On Aug. 22, 1910, Japan surrounded the Korean royal place with its forces and pressurized King Sunjong to sign a "commission of full power" in conspiracy with pro-Japanese traitors.

For fear of the Korean people's resistance towards the enforcement, Japan made public the "Korea-Japan Annexation Treaty" a week later, on Aug. 29.

The fabrication was disclosed by Sunjong's will saying, "The ratification of the 'Korea-Japan Annexation' was not my doing. It was cooked up by Japan in league with a group of traitors, including Ri Wan Yong.

Japan put me in confinement and intimidated me in the time of 'treaty signing'"

The treaty was not signed by the King.

International law, applicable to countries the world over in those days, stipulated that a state treaty can come into effect only when it carries a king's signature and it remains a dead document when it is not signed by a king.

There was neither a royal signature nor a seal in the "royal edict" allegedly issued by Sunjong to announce the "annexation" on Aug. 29, 1910.

But, there was a royal seal and signature in the "royal edict" issued by the Japanese king on the same day.

This indicates Japan's allegation that the "treaty" was legally concluded with approval of King Sunjong is a sheer lie and it was an invalid one in view of international law.

The "treaty" deprived the Korean people of their sovereignty and put Korea under Japan's colonial rule.

The Japanese reactionaries are not admitting their past crimes against the Korean people still now, while running amuck for staging a comeback to the whole of Korea.

Their misconduct touches off stronger anti-Japanese sentiments among the Korean people.