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It was February, and it was warmer than I thought in Hokkaido. The first impression of Hokkaido was that it felt dazzling and soft. Maybe it is because of the white snow that blanketed the whole world. I went to Hokkaido along with 25 history teachers and 30 experts and staff, and our visit was part of the workshop titled "Hokkaido – the land of Diaspora – and East Asia". The workshop was planned to offer history teachers with firsthand experience and field trips in advance of introduction of a new subject, "East Asian History", in 2012. A hundred and forty years ago, a group of Japanese were forced to move to Hokkaido and develop the region, which was inhabited by an indigenous people called Ainu. Also, more than 110,000 Joseon people were sent there when Korea was under Japanese colonial rule, and there were Chinese, too. Here in Hokkaido, teachers and citizens from Korea and Japan gathered together and envisioned a peaceful East Asia.

The first place we visited was Sapporo branch temple (別院) of Honganji (本願寺). In 1999, a list of 101 people and their remains were discovered in Honganji and it expedited the work of collecting remains in Hokkaido.

The remains of 101 people were cremated twice and put into three little urns. It was difficult to give remains to families of the deceased, but they could visit there instead. Japanese government continues to collect remains in Hokkaido and send them to families when possible.

The next day, we departed Sapporo, traveled over 200 kilometers and arrived at Shumarinai in the northern part of Hokkaido. Lake Shumarinai is a huge man-made lake created by those who were conscripted by the Japanese colonial government and forced to do hard labor. After seeing Lake Shumarinai, we visited a memorial hall and observed silence in memory of the victims.

On the way to Shumarinai, I thought that those who were drafted to work there would have seen the same scenery as I did, and wondered what were on their minds at that time. Did they know that they would die alone in a land far, far away from home, without being able to see their loved ones? With these thoughts, my eyes welled up with tears.

Moved by warm-hearted Japanese who help collect the remains

During our stay there, we met a lot of good people in Hokkaido who spared no effort in facilitating peace in East Asia. They believed that collecting remains is their calling, and it was what they are meant to do. When they went out on their first excavation in 2005, they did not know what to do and where to dig. Then, it rained suddenly and Mr. Chae Hong-cheol, now co-representative of Hokkaido Forum, found his feet sink in the ground. One of the professors in excavation team suggested digging that place, and they succeeded in excavating remains of one person. Rainy days are rare in Hokkaido, but they say it rains a lot when they go on excavation trips. The excavation team members feel as if the rain drops are victims' tears, and do their best to collect more remains and send them home.

History teachers who participated in the trip regretted that their personal anti-Japan feelings affected the classes they taught, and promised that they will draw on this experience and introduce Japanese excavation team's efforts and activities to students in class. I trust that these little changes will add up and help create a peaceful East Asia.