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64-586: In 1946, Rongerik was briefly inhabited by Bikini Islanders who, working with United States Navy moved here temporarily, when Bikini was used for conducting nuclear tests. However, the islanders could not get enough food to support the population, so after two years they had to relocate again, choosing Kili Island . Politically it was annexed by the German Empire in 1885, then seized by the Japanese in WW1, then

128-573: A League of Nations Mandate, their Class C status gave Japan direct control over their domestic legal system. Japan administered them as Japanese territory and as part of the Japanese Empire. This situation continued even after Japan withdrew from the League of Nations in 1935 and lost its legal claim to administer the islands. Militarily and economically, Saipan, in the Marianas archipelago,

192-518: A few years. On Kwajalein Atoll , the islanders were living in tents on a strip of grass alongside the airport runway. In June 1948 the Bikini residents chose Kili Island as a long-term home. The small island was uninhabited and was not ruled by a paramount king, or iroij. In June the Bikini community chose two dozen men to accompany eight Seabees to Kili to begin constructing a village. In November 1948,

256-470: A financial collapse on on Kili, with defaults on loans, salaries were no longer paid, and services were halted. This situation created a major crisis, with a large amount of finger pointing. There was criticism of officials in the USA, but in then end they had had no control over the expenditures in this time period. Because the 1980s settlement was seen that the"final" one, legally, they had already agreed that this

320-725: A natural lagoon and cannot produce enough food to enable the islanders to be self-sufficient. It is part of the legislative district of the Ralik Chain of the Marshall Islands . The island is approximately 48 kilometers (30 mi) southwest of Jaluit . It is a good sized island for the Marshall Islands, but it is not an atoll with a lagoon. Captain Thomas Dennet of the British vessel Britannia sighted

384-640: A paper submitted to his government in 1948, a number of small islands in Micronesia ( Kapingamarangi or Pescadores , Mapia or Güedes , Kiritimati or Matador , Rongerik or Coroa and others) continue legally under Spanish sovereignty. This is because the text of the German–Spanish Treaty of 1899 which transferred sovereignty of certain Spanish possessions in the Pacific to Germany , namely

448-485: A policy of secrecy was adopted. Japan made it plain that it did not welcome the entry of foreign ships, even those of its wartime allies, into Micronesian waters. During the first five years that Japan occupied the islands, it consolidated its presence and the islands became a virtual Japanese colony. The IJN divided the territory into five naval districts in Palau, Saipan , Truk , Ponape and Jaluit Atoll , all reporting to

512-781: A purely civilian administration. When the Ministry of Colonial Affairs was absorbed into the Ministry of Greater East Asia in November 1942, the primacy of the IJN was again recognized by the appointment of an admiral as the Governor. Furthermore, the six administrative districts were reduced to three in November 1943: North, East, and West. The population of the South Seas Mandate was too small to provide significant markets and

576-492: A rear admiral at the naval headquarters at Truk. A proposal at the Versailles Conference to allow trade and migration between those islands to be administered by Japan and those to be administered by Australia and New Zealand was rejected. Japan was able to continue administering the islands as if they were colonial possessions, keeping their waters off-limits to foreigners. When the islands became legally

640-725: A signatory state to go to war to aid the other. Within hours of Britain's declaration of war on Germany in 1914, Japan invoked the treaty and offered to declare war on the German Empire if it could take German territories in China and the South Pacific. The British government officially asked Japan for assistance in destroying the raiders from the Imperial German Navy in and around Chinese waters, and Japan sent Germany an ultimatum demanding that it vacate China and

704-543: Is 4 kilometers (2.5 mi) long, also suffers from overpopulation. As of 2015 , the population is approximately 1000, composed primarily of descendants of refugees of Bikini. Residents must import food paid for by a settlement agreement with the United States government to supplement what they can grow locally. Each family on the island receives 2–3 shipments a year consisting of 1–2 boxes of frozen chicken, 2–4 50-lb bags of flour, and 2–4 bags of rice; this shipment

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768-632: Is a class for each age group, in addition to one class for students with special needs. Classes typically range in size from 6 to 18 students. Some of the teachers are native to Kili, some come from neighboring islands. The Dartmouth Volunteer Teaching Program has placed 2–4 American volunteer teachers at the school every year since 2000. The teachers provide English language instruction in addition to other curricula because there are few instructional materials or books written in Marshallese. The American volunteers stay and teach for one or more years. Toward

832-874: Is provided by the Bikinian government in conjunction with the U.S. government. Imports are overseen by the Bikini Public Works Department, which also maintains houses and runs the power plant on the island. There is currently a government effort to increase farming on the island, but the coral reef soil is poor. However, there is a small farm that produces melons and some vegetables. There are several small stores operated out of homes that provide nonperishable food items such as salt, Tabasco, candy, and canned items. Families on Kili live in cinderblock houses with air-conditioning and electricity. Most houses on Kili have kitchens, but many prefer to cook outdoors in cook-huts over an open flame. Beginning in 2011

896-596: The Empire of Japan , although the island was uninhabited. The island became part of the vast US Naval Base Marshall Islands . Following the end of World War II, it came under the control of the United States as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands until the independence of the Marshall Islands in 1986. It is most famous as the temporary location from March 7, 1946, through March 14, 1948, of

960-591: The Marshall , Marianas and Caroline Islands . The ultimatum went unanswered and Japan formally declared war on Germany on 23 August 1914. Japan participated in a joint operation with British forces in autumn 1914 in the Siege of Tsingtao ( Qingdao ) to capture the Kiautschou Bay Leased Territory in China's Shandong Province. The Japanese Navy was tasked with pursuing and destroying

1024-560: The Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean. As of 2021, 415 people lived on the island, many of whom were descended from islanders who originally lived on Bikini Atoll . They were relocated when they agreed to let the U.S. government temporarily use Bikini for nuclear testing in 1945, which they were told was of great importance to humankind, though it is sometimes considered a forced relocation . Kili Island became their home after two prior relocations failed. The island does not have

1088-669: The Northern Mariana Islands (except Guam ) and the Caroline Islands (including Palau ), failed to include these smaller islands. Although the Spanish government studied the case in 1949 and accepted this interpretation, it has not asserted its claim to the islands. Kili Island Kili Island or Kili Atoll ( Marshallese : Kōle , [kɤlʲe] ) is a small, 81 hectares (200 acres) (0.93 square kilometers (0.36 sq mi)) island located in

1152-707: The Treaty of Versailles . The southern part of the protectorate was mandated to come under Australian administration as the Territory of New Guinea , consisting of Kaiser-Wilhelmsland (the German territory on the island of New Guinea ) and the German-controlled islands south of the equator. Meanwhile, Japanese occupation of the northern part of the protectorate, consisting of the Micronesian islands north of

1216-853: The United States . The islands are now part of Palau , the Northern Mariana Islands , the Federated States of Micronesia , and the Republic of the Marshall Islands . In Japan, the territory is known as " Japanese Mandate for the Governance of the South Seas Islands " ( 委任統治地域南洋群島 , Inin Tōchi-ryō Nan'yō Guntō ) and was governed by the Nan'yō Government ( 南洋廳 , Nan'yō-chō ) . Japanese interest in what it called

1280-549: The equator , was formally recognized by the treaty. Japan was given a League of Nations Class C mandate to govern them, the C Class being assigned because the Mandates Commission regarded the islands as having "low cultural, economic and political development". The terms of the Mandate specified that the islands should be demilitarized and Japan should not extend its influence further into the Pacific. The Mandate

1344-519: The indigenous peoples of Oceania . Japanese immigration led to the population growing from under 4,000 in 1920 to 70,000 inhabitants in 1930, and more than 80,000 in 1933. By 1935 the Japanese population alone was more than 50,000. By 1937 almost 90 percent of the population on Saipan was Japanese (42,547 out of 46,748). In the census of December 1939, the total population was 129,104, of which 77,257 were Japanese (including ethnic Chinese and Koreans), 51,723 indigenous islanders and 124 foreigners. While

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1408-489: The "South Seas" ( 南洋 , Nan’yō ) began in the 19th century, prior to its imperial expansion into Korea and China . By 1875, ships from the newly established Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) began to hold training missions in the area. Shiga Shigetaka , a writer who accompanied a Navy cruise to the region in 1886, published his Current State of Affairs in the South Seas ( 南洋時事 , Nan’yō jiji ) in 1887, marking

1472-552: The Bikini Atoll's indigenous population while the United States government conducted the Operation Crossroads nuclear tests. After months of food shortages and malnutrition, they were moved first to Kwajalein and finally to Kili Island . On March 1, 1954, Rongerik was exposed to radioactive fallout as a result of the detonation of Operation Castle 's Bravo . According to Spanish researcher Emilio Pastor in

1536-672: The Bikini Council passed a resolution requesting assistance from US government to modify terms of the Resettlement Trust Fund for the People of Bikini to be used for the population's relocation once again, this time outside of the Marshall Islands. Kili has two Christian churches: the Assembly of God and Protestant church. There is an elementary school on Kili for students from Kindergarten to eighth grade. There

1600-588: The Empire as well as between the islands. The route between the Empire and the islands was subsequently taken over by the Japanese Mail Steamship Company ( Nippon Yusen Kaisha ), the largest steamship line in the Empire. The luxurious amenities offered on board some of the company's vessels brought about the beginning of Japanese tourism to the islands. The flying boat was the principal type of aircraft used for commercial aviation due to

1664-548: The German East Asia Squadron and protection of the shipping lanes for Allied commerce in the Pacific and Indian Oceans . During the course of this operation, the Japanese Navy seized the German possessions in the Marianas, Carolines, Marshall Islands and Palau groups by October 1914. After the end of World War I, the protectorate of German New Guinea was divided amongst the war's victors by

1728-519: The IJN, held that Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands were the area of greatest potential value to the Japanese Empire for economic and territorial expansion. The Anglo-Japanese Alliance of 1902 had been signed primarily to serve Britain's and Japan's common interest of opposing Russian expansion. Amongst other provisions the treaty called on each party to support the other in a war against more than one power, although it did not require

1792-671: The IJN. Between 1914 and 1920 the islands began the slow transition from naval to civilian administration. By 1920 all authority had been transferred from the Naval Defense Force to the Civil Affairs Bureau which was directly responsible to the Navy Ministry. Initially based in Truk, the Civil Affairs Bureau was moved to Koror in the Palau islands in 1921. The naval garrisons were disbanded to comply with

1856-440: The Japanese Empire. The phosphate resources of the islands were exploited by Japanese mining companies, which took over the German phosphate mines on Angaur island and expanded them. Smaller phosphate mines on neighboring islands were also opened. Total exports to Japan eventually reached around 200,000 tonnes per year. Angaur island alone produced some 60,000 tonnes per year. The phosphates were used for farming. Bauxite

1920-516: The Japanese fishing fleet which was centred at Koror. Fishing formed one of the most profitable industries in the islands. Large fleets of boats were used and fish processing plants were set up on many islands. Harbor improvement works were undertaken at Tanaha ( Japanese : 棚葉 ) in Saipan and Malakal Island in Palau in the late 1920s. By the end of the 1920s the mandate became self-sufficient, no longer needing subsidy and financially contributing to

1984-465: The Japanese government pursued a policy of encouraging monopolies that paired private initiative with government capital. This strategy was intended to maximize the number of Japanese colonists. Until the late 1930s, the development of the islands was undertaken primarily to assist the Japanese civilian economy. Sugar cane had become increasingly sought-after in Japan, and Japanese trading companies led

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2048-456: The Kili reef in 1951 and was lost. The main agricultural product of the island is currently copra . Island produce consists of (in descending order of quantity) coconuts , limes , breadfruit , squash , bananas, papayas , and sugar cane . Fishing in the ocean around the island is difficult due to the lack of protection by a lagoon. The small island, about 1/6 the size of Bikini Atoll which

2112-482: The United States took it during WW2. After WW2, it was part of a United Nations trust territory, eventually it became part of the Marshall Islands, an island nation founded in 1986, but with a compact of association with the United States. Rongerik Atoll was claimed by the German Empire along with the rest of the Marshall Islands in 1885. After World War I, the island came under the South Seas Mandate of

2176-508: The United States. In exchange, they received $ 25,000 in cash and an additional $ 300,000 trust fund that yielded a semi-annual interest payment of approximately $ 5,000, or about $ 15 per person per year. They were also given Kili Island and several islands in Jaluit Atoll . In the 1980s, there was a lawsuit that was dismissed, but overall it was seen that the Bikini deserved more help. Two large multi-million dollar trust-funds were setup at

2240-627: The administration was initially still the responsibility of the IJN. The Governor reported directly to the Prime Minister of Japan . After the establishment of the Ministry of Colonial Affairs in June 1929, the Governor reported to the Minister of Colonial Affairs instead. The establishment of the "South Seas Government" or "Nan'yō-chō" in March 1932 finally put the government of the islands under

2304-419: The atoll in 1797 on route from Australia to China and named it Hunter Island. Kili Atoll was claimed by the German Empire along with the rest of the Marshall Islands in 1885. After World War I, the island came under the South Seas Mandate of the Empire of Japan . Following the end of World War II, it came under the control of the United States as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands . Kili

2368-540: The development of the industry in the islands. The Japanese entrepreneur Haruji Matsue arrived on Saipan in 1920 and formed the South Seas Development Company , which became the largest commercial enterprise in Micronesia. He significantly expanded the quantities of sugar cane produced in the islands, with over 3,000 hectares (7,400 acres) under cultivation by 1925. By the early 1930s the sugar-related industries accounted for more than 60% of

2432-836: The end of their eighth grade year, students must pass a standardized test to gain admission to public high school in Jaluit or Majuro . South Seas Mandate The South Seas Mandate , officially the Mandate for the German Possessions in the Pacific Ocean Lying North of the Equator , was a League of Nations mandate in the " South Seas " given to the Empire of Japan by the League of Nations following World War I . The mandate consisted of islands in

2496-519: The first time a Japanese civilian published a firsthand account of Micronesia. Three years later, Shiga advocated for annexation of the area by claiming that doing so would "excite an expeditionary spirit in the demoralized Japanese race." Despite the appeal imperialism had for the Japanese public at the time, neither the Meiji government nor the Navy seized any pretexts to fulfill this popular aspiration. It

2560-608: The future of Japan "lies not in the north, but in the south, not on the continent, but on the ocean" and that its "great task" was to "turn the Pacific into a Japanese lake." By the outbreak of World War I the empire included Taiwan , Korea , the Ryukyu Islands , the southern half of Sakhalin island ( Karafuto Prefecture ), the Kuril Islands , and Port Arthur ( Kwantung Leased Territory ). The policy of Nanshin-ron ("Southern Expansion Doctrine"), popular with

2624-468: The indigenous people had very limited financial resources for the purchase of imported goods. The major significance of the territory to the Empire of Japan was its strategic location, which dominated sea lanes across the Pacific Ocean and provided convenient provisioning locations for sailing vessels in need of water, fresh fruit, vegetables and meat. As a signatory of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty , Japan agreed not to build new naval and air stations on

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2688-526: The islands and it did not begin direct military preparations in the Mandate until the late 1930s. Nevertheless, the territory provided important coaling stations for steam-powered vessels and its possession gave an impetus to the Nanshin-ron doctrine of "southward advance". The population of the islands increased during the period of the mandate as a result of Japanese settlement in Micronesia . Settlers were initially drawn from Okinawa Island and

2752-480: The islands controlled under the mandate, viewing the islands as " unsinkable aircraft carriers " with a critical role to play in the defense of the Japanese home islands against potential US invasion. These became important staging grounds for Japanese air and naval offensives in the Pacific War . The Imperial Japanese Army also utilized the islands to support air and land detachments. In order to capture

2816-408: The islands from Japan, the United States military employed a " leapfrogging " strategy which involved conducting amphibious assaults on selected Japanese island fortresses, subjecting some to air attack only and entirely skipping over others. This strategy caused the Japanese Empire to lose control of its Pacific possessions between 1943 and 1945. The League of Nations mandate was formally revoked by

2880-473: The mandate required Japan not to fortify the islands. However, these terms were ambiguous and poorly-defined, specifying only that Japan should not build "fortifications" or construct "military or naval bases". From 1921 the Japanese military began making surveys and plans so that rapid military deployment to the islands would be possible in case of war. During the 1930s, the IJN began construction of airfields, fortifications, ports, and other military projects in

2944-404: The mandate's revenues. At its peak the company maintained over 11,000 hectares (27,000 acres) of sugar plantations using tenant farmers, as well as operating sugar mills on Saipan, Tinian and Rota . Bananas , pineapples , taro , coconuts , manioc , coffee and other tropical farming products were also grown, putting the islands on a par with Taiwan . The islands also provided bases for

3008-593: The north Pacific Ocean that had been part of German New Guinea within the German colonial empire until they were occupied by Japan during World War I. Japan governed the islands under the mandate as part of the Japanese colonial empire until World War II , when the United States captured the islands . The islands then became the United Nations -established Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands governed by

3072-422: The other Ryukyu Islands , but immigrants subsequently came from other parts of Japan, particularly the economically deprived Tōhoku region . Agricultural workers were followed by shopkeepers, restaurant, geisha house and brothel-keepers, expanding former German settlements into Japanese boom towns. The initial population figures (1919–1920) for the mandated territories included around 50,000 islanders, made up from

3136-451: The resettled residents of Kili Island began to experience periods of ocean flooding they attribute to global warming. The highest point of Kili Island is only 3 meters (9.8 ft) above sea level. Ocean waves have covered portions of the island at least five times from 2011 to 2015, contaminating all of the wells on the island. The runway servicing the island is unusable during and after rains because it becomes extremely muddy. In August 2015,

3200-426: The residents, now totaling 184 individuals, moved to Kili Island, but soon learned that the new location was incompatible with their traditional diet and lifestyle based on lagoon fishing. In 1957, the Bikini residents, without any legal representation, signed an agreement with the United States that gave the U.S. complete control of Bikini Atoll. The Bikini families also gave up the right for any future claims against

3264-491: The runway is flooded by rising ocean . Marshall Islands Public School System operates Kili Elementary School. Students are zoned to Jaluit High School in Jaluit Atoll . Kili does not provide enough food for the transplanted residents. In 1949 the Trust Territory administration donated a 40-foot (12 m) ship for transporting copra between Kili and Jaluit Atoll . But the ship was washed by heavy surf onto

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3328-404: The settler population was growing, the indigenous Micronesian population in some areas was declining. The rights and status of the indigenous population differed from those of Japanese imperial subjects. Employment prospects for Micronesians were more restricted, with unequal labor conditions and pay. The government of the Mandate built and maintained hospitals and schools, and free education

3392-420: The shortage of flat land available for airfields. Imperial Japanese Airways began some commercial flights in 1935 using the long-range Kawanishi H6K2-L seaplane . Regular commercial flights were begun in 1940 and a regular service commenced in 1941. Commercial services ceased shortly after the start of Pacific War, but the widespread network of seaplane bases continued to be used during wartime. The terms of

3456-409: The terms of the Mandate. In April 1922 a civilian government was established in each of the six administrative districts (Saipan, Palau, Yap , Truk, Ponape and Jaluit) in the form of a civil administration department which still reported to the local naval garrison commander. At the same time a post of Governor of the South Seas Mandate was created. Governors were mostly admirals or vice-admirals as

3520-447: The time as resettlement trust. For the next decades everything seemed settled, the trust fund, amounting to over 70 million dollars delivered steady payments. Then, in 2017 the KBE leaders wanted unrestricted to access to the whole Trust fund. The United States had previously monitored expenditures, reluctantly agreed. With full control over the Trust Fund, the whole amount going from 70 million to 100 thousand by early 2023. This triggered

3584-409: The trade. However, the economic development of the area was hampered by the distances separating the islands, their small land areas and their small market sizes. The mandate was initially a financial liability for the Japanese government, requiring an annual subsidy from Tokyo. The cash crop of the islands was copra , which was used in many commercial products at the time. During the 1920s and 1930s,

3648-408: Was another mineral product of the colonial economic structure, although the mineral was only present in the Palau group. In 1937 the mother-of-pearl industry became lucrative and large quantities of pearls , both natural and cultured, were extracted from the islands. The South Seas Trading Company had an exclusive contract from 1915 with the IJN to provide freight, passenger, and mail services to

3712-404: Was established on Koror in 1940. Christian mission schools were prohibited from taking Micronesian pupils where government schools existed. Japanese economic involvement in Micronesia began in the late 19th century. Before the establishment of the Mandate, small groups of Japanese entrepreneurs established commercial ventures in German Micronesia and came to control a significant proportion of

3776-406: Was initially subject to yearly scrutiny by the Permanent Mandates Commission of the League of Nations in Geneva , though by the late 1920s Tokyo was rejecting requests for official visitation or international inspection. In 1933 Japan gave notice of withdrawal from the League of Nations, the withdrawal becoming effective two years later. Following the initial Japanese occupation of the islands,

3840-416: Was provided for Micronesian children aged 8–15. However, Micronesian children attended separate schools from those used by Japanese children, and the schooling provided in them was more limited and of shorter duration. Micronesian children often attended boarding schools where compulsory schooling was used to promote Japanese state religion and Shinto rituals. A Shinto shrine known as the Nan'yō Shrine

3904-504: Was supposed to be ongoing aid to the Bikini islanders. But with the money all but gone, It created a tense situation for everybody involved, in that the money that had been set aside to care or the Bikini people, had been spent. This triggered investigations and protests. Kili cannot be reached by ship four months out of the year because of rough seas. The grass Kili Airport is served by Air Marshall Islands , although flights have been grounded when its aircraft are not operational, or when

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3968-412: Was the most important island in the South Seas Mandate and became the center of subsequent Japanese settlement. The towns of Garapan (on Saipan), Koror (on Palau) and Colony (on Ponape) were developed to resemble small towns in Japan, with cinemas, restaurants, beauty parlors and geisha houses . Another important island was Truk in the Carolines archipelago, which was fortified into a major navy base by

4032-535: Was through the commercial operations of fisherman and traders that the Japanese first began to make a wider presence in the region, which continued to grow despite challenges from competing German commercial interests. Although the Japanese public's enthusiasm for southward expansion had abated by the turn of the century, a number of important intellectuals, businessmen, and military officials continued to advocate for it. Among them were Admiral Satō Tetsutarō and Diet member Takekoshi Yosaburō . The latter declared that

4096-418: Was uninhabited until November 2, 1948 when the United States government relocated the Bikini Atoll 's indigenous population from Rongerik Atoll , where they had previously been relocated after their first relocation to Kwajalein Atoll failed. The islanders had consented to what they believed was temporary use of their island for nuclear tests , thinking they would be able to return to their island home within

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