Chapter 227

Chapter 227: East Africans Lacking Virtue

In 1870, Japan was an emerging market and an essential source of immigrants and grain trade for the Kingdom of East Africa in the Far East. To emphasize its interest in Japan, East Africa established diplomatic relations with the Japanese government right after establishing relations with the Qing government.

Sebastian, the general manager of the Heixingen Bank branch in Japan, served as the Kingdom of East Africa's minister to Japan. East Africa also established several consulates across Japan.

Following the Meiji Restoration in Japan, the Japanese government initiated large-scale industrialization efforts that required significant funding. Japan raised funds through foreign borrowing and internal exploitation, with extreme measures such as taxing Japanese women and farmers heavily.

The Meiji government encouraged Japanese women to work in industries such as textiles and the "special service industry." East Africa saw an opportunity to introduce female immigrants from Japan.

To bring Japanese women to East Africa, a seemingly straightforward process was devised. Japanese textile factories were established, recruiting female workers and then "transferring" them to work in "Europe" as part of an internal company move.

Ships bound for "Europe" would often encounter problems such as storms and piracy, resulting in "shipwrecks." These incidents led to the loss of thousands of lives. The factory owners would express sympathy for the shipwreck victims, provide symbolic pensions, and hand the responsibility over to the Japanese government for processing. East Africa was not concerned about whether these pensions reached the victims' families.

This practice had disadvantages. Leather factories in East Africa often had to be closed and relocated due to previous scams. The excuses were ready-made, blaming the former factory owners' losses due to the shipwrecks. The insolvent factories were then acquired.

East Africa avoided taking responsibility by attributing these issues to the investors from various European countries, including Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Tsarist Russia, and Italy.

Another method of acquiring Japanese workers was to buy directly from Japanese farmers. Japanese women were often sold into work due to extreme poverty, with some ending up in the "special service industry."

The East African government exchanged food for Japan's surplus population, ensuring their families could make ends meet. These women didn't need to work in the "special service industry," providing them with brighter prospects.

Although this practice was considered immoral, East Africa found ways to ensure the Japanese government turned a blind eye.

In addition to introducing women, East Africa also purchased directly from Japanese farmers, benefiting from the harsh conditions faced by Japanese women and farmers during this period.

East Africa's actions were aided by local Japanese officials, some of whom sent their own daughters to work in factories as a demonstration.

Sebastian, the Kingdom of East Africa's minister to Japan, demonstrated "justice" by mediating between local Japanese officials and a "Tsarist Russian" businessman, who had taken advantage of the situation. The diplomatic mediation resulted in a pension paid by the businessman to settle the issue.

This chapter highlights the unscrupulous practices employed by East Africa in recruiting female Japanese workers and sheds light on the challenges faced by Japanese women during the Meiji period. It also underscores the Kingdom of East Africa's willingness to exploit vulnerable populations for its economic gain.