Japanese Pre-War Activities in North-West Borneo

Abstract

As early as the years following the First World War (1914–18), the Japanese had taken an interest in the affairs of north-west Borneo. Like elsewhere in South-East Asia, there were Japanese immigrants in Sarawak and British North Borneo. Initially they came as individuals, generally in professions such as barber, dentist, physician and, for young female immigrants, as hairdressers and masseurs, but mostly as prostitutes in Japanese-owned and managed brothels. Some Japanese also became petty traders, market gardeners, or rubber plantation owners. Paralleling this individual emigration, several leading Japanese corporations had made large investments. A notable example was that of Mitsubishi, which was a major zaibatsu (conglomerate of companies) during the inter-war period; it had investments and commercial ventures throughout South-East Asia. The Mitsubishi Shoji Kaisha and its subsidiaries were engaged in a variety of commercial enterprises from managing rubber plantations to trade in consumer goods. Equally active was the Nissan group of companies. During the 1920s and 1930s, official trade missions were despatched to territories in South-East Asia to promote trade and commercial investments.