Fumiko Kaneko (1903 - 1926)

Sun Jan 25, 1903

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Image: Fumiko Kaneko sits on her knees wearing a striped kimono with her hands clasped in front of her, staring intently ahead. c. 1925, author unknown [Wikipedia]

Fumiko Kaneko, born on this day in 1903, was a Japanese anarchist, nihilist, and opponent to Japanese imperialism in Korea. Fumiko is perhaps best remembered for her “The Prison Memoirs Of A Japanese Woman”, written while imprisoned after being convicted of high treason against the Japanese government.

Together, Fumiko and her Korean partner Pak Yol published two magazines which highlighted the problems Koreans faced under Japanese imperialism and showed influences of their radical politics. Sometime between 1922 and 1923, they also established a group called “F"utei-sha (Society of Malcontents)”, which Fumiko identified as a group for direct action against the government.

These activities soon brought Pak and Fumiko under government scrutiny. In September 1923, the Japanese government therefore made a number of arrests, mostly Koreans, on limited evidence, and among those arrested were Pak and Fumiko.

After lengthy judicial proceedings, Fumiko and Pak were convicted of high treason for attempting to obtain bombs with the intention of killing the emperor or his son. They were both sentenced to life in prison, however Fumiko allegedly committed suicide in her cell in 1926.

Here is a short excerpt from one of Fumiko’s interrogations while imprisoned (text by Max Res from theanarchistlibrary.org):

Q: Your class?

A: A divine commoner.

Q: How are you employed?

A: My job is tearing down everything that currently exists.