Hokkaido_Former_Aborigines_Protection_Act
The Hokkaido Former Aborigines Protection Act (Japanese: 北海道旧土人保護法公布) was a Japanese law enacted by the Imperial Diet in 1899 during the reign of Emperor Meiji.[1] The law concerned the status of the indigenous Ainu people of Hokkaido, a population the Imperial government sought to forcibly assimilate.[2] The law was repealed in 1997 and replaced by the Ainu Cultural Promotion Act (CPA).[3][4]
Created under the pretense of protecting the Ainu people, organizations such as the Ainu Association of Hokkaido argue that the law served to confiscate Ainu land and destroy their traditional culture.[5] According to a paper published in the Georgetown Journal of Asian Affairs, "The aim of [the law] was to 'civilize' and 'Japanize' the Ainu from 'barbarians' to 'primitive Japanese'.”[6]