Hi all. Time for a mod reminder of expected answer quality. If all you have is a Wikipedia link or a one-liner, save yourself the effort: this is an expert sub, where answers are expected to be in-depth. Here's a quick excerpt from the rules:

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The Japanese occupied Korea and many parts of China from around the turn of the century (early 1900s)

Korea was considered a colony by the Japanese and it's land and resources were used at their disposal. The West viewed Korea as Japanese occupied territory, but were more focused on their own regional conflicts during WW2 and WW2.

The Koreans were treated rather brutally by the Japanese. As the Japanese considered them to be lesser beings than themselves. Many were slaves, some women were enlisted as comfort women for Japanese soldiers during the occupation, and the Japanese or Japanese controlled Koreans ran every level of government.

After the war in the Pacific closed, part of Japan's unconditional surrender was that there were to leave their colonies in Korea, Manchuria, Mainland China, and South East Asia, thus shrinking the Japanese Empire significantly.