evidence: In 1954, South Korea gained control of Dokdo/Takeshima and has since exercised de facto control over the islands. Successive right-wing and leftist Japanese governments have claimed that the islands are Japanese territory and have argued that South Korea’s control of the islands constitutes an "illegal occupation". In 2005, the Japanese prefecture of Shimane declared an annual "Takeshima Day". In response, two Korean protestors sliced off their little fingers outside the Japanese embassy in Seoul, a site of weekly protests against the Japanese government. Other Koreans responded by publicly burning the Japanese flag – an unsurprising action given that anti-Japanese sentiment is widespread in South Korea. Similarly, in 2012, a Korean man rammed his truck against the gate of the embassy to protest Japan’s claim to the islands. On a 2019 visit, I witnessed an elderly Korean man protesting across the road from the Japanese embassy. The nonagenarian, who was undeterred by the chilly Seoul weather, wore a banner that read: "Dokdo is [the] beautiful territory of the Republic of Korea." The Dokdo/Takeshima dispute continues to strain South Korea and Japan’s government-to-government relations. In 2008, Japan’s Ministry of Education issued a manual to Japanese textbook publishers and teachers encouraging them to instruct their students that the islands constitute Japanese territory. In response, South Korea’s government recalled its ambassador to Tokyo. In 2012, when Lee Myung-bak became the first South Korean president to visit the islands, Japan responded by recalling its ambassador to Seoul.