Out of them, the ancient tomb robbery and pillage of porcelain show in all nakedness the shameless and gangster-like nature of the Japanese imperialists.

As the Japanese said that the Imjin Patriotic War (1592-1598) against the Japanese invaders was a "porcelain war", the Japanese imperialists carried away valuable Koryo celadon and porcelains of Ri Dynasty right and left and kidnapped hundreds of ceramic technicians.

The plunder of porcelains by the Japanese aggressors became more pronounced since their complete seizure of Korea's national sovereignty through the concoction of the "Ulsa Five-Point Treaty" in November 1905. They set in motion all the government authority and military forces to commit such crimes in a more organized and planned way.

According to the Japanese, 40,000 pieces of cultural remains of Korea including porcelain-ware are on display in the Tokyo National Museum.

The Japanese imperialists dug out thousands of old tombs including kings' mausoleums in different parts of Korea under the patronage of their aggressive army.

Ito Hirobumi, first "Japanese resident-general" in Korea, stole ceramic-ware of national treasure which had been preserved down through generations in the Changdok Palace, Toksu Palace, Kyongbok Palace and so on to present them to the Japanese "Emperor", imperial family and nobles or to sell them to museums and antique dealers of Japan at expensive prices in conspiracy with his subordinates.

The second "resident-general" had the cheek to rave that the pillage came across public criticism because "it was done in secret", adding that "formal presentation of gifts will not cause any hindrance". He took the lead in robbing Korea of cultural relics.

It is hard to see untouched tombs with mounds among the old tombs in the area of Rakrang District, Pyongyang. Except several tombs, the Japanese robbers dug out nearly 1,000 tombs. This fact indicts in all nakedness the brutal and vicious nature of the Japanese imperialists' plunder of cultural wealth.

They rigged up various "committees", "study societies", "laws" and etc. to encrust the predatory acts of cultural relics with "legality" and thus committed the pillage in a more open way. They also shipped to Japan other relics, to say nothing of first-class relics, asset of the nation.

The brazen-faced Japanese government has registered the fine porcelains of Korea, that the Japanese imperialists had robbed her of in the past, as its "national treasure", "important cultural wealth" and "weighty art objects".

The Japanese government must sincerely admit and apologize for the extra-large crimes in plundering Korea of her precious cultural relics and return all of them to Korea.