Ernest Thomas Bethell (3 November 1872 – 1 May 1909), who is also known by his Korean name (, ), was a British journalist who founded a newspaper, '' The Korea Daily News'', antagonistic to Japanese rule.

Arrival in Korea

In 1904, Ernest Bethell travelled from Kobe, Japan, where he had been in the export business, to Korea as a

correspondent A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locati ...

for the ''Daily Chronicle'', with the purpose of reporting on the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

. He then continued to stay in

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

and reported on

Japanese imperialism This is a list of regions occupied or annexed by the Empire of Japan until 1945, the year of the end of World War II in Asia, after the surrender of Japan. Control over all territories except most of the Japanese mainland (Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyu ...

in Korea. Bethell soon noted the abuses by Japanese soldiers towards Koreans, and how Koreans were treated unfairly and as inferior to the Japanese.

Founding of Korean newspapers

He founded an early newspaper in

with Yang Gi-tak, a Korean independence activist, in 1904 called '' Daehan Maeil Sinbo'' (대한매일신보, 大韓每日申報, The Korea Daily News) which was published in both Korean and English. The publication was strongly antagonistic to Japanese rule in Korea. The paper was available in three versions – English,

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

, and Korean mixed script. Many people who opposed the Japanese rule, such as

Park Eun-sik Park Eunsik (September 30, 1859 - November 1, 1925) was a Korean historian and the second President of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai during part of 1925. Soon after the impeachment of Syngman Rhee from the presid ...

and Sin Chae-ho, wrote articles and columns in the paper.

Prosecution for sedition

At the time, British subjects enjoyed

extraterritorial rights Extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) is the legal ability of a government to exercise authority beyond its normal boundaries. Any authority can claim ETJ over any external territory they wish. However, for the claim to be effective in the externa ...

in Korea. Because the paper was published by a British subject, it was not subject to local law. However, in 1907, Bethell was prosecuted in the British

Consular Court Consular courts were law courts established by foreign powers in countries where they had extraterritorial rights. They were presided over by consular officers. Extraterritoriality Western powers when establishing diplomatic relations with coun ...

in Seoul for

breach of the peace Breach of the peace, or disturbing the peace, is a legal term used in constitutional law in English-speaking countries and in a public order sense in the several jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It is a form of disorderly conduct. Public ord ...

and given a good behaviour bond of six months. The next year, at the request of the Japanese Residency-General, Bethell was prosecuted in the

British Supreme Court for China and Corea The British Supreme Court for China (originally the British Supreme Court for China and Japan) was a court established in the Shanghai International Settlement to try cases against British subjects in China, Japan and Korea under the principles ...

(sic), sitting in Seoul, for sedition against the Japanese government of Korea. He was convicted of sedition and was sentenced by judge F.S.A. Bourne to three weeks of imprisonment and a six-month good behaviour bond. As there was no suitable jail in Korea, he was taken to Shanghai aboard and detained at the British Consular Gaol in Shanghai.

Death

After being released, he returned to Seoul to continue his business. He died of

cardiomegaly Cardiomegaly (sometimes megacardia or megalocardia) is a medical condition in which the heart is enlarged. As such, it is more commonly referred to simply as "having an enlarged heart". It is usually the result of underlying conditions that make t ...

on 1 May 1909.

Monuments

The Korean people erected a monument in his honour, though it was defaced by the Japanese. Another monument was erected near the original one in 1964 by journalists living in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

. Both can be now seen at his grave at Yanghwajin Foreigners' Cemetery.

2012 Memorial service

On 8 May 2012 a special memorial service, organised by the Bethell Commemoration Committee, was held for Bethell at the Yanghwajin Foreigners' Cemetery. Former South Korean Prime Minister Lee Soo-sung chaired the ceremony and President Lee Myung-bak sent flowers to mark the event. About 250 people participated in the ceremony, also including Park Yoo-chul, chairman of the Korea Liberation Association. British Ambassador Scott Wrightman spoke at the ceremony, saying:

References

External links

* Arirang documentary on Consul-General Cockburn and Bethell (2012):
Part 1 Part 2Part 3Part 4Part 5Part 6Part 7

News story (in Korean) on Bethell's fight with the Japanese
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bethel, Ernest British reporters and correspondents British war correspondents 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis British people imprisoned abroad Korean independence activists 1873 births 1909 deaths History of Korea Daily Mail journalists Tuberculosis deaths in South Korea