In the Edo period, Hokkaidō was assigned to the provincial government of the Matsumae clan. Ainu were forced into laboring for one-seventh to one-fifth pay by Matsumae retainers, which the Ainu regarded as slavery.
In the Edo period, Hokkaidō was under the control of the Matsumae clan. The Ainu people were compelled to work for a fraction of their wages, a practice they viewed as enslavement.