatsushiro began in 1897. (Ref. 2; related information)

 

 

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Ref.1 :Petition to Incorporate Senkaku Islands from Yaeyama Islands Government. January 13, 1890. From the archives of the Senkaku Islands Document Material Compilation Association.

Ref. 2: Senkaku Islands Document Material Compilation Association, "Senkaku Shoto kaiiki no gyogyo ni kansuru chosa hokoku: Okinawa ken ni okeru senzen-Nihon fukki (1972) no ugoki" (Survey Report Regarding Fishing in the Senkaku Islands Waters: Changes in Okinawa Prefecture From Before World War II Until Its Return to Japan in 1972) in Senkaku kenkyu (Senkaku Research) (2010). Published with assistance from a grant by the Nippon Foundation.

 

 

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