70-Years since VJ-Day

[Lancaster]

Japan Commemorates 70th Anniversary of World War II
Emperor Akihito expresses ‘deep remorse’ over the war

Japanese men clad in outdated military costumes march in to pay respects to the country's war dead at the Yasukuni Shrine. Shuji Kajiyama/Associated Press
Emperor Akihito, left, and Empress Michiko attend the memorial service. Kiyoshi Ota/European Pressphoto Agency
Japan's Emperor Akihito, left, delivers his remarks with Empress Michiko during a memorial service at Nippon Budokan martial arts hall in Tokyo. Shizuo Kambayashi/Associated Press
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows before placing a flower on an altar during a memorial service for war victims in Tokyo. Japan marked the 70th anniversary of the end of the World War II on Saturday. Toru Yamanaka/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Relatives of war dead attend the service. Kiyoshi Ota/European Pressphoto Agency
People release doves as a symbol of peace at Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine on the 70th anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II. Thomas Peter/Reuters
Japanese lawmakers visit the Yasukuni Shrine. Zuma Press
Japanese men clad in outdated military costumes march in to pay respects to the country's war dead at the Yasukuni Shrine. Shuji Kajiyama/Associated Press
Emperor Akihito, left, and Empress Michiko attend the memorial service. Kiyoshi Ota/European Pressphoto Agency
By Alexander Martin And
Peter Landers
Updated Aug. 15, 2015 5:40 a.m. ET
7 COMMENTS

TOKYO—Japanese Emperor Akihito expressed “deep remorse” over World War II at a memorial service, deviating from his customary script in what could be seen as a veiled reproach toward Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s conservative policies.

For many years, the emperor had delivered a virtually identical address at the annual Aug. 15 service for the war dead. But this year, marking the 70th anniversary of the war’s end, he made several additions, including the mention of remorse and a statement that Japan’s postwar prosperity rested on the people’s “earnest desire for the continuation of peace.”

The remarks Saturday came just 18 hours after Mr. Abe, in his own statement marking the anniversary, declined to deliver an explicit apology for the war in his own words, alluding instead to apologies issued by predecessors. The prime minister also said he hoped future generations wouldn’t have to apologize.

The war-anniversary statements came in the middle of a vigorous debate in parliament over Mr. Abe’s push to expand the role of Japan’s armed forces by reinterpreting Japan’s postwar constitution. A majority of voters oppose that move, according to polls.
Emperor Akihito delivers his remarks with Empress Michiko during the memorial service. ENLARGE
Emperor Akihito delivers his remarks with Empress Michiko during the memorial service. Photo: Shizuo Kambayashi/Associated Press
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The 81-year-old emperor’s mention of the “earnest desire for the continuation of peace” echoed language used by the prime minister’s left-leaning critics, who accuse Mr. Abe, 60, of a pushing a “war bill” that would risk ensnaring the nation in another conflict. Mr. Abe said Friday at a news conference that his goal is to preserve peace by bolstering Japan’s defenses in an unstable East Asian region.

Under Japan’s constitution, the emperor is the “symbol of the state” and has no political role. But the emperor’s remarks were the latest and most prominent recent case in which he, or other imperial family members, went out of their way to emphasize facets of history that conservatives, including Mr. Abe, prefer to play down.

“It is most important for us to take this opportunity to study and learn from the history of this war, starting with the Manchurian Incident of 1931, as we consider the future direction of our country,” Emperor Akihito said in his New Year’s address this January, referring to an event that paved the way for Japan’s invasion of Manchuria and later occupation of much of China in the 1930s.

Mr. Abe’s statement Friday also referred to the Manchurian Incident, but put it in the context of “waves of colonial rule” instigated by Western powers. On Saturday, three members of his cabinet visited Yasukuni Shrine, which honors Class A war criminals among other war dead, drawing criticism from China. Mr. Abe didn’t visit but sent an offering of money.

Emperor Akihito and his father, Emperor Hirohito, have expressed remorse or regrets over the war on several occasions. Most recently, at a state banquet in June for Benigno Aquino, the president of the Philippines, Emperor Akihito said Japanese must remember with “a profound sense of remorse” the fierce battles between Japan and the U.S. during World War II.

But this was the first time he used the word remorse at the Aug. 15 ceremony. In interviews this summer, government officials said the emperor was considering adding a personal touch to his remarks this year, in part because his advanced age meant he might not have too many more occasions to deliver his thoughts to the people.

The emperor underwent heart-bypass surgery in 2012, and his wife, Empress Michiko, spent time in a hospital this month with heart problems.
People release doves as a symbol of peace at Yasukuni Shrine on the anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II. ENLARGE
People release doves as a symbol of peace at Yasukuni Shrine on the anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II. Photo: Thomas Peter/Reuters

Some are concerned the emperor’s series of statements may undermine his carefully cultivated role as an apolitical monarch who enjoys the respect of the entire nation, regardless of political persuasion.

Hideo Hosoi, an author who has written books on Emperor Hirohito and World War II, said Emperor Akihito’s remarks Saturday were, in some respects, unexceptionable because everyone in Japan desires the continuation of peace. But in the context of the bitter political battle over the defense bills, he said, “when you have words like this, I fear they may be taken as the opinion of one side.”

The emperor himself experienced the war as a child and was sent to the countryside to escape the American firebombing of Tokyo. During the postwar U.S. occupation of Japan, he was educated partly by an American Quaker tutor.

Kiyofumi Sawa, 72, who visited a war memorial Saturday near the site of the emperor’s speech, said he wasn’t surprised to hear the monarch’s expression of remorse. “I’m sure there are many, many more things he’d like to say,” Mr. Sawa said. “But as the emperor, that’s probably the most he can.”

70 years since the final end to the most destructive events in human history (hopefully).

The week past was the 70th anniversary of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Visited the first city 2 weeks back.

Was photographing a lot of the items at the war museum.... then it struck me, a lot of those items are the only remaining objects left of some of the people that died from the attack. One of them was like some schoolgirl's sandal with her imprints permanently etched onto it.... no other trace of her was found. Or bundle of hair.... donated by the parents of some of the children that died from the radiation sickness right afterwards. Then there's the section of concrete where a shadow is the only thing remaining of that unknown victim.... pretty morbid.

Very haunting and it was interesting to hear some of the stories of survivors. I guy I spoke to mentioned that his was living at the epicenter of the blast with his mother and siblings; his father in the army. They were staying at their home waiting for the father to come home, but one day they received a letter saying he has been killed in combat..... back in 1944. So without any reason to stay in the city since the countryside would be safer, they left their home to the outskirts of the city to prep to move away.

Then the Enola Gay flew overhead. So very oddly enough, it's almost like some mysterious force that turned a family tragedy into a miracle that spared their lives.

I personally believe that the bombings were the logical choice.... of course, I wouldn't mention it to my father-in-law or my wife's family.... as my "Otosan" is actually a survivor of the A-bomb at Hiroshima.... and I guess a lot of people from my wife's side of the family actually perished that day too.

On a related note....

I always found the controversy with Japan and whether or not they have apologized and whatnot to countries that invaded.... kinda weird. The Germans aren't even constantly bombarded with the crimes some of their forefathers committed, but the Japanese seemed to be.

China and S. Korea keep saying the Japanese needs to apologize... but any simple Google search will show multiple times it happened before.

As for reparations.... there are sources that Japan paid billions to the South Koreans during the 60's and 70's and with an understanding that the issue (governmental and citizens) should be closed.... but still you hear about how individuals are still demanding compensation.

Your thoughts?

[nucklehead]

Japan makes better stuff than China.

[tbone909]

The bombs that were dropped by the U.S. were seen and still thought of as a necessary evil to put a quick end to the war in the Pacific. By the summer of 45 the U.S. economy was all most at it's breaking point and with America fighting wars on 2 fronts the American people just want it over. It has been estimated at the time of the planned attack of the home islands ( Operation Downfall ) would have cost the U.S depending on the degree to which Japanese civilians resisted the invasion, estimates ran into the millions for Allied casualties and tens of millions for Japanese casualties. I know these are just theories but considering that the Battle Of Okinawa where the U.S. suffered 72,000 US casualties in 82 days, the people of Okinawa much greater.

[Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw]

On a related note....

I always found the controversy with Japan and whether or not they have apologized and whatnot to countries that invaded.... kinda weird. The Germans aren't even constantly bombarded with the crimes some of their forefathers committed, but the Japanese seemed to be.

China and S. Korea keep saying the Japanese needs to apologize... but any simple Google search will show multiple times it happened before.

As for reparations.... there are sources that Japan paid billions to the South Koreans during the 60's and 70's and with an understanding that the issue (governmental and citizens) should be closed.... but still you hear about how individuals are still demanding compensation.

Your thoughts?

You seem to know very little about Korea's occupation period. A simple Google search isn't going to inform you about anything. Also, Japanese war revisionism is rampant compared to the Germans.

[tbone909]

Also some great Japanese films dealing with the subject matter dealing with the end of the Pacific War are Barefoot Gen and Japan's longest Day to name just a few.

[smithers joe]

i was 6 years old back then....i don't remember any celebrations, but i'm sure my mom was glad my brother came back alive....

even though he came back damaged....every time the air raid sirens went off, we had to blacken out the windows..just for practise..

i don't know if japan could have beaten without the bombs, or how many more people would have died?...there should probably be appologies from all sides...

[etsen3]

In my view the popular view that Japan had the attitude of "fighting to the last man" is an oversimplification and an attempt to justify a war crime by "MURICA" types. When people say it "saved lives" you have to remember that people will say anything to justify questionable thing that they have done. Obviously, there were many officials that really did want to fight till the bitter end. Those are called hawks and they exist in every government. However there is evidence that the government of Japan was willing to surrender, and the US had some idea of it. Now would they have surrendered for sure? We don't know and the US didn't know for sure at the time either. But if you're gonna use a weapon of that magnitude to kill that many civilians, you had better be 100% sure you're only using it as a last resort. The terms Japan was proposing were essentially the same as the ones accepted by the US after the bombs were dropped. Not to mention, were two bombs really necessary?

I agree that there should be apologies on all sides as the Japanese also committed countless atrocities during the way as well.

[elvis15]

Reminds me of something I saw yesterday (or was it the day before) about people in Hong Kong still trying to get military yen exchanged after the occupation by the Japanese forced locals to change all their currency for the military yen instead.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-33906603

...

"When the Japanese army took over, they immediately forced people to exchange their money for military yen," the sprightly 88-year-old says, also recalling tales of extreme brutality.

He remembers queuing behind the Peninsula Hotel to change money.

Mr Lam has 100,000 worth of military yen, in notes from 100 yen, the biggest denomination, to one sen, the smallest denomination.

...

After the surrender, Japan's finance ministry declared that military notes were no longer exchangeable for ordinary yen.

The policy of the British colonial government was to refuse the yen, for fear of large inflows of such cash from southern China.

"It is suggested that all occupation currency should be destroyed immediately and that a relief office by the Government be set up for the amelioration of hardship in deserving cases using only lawful currency or assistance in kind," according to a document written by colonial officials in August 1945.

...

The association fought for six years in a Tokyo court asking the Japanese government to honour the notes. Their demands were rejected in 1999.

But Lau Man, president of the association, has vowed to continue fighting.

"We believe the Japanese government will have to settle this matter sooner or later," he says.

The association would consider accepting a settlement from the Japanese government along the lines of a previous offer made to former soldiers in Taiwan.

...

In 1994, the Japanese government agreed to pay the unpaid wages and frozen savings accounts of Taiwanese soldiers who had served in the Imperial Army.

Japan offered to repay the money at 120 times the wartime rate.

At that rate, the 540 million in military yen owned by Hong Kong families would be worth about 65 billion yen, or $520m (£330m).

Mr Lam's share would be around $96,400 at current exchange rates.

Not to hijack this but thought it was related to the discussion around repatriations and all that.

[Lancaster]

You seem to know very little about Korea's occupation period. A simple Google search isn't going to inform you about anything. Also, Japanese war revisionism is rampant compared to the Germans.

What an assumption... you couldn't be further from the truth.

Japan did bad things to Korea? Not saying it's in any way justified, but Japan is hardly the only guilty party. Prior to Japanese influence... the Russian Empire... the Qing Dynasty....

As for reparations.... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_on_Basic_Relations_between_Japan_and_the_Republic_of_Korea

Japan as apologized many times from PMs to even their Emperor. They have paid hundreds of millions / billions in compensation to the governments of victim countries. I just don't understand the constant rhetoric from the South Koreans and especially China about how Japan needs to "own up" to their past when evidence has proven otherwise.

I mean.... except under the current political climate, you don't hear about Russians hoping to wipe Germany off the map for the amount deaths caused during the Great Patriotic War. Or Israel demanding Germany to keep apologizing for crimes of the Nazis. France isn't even p/o about the Franco-Prussian War, WW1, WW2, anymore.

I get the "revisionist" part, but then again, pretty much every country does it to certain extent. There are some textbooks distributed in Japan that goes above and beyond what the actual truth is... and while it is wrong, that's just a fraction of the total textbooks in circulation. Not like regular Japanese people are like "Nanking Massacre? No idea".... most are like, "Yeah.... lots of bad things happened there."

If you ever visit a museum in South Korea, it is very offensive to anyone who knows a bit about history. It paints the Japanese people in the most unflattering angle. While I haven't visited a Holocaust museum in Europe or Israel, I really doubt it would say things like, "caused by Germans" "Germans stole our land" "Murdered by Germans", etc. I believe they would be using words like Fascists and Nazis to make sure there's a distinction between the actual people and the government at the time. Just a bit of double standards IMO.

At some point, people need to stop blaming people for crimes that they and maybe even their parents didn't even commit.

[John Tortorella]

Those two bombs were dropped for good reason.

1. Ended the war. The civilian tag always bothers me because its the people not at the warfront who make the munitions and equipment for the war. Hospital targeting would be bad, targeting the engine of your enemy is intellegent and a cost of war. The likely hood is more lives on the 'good' team were going to be lost if use land occupation so they opted to save their own people (kinda the point in war)

2. The more important fact is that the bombs needed to go off in small sizes. Yes there was huge death counts but compare the effect on human life between those 2 nukes and the potential of the tzar bomba. The 2 nukes killed himsns but generally spared japan. The tzar or more modern bombs are much larger and likely would have ended japan. To be clear I am not saying they would have use bigger bombs on japan, I am saying we have a clear image of how much damage a small nuke does and now are infinitely hesitent no matter who the target to actually use nukes. So if we were going to drop a bomb eventually on someone, fortunately it was as small as it was.

And still of course, RIP to the undeserving; children and others who disagreed with japans direction.

[Offensive Threat]

The firebombing of Tokyo over many weeks was more devastating than the 2 nukes together. The entire city was practically razed. Yet its seen as fine. Only because they were nukes was it "bad". Its all just a matter of perception.

P.S. anyone wanting to point to America as the bad guy here should check out the rape of Nanking ( Nanking massacre) to see who the real bad guys were. By an incredible margin. Prince Asaka of the royal family should have been executed for war crimes.

[Ghostsof1915]

I think Iwo Jima was very fresh in the minds of the Americans. They figured it would take a week. (Wildly optimistic)

It took more than a month. They understood if that was how an invasion of Japan was going to be, it would be a blood bath.

Sadly the atomic bomb was as much to end the war with Japan and to show Russia the US had the bomb, and no one else did at the time.

War is cruel and barbarous, there's no such thing as a nice war.

[KoreanHockeyFan]

On a related note....

I always found the controversy with Japan and whether or not they have apologized and whatnot to countries that invaded.... kinda weird. The Germans aren't even constantly bombarded with the crimes some of their forefathers committed, but the Japanese seemed to be.

China and S. Korea keep saying the Japanese needs to apologize... but any simple Google search will show multiple times it happened before.

As for reparations.... there are sources that Japan paid billions to the South Koreans during the 60's and 70's and with an understanding that the issue (governmental and citizens) should be closed.... but still you hear about how individuals are still demanding compensation.

Your thoughts?

The cultural/diplomatic tensions between the three countries will always be there. PM Abe only just admitted to the existence of "comfort women" earlier this year and actually outright rejected their existence back in 2007 during his previous tenure as PM; that really pissed China and Korea off.

Not to mentioned that several school textbooks in Japan don't even talk about the Nanjing Massacre or the comfort women that were abused during WW2. However, I don't think it would be right to let Korea off the hook either. I'm not sure about China, but kids in Korea get a quite biased (aka negative) opinion on Japan whether it be from school or their own families.

It's a strange region given the fact that all three countries depend quite a lot on each other in terms of trade, but diplomatic relations have always been strained, especially recently with Abe's tabled legislation which would allow the Japanese military to operate beyond matters of national defence.

[Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw]

What an assumption... you couldn't be further from the truth.

Japan did bad things to Korea? Not saying it's in any way justified, but Japan is hardly the only guilty party. Prior to Japanese influence... the Russian Empire... the Qing Dynasty....

As for reparations.... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_on_Basic_Relations_between_Japan_and_the_Republic_of_Korea

Japan as apologized many times from PMs to even their Emperor. They have paid hundreds of millions / billions in compensation to the governments of victim countries. I just don't understand the constant rhetoric from the South Koreans and especially China about how Japan needs to "own up" to their past when evidence has proven otherwise.

I mean.... except under the current political climate, you don't hear about Russians hoping to wipe Germany off the map for the amount deaths caused during the Great Patriotic War. Or Israel demanding Germany to keep apologizing for crimes of the Nazis. France isn't even p/o about the Franco-Prussian War, WW1, WW2, anymore.

I get the "revisionist" part, but then again, pretty much every country does it to certain extent. There are some textbooks distributed in Japan that goes above and beyond what the actual truth is... and while it is wrong, that's just a fraction of the total textbooks in circulation. Not like regular Japanese people are like "Nanking Massacre? No idea".... most are like, "Yeah.... lots of bad things happened there."

If you ever visit a museum in South Korea, it is very offensive to anyone who knows a bit about history. It paints the Japanese people in the most unflattering angle. While I haven't visited a Holocaust museum in Europe or Israel, I really doubt it would say things like, "caused by Germans" "Germans stole our land" "Murdered by Germans", etc. I believe they would be using words like Fascists and Nazis to make sure there's a distinction between the actual people and the government at the time. Just a bit of double standards IMO.

At some point, people need to stop blaming people for crimes that they and maybe even their parents didn't even commit.

Oh wow. So now you're comparing Japanese-Korean history to Qing-Korean history or Russian-Korean history. Yes, the Korean Kingdom was a vassal state for quite some time. But since the Russians and Qing Empire and Japan are all the same to you, then I really need to hit the books. I guess the Chinese and the Russians.... annexed Korea and attempted to wipe out Korean culture the same way the Japanese did. Uh-huh. They must've also banned Koreans from speaking Korean and forced to adopt a new language, a new religion, and new names of course. Sure. Right. Because Korea-Japan history... was just like France-German history, or German-Russia history, right? To even compare Korea-Japan to the Qing or Russia or France just shows how little you know about colonial Korea and Imperial Japan.

You've surely visited Yasukuni Shrine and seen how flattering they portray the war criminals and institution which brought about the atrocities during Japanese rule. You talk about the Nanjing Massacre. "Lots of bad things happened there"? Do you honestly accept that? If you were teaching a socials class to Canadian students about residential schools, would you be okay if a kid wrote "bad things happened" on their paper...?

The way my grandparents described Colonial Korea, it was like the residential schools here in Canada. Korea the undesirable province of Imperial Japan that nobody cared about. Unlike Taiwan, Korea was no tourist destination but truly a land of peasants. And like the Aboriginals here, the occupation was a half-assed assimilation attempt. And do you honestly expect the Aboriginals to stop expressing their outrage and frustration?

Japan has never answered to their crimes of comfort women. Nobody has answered to those crimes, not even the Koreans themselves. I won't pretend to claim the Koreans have not done their fair share of atrocities during the war and after the division of Korea. I don't hesitate to raise this issue among younger Koreans, who are so amped up in pro-Korean nationalism and anti-Japan, and have nothing to say about the Gwangju Massacre or the lesser-known Jeju Massacre where thousands were killed and executed. They can give me as many dirty looks as they want for all I care.

But going back to Japan, they've rarely answered for anything they've done. You clearly DON'T get Japanese revisionism, since their current prime minister is affiliated with those insane right-wing historians. There is a reason why China and Korea have been resenting Japan over his tenure. He is absolutely notorious for trying to wash over history. Abe is able to do this because the Japanese economy has been in the toilet for decades, and thus he gets free reign over social policy and national history.

The German army (Wehrmacht), for the most part, was a well-trained army and mostly civil in their occupation duties. And then you had the SS. Same with Japan, where elements of the IJA and IJN were relatively civil and respsected Geneva Conventions. And then there was the Kwantung Army. They raped, pillaged and murdered wherever they went, especially as they swept down the Chinese coast. They were as bad as the SS.

The reparations you spoke of went straight to the Korean government, not the individuals affected (yes, the Korean government should be shamed for not giving this money back to the people). And these payments were made in the same way America gave Korea money. This wasn't because the Japanese admitted to the mistreatment of the Korean population.

Learning about the dark parts of history are never easy, and stuff like this gets so politicized that you not only have to sift through the bullcrap people write, you also have to READ the bullcrap to better understand what one side thinks of the other. Lost in all of this is the truth. But understand this: the Japanese attempted to wipe Korea clean off the map. The Kwantung army brought about pure destruction wherever they went. And neither the government nor the perpetrators have answered for their crimes. Meanwhile Abe Shinzo continues to spew his revisionist crap to the people and to the world. You can choose to believe whatever you want. I choose to believe the truth or die trying to find out what that truth is.

The cultural/diplomatic tensions between the three countries will always be there. PM Abe only just admitted to the existence of "comfort women" earlier this year and actually outright rejected their existence back in 2007 during his previous tenure as PM; that really pissed China and Korea off.

Not to mentioned that several school textbooks in Japan don't even talk about the Nanjing Massacre or the comfort women that were abused during WW2. However, I don't think it would be right to let Korea off the hook either. I'm not sure about China, but kids in Korea get a quite biased (aka negative) opinion on Japan whether it be from school or their own families.

It's a strange region given the fact that all three countries depend quite a lot on each other in terms of trade, but diplomatic relations have always been strained, especially recently with Abe's tabled legislation which would allow the Japanese military to operate beyond matters of national defence.

As I said earlier in this post, the Koreans have always been swept up in their own ultra-nationalism. But when talking about their own history, they turn to the Seoul-centric edition, where the history of South Korea was overall good and without much problem. While this might... sort of be true in Seoul, the rest of South Korea had to deal with the atrocities of their own government. I'll let you find the facts out yourself.

On a more personal note... don't be so open about this stuff in Seoul. But use the resources there to find out more about South Korean history and why everyone outside Seoul.... hates Seoul so much (and vice versa).

[Lancaster]

Oh wow. So now you're comparing Japanese-Korean history to Qing-Korean history or Russian-Korean history. Yes, the Korean Kingdom was a vassal state for quite some time. But since the Russians and Qing Empire and Japan are all the same to you, then I really need to hit the books. I guess the Chinese and the Russians.... annexed Korea and attempted to wipe out Korean culture the same way the Japanese did. Uh-huh. They must've also banned Koreans from speaking Korean and forced to adopt a new language, a new religion, and new names of course. Sure. Right. Because Korea-Japan history... was just like France-German history, or German-Russia history, right? To even compare Korea-Japan to the Qing or Russia or France just shows how little you know about colonial Korea and Imperial Japan.

You've surely visited Yasukuni Shrine and seen how flattering they portray the war criminals and institution which brought about the atrocities during Japanese rule. You talk about the Nanjing Massacre. "Lots of bad things happened there"? Do you honestly accept that? If you were teaching a socials class to Canadian students about residential schools, would you be okay if a kid wrote "bad things happened" on their paper...?

The way my grandparents described Colonial Korea, it was like the residential schools here in Canada. Korea the undesirable province of Imperial Japan that nobody cared about. Unlike Taiwan, Korea was no tourist destination but truly a land of peasants. And like the Aboriginals here, the occupation was a half-assed assimilation attempt. And do you honestly expect the Aboriginals to stop expressing their outrage and frustration?

Japan has never answered to their crimes of comfort women. Nobody has answered to those crimes, not even the Koreans themselves. I won't pretend to claim the Koreans have not done their fair share of atrocities during the war and after the division of Korea. I don't hesitate to raise this issue among younger Koreans, who are so amped up in pro-Korean nationalism and anti-Japan, and have nothing to say about the Gwangju Massacre or the lesser-known Jeju Massacre where thousands were killed and executed. They can give me as many dirty looks as they want for all I care.

But going back to Japan, they've rarely answered for anything they've done. You clearly DON'T get Japanese revisionism, since their current prime minister is affiliated with those insane right-wing historians. There is a reason why China and Korea have been resenting Japan over his tenure. He is absolutely notorious for trying to wash over history. Abe is able to do this because the Japanese economy has been in the toilet for decades, and thus he gets free reign over social policy and national history.

The German army (Wehrmacht), for the most part, was a well-trained army and mostly civil in their occupation duties. And then you had the SS. Same with Japan, where elements of the IJA and IJN were relatively civil and respsected Geneva Conventions. And then there was the Kwantung Army. They raped, pillaged and murdered wherever they went, especially as they swept down the Chinese coast. They were as bad as the SS.

The reparations you spoke of went straight to the Korean government, not the individuals affected (yes, the Korean government should be shamed for not giving this money back to the people). And these payments were made in the same way America gave Korea money. This wasn't because the Japanese admitted to the mistreatment of the Korean population.

Learning about the dark parts of history are never easy, and stuff like this gets so politicized that you not only have to sift through the bullcrap people write, you also have to READ the bullcrap to better understand what one side thinks of the other. Lost in all of this is the truth. But understand this: the Japanese attempted to wipe Korea clean off the map. The Kwantung army brought about pure destruction wherever they went. And neither the government nor the perpetrators have answered for their crimes. Meanwhile Abe Shinzo continues to spew his revisionist crap to the people and to the world. You can choose to believe whatever you want. I choose to believe the truth or die trying to find out what that truth is.

As I said earlier in this post, the Koreans have always been swept up in their own ultra-nationalism. But when talking about their own history, they turn to the Seoul-centric edition, where the history of South Korea was overall good and without much problem. While this might... sort of be true in Seoul, the rest of South Korea had to deal with the atrocities of their own government. I'll let you find the facts out yourself.

On a more personal note... don't be so open about this stuff in Seoul. But use the resources there to find out more about South Korean history and why everyone outside Seoul.... hates Seoul so much (and vice versa).

Occupation is rarely ever a good thing, I don't think anyone is doubting that. But are those actions above and beyond most policies of most imperial powers at the time? British India probably isn't the best place to live if you weren't British. How much of their cultural treasures were lost and how many people were killed/exploited during that era? Once again, not justifying it, but context is key.

Just because Japan did annex Korea, it wasn't like they were bulldozing ever Korean building and banning the use of Hangul overnight. The Korean language was in place and was still promoted up until the lead up to WW2.... 30 years after formal annexation and 70 years after Japan started expanding into Korea. Not including the building of many museums and having laws enacted to protect Korean cultural artifacts.... the Japanese sure went above and beyond what was required, even though you say they're supposedly trying to eliminate that culture.

As for adopting Japanese surnames.... 80% of the population voluntarily did it by 1940. Why would they do it you ask? Because of social and economic reasons. Most of the elites in society were Japanese and Korean who were pro-Japan.... people followed celebrities then as much as they do now.

I hate to sound like I'm promoting the Japanese equivalent of the "White Man's Burden"... but Korea really was a very backward country at the time. Primarily agricultural, steeped in Feudalism and with even a caste system in place..... it's not like Korea was some rising player in the world that got suddenly quashed by their neighbour to the East. Under Japanese rule, industrialization was finally implemented properly with productions in agriculture, forestry, and manufacture went up 10 times pre-annexation levels.

Japan wanted to make Korea into another region of Japan, much like Hokkaido and Okinawa.... far different from the narrative you hear that conjures up images of near holocaust concentration camps, slave workers in factories and the Gestapos at every street corner.

As for the Yasukuni Shrine... I actually never had the opportunity to visit there. Always on my list, but I always seem to catch a cold every time I take the Shinkansen to Tokyo. While it does have 1000 war criminals in there (some more severe than others).... there are also 2.5 million regular Japanese armed forces names instilled there. A visit to that shrine doesn't automatically means that one is supporting those war criminals, as that subsection only makes up 0.04% of the total amount of people enshrined there. It's pretty much like the equivalent to the Arlington National Cemetery. The first controversy began when the Chinese started protesting in 1985... suspicious timing IMO.

For Japanese revision... yes it happens. My wife still partially believe that Japan is the victim in WW2, courtesy of the bombings. Which I then go, "Hey, you should research a bit on Operation Downfall.... Remember watching Saving Private Ryan? Yeah? But times ten!"

Yet, she learned that Japan committed a lot of atrocities in East Asia. I don't know anyone who is Japan who didn't learn that before. But with all historical disgrace, you don't keep focusing on it. We don't go up to German people and say, "Hey! Don't forget what the Nazis did!"

Money given to South Korea should have ended the compensation question. As under the agreement, the South Korea accepting it means forgoing any claims in the future by government AND individuals. If the South Koreans are having a problem with it, take it up with Seoul.... not Tokyo.

As for the admission of guilt and apologies.... it appears that it has been expressed many times already. https://en.wikipedia.org

/wiki/List_of_war_apology_statements_issued_by_Japan

Plus who knows how many apologies from lower level ministers and such.

When Japan has seemingly apologies many dozens of times, paid millions and billions to the respective government in compensation and still continue to invest capital in neighbouring countries.... what more do they still need to do? Must PM Abe or Emperor Akihito get on all fours and take it in the rear un-lubed on national TV by Xi Jinping and Park Geun-hye before the matter is finally settled?

[RUPERTKBD]

70 years since the final end to the most destructive events in human history (hopefully).

Well, except for Autotune...

I think Iwo Jima was very fresh in the minds of the Americans. They figured it would take a week. (Wildly optimistic)

It took more than a month. They understood if that was how an invasion of Japan was going to be, it would be a blood bath.

Sadly the atomic bomb was as much to end the war with Japan and to show Russia the US had the bomb, and no one else did at the time.

War is cruel and barbarous, there's no such thing as a nice war.

Exactly. The Americans (and the Brits) knew that Stalin was going to be a problem and the A-Bomb was a way of flexing their muscles.

[Gurn]

Shame the Americans couldn't just tell the Japanese to watch that little island 100 miles off their coast disappear. Proves a point and saves lives. But doing that would not show what a bomb that size does to an actual city. Then dropping one on Nagasaki was a travesty, no way was that needed, a phone call would have sufficed.

[Jaimito]

Shame the Americans couldn't just tell the Japanese to watch that little island 100 miles off their coast disappear. Proves a point and saves lives. But doing that would not show what a bomb that size does to an actual city. Then dropping one on Nagasaki was a travesty, no way was that needed, a phone call would have sufficed.

Not really. The emperor wanted to save himself, and could not come to terms of surrender. How many A bombs dropped is irrelevant as how much killing it required to win the war. The fact they didn't surrender before Hiroshima just silly. Tokyo was in fire for months, zero air defense. US pounding them 24/7. Yet the generals ordered their men to fight to the last man. That is evil. Sending men to their deaths when there is zero hope of victory. Japan underestimated the Americans, and their racist arrogance thought the attack on Pearl Harbor would be enough to demoralize US from going to war. Ironically, their cruel massacre of Chinese strengthened the Chinese resolve to never surrender to such a barbaric culture. Heck, the emperor didn't even commit suicide after surrendering like his soldiers did. What a coward.

[Jaimito]

On a related note....

I always found the controversy with Japan and whether or not they have apologized and whatnot to countries that invaded.... kinda weird. The Germans aren't even constantly bombarded with the crimes some of their forefathers committed, but the Japanese seemed to be.

China and S. Korea keep saying the Japanese needs to apologize... but any simple Google search will show multiple times it happened before.

As for reparations.... there are sources that Japan paid billions to the South Koreans during the 60's and 70's and with an understanding that the issue (governmental and citizens) should be closed.... but still you hear about how individuals are still demanding compensation.

Your thoughts?

That's a correct observation on how Germans reconciliated with most of Europe a while Japan did not. Short answer is that Germany was better at it.

Merkel recently mentioned it is up to Japan and its neighbors to achieve a better relationship, but didn't give specifics. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-31792313

There seem to be many reasons why reconciliation in Europe was better achieved. Most war criminals in Nazi were executed or jailed. Several Japanese war criminals didn't get executed, and Emperors life was spared. Imagine if Hitler didn't commit suicide, and was not executed? Since the Emperor didn't take the blame, many Japanese also felt to be blameless. After all, it was the savagery of the Americans that forced them to surrender. Current Japanese PM's father was a war criminal that escaped punishment, and people like Abe are perpetuating revisionist history.

Second, post war German Chancellor made symbolic gestures to apologize at the Polish memorial. Anyone who saw that would be moved by the sincere gesture. In contrast, Japan never did anything similar. No head of state visited China or Korea to show some remorse to help the healing. Not only that, some even denied that Rape of Nanjing even happened. My Japanese friend even argued that the estimated numbers of death and rape were overestimated. I wondered what number he thought was "ok" to kill and rape? He clearly did not feel Japan was the cause of the war, but rather a victim. That's why I find those A bomb memorials pointless and somewhat offensive. They just reinforce the Japanese victimhood mentality, without addressing their responsibility of causing the war. Getting killed by A bomb is no more evil than getting fire bombed. Technologically, it is a historic reminder of how easy humans can kill each other, and why such weapons should not be used. That is the biggest lesson from those two cities.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gsofFmdDMvs/Up71O5cmBhI/AAAAAAAAxso/m9V2ngEKmTk/s1600/Brandt+in+Warsaw+Ghetto.jpg

Further time and time again, different Japanese leaders will make statements insincere of the governments role in the war, as well as visiting the grave sites where the war criminals are buried. 14 class A war criminals were added to the military shrine in the 1970s. Does Chancellor Merkel ever visit the Nazi general's grave annually? Can you imagine the outrage by its neighbors if she did that?

So, in a nut shell, it's not so much Korea or China still asks for apologizes or hold grudges. Even UK soldiers mistreated as POWs have spoke out against Japan, and protested when Emperor of Japan visited UK. When you apologize, do it like you mean it. And why after 70 years, do these neighboring countries still don't get along? It shouldn't be that way. The people who did it are mostly all dead now, while their ancestors have to deal with their crimes. It should have been dealt with decades ago. That's why I do think the current Emperors gesture or speech somewhat more optimistic in helping to turn down that nationalistic and revisionist movement in Japan. That will be a good step in preventing future wars.

This is a neat read about some decedents of Japanese war criminals trying to make a positive difference. There is still hope.

http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/1849837/descendants-japanese-leaders-during-second-world-war-reach-out?r44b=no

7 decades after WWII, many praise Germany, scorn Japan

By FOSTER KLUG

http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/7-decades-after-wwii-many-praise-germany-scorn-japan/comments/popular/id/5704775

​

Why Japan Is Still Not Sorry Enough

By Kirk Spitzer

​

http://nation.time.com/2012/12/11/why-japan-is-still-not-sorry-enough/

​

[Lancaster]

That's a correct observation on how Germans reconciliated with most of Europe a while Japan did not. Short answer is that Germany was better at it.

Merkel recently mentioned it is up to Japan and its neighbors to achieve a better relationship, but didn't give specifics. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-31792313

There seem to be many reasons why reconciliation in Europe was better achieved. Most war criminals in Nazi were executed or jailed. Several Japanese war criminals didn't get executed, and Emperors life was spared. Imagine if Hitler didn't commit suicide, and was not executed? Since the Emperor didn't take the blame, many Japanese also felt to be blameless. After all, it was the savagery of the Americans that forced them to surrender. Current Japanese PM's father was a war criminal that escaped punishment, and people like Abe are perpetuating revisionist history.

Second, post war German Chancellor made symbolic gestures to apologize at the Polish memorial. Anyone who saw that would be moved by the sincere gesture. In contrast, Japan never did anything similar. No head of state visited China or Korea to show some remorse to help the healing. Not only that, some even denied that Rape of Nanjing even happened. My Japanese friend even argued that the estimated numbers of death and rape were overestimated. I wondered what number he thought was "ok" to kill and rape? He clearly did not feel Japan was the cause of the war, but rather a victim. That's why I find those A bomb memorials pointless and somewhat offensive. They just reinforce the Japanese victimhood mentality, without addressing their responsibility of causing the war. Getting killed by A bomb is no more evil than getting fire bombed. Technologically, it is a historic reminder of how easy humans can kill each other, and why such weapons should not be used. That is the biggest lesson from those two cities.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gsofFmdDMvs/Up71O5cmBhI/AAAAAAAAxso/m9V2ngEKmTk/s1600/Brandt+in+Warsaw+Ghetto.jpg

Further time and time again, different Japanese leaders will make statements insincere of the governments role in the war, as well as visiting the grave sites where the war criminals are buried. 14 class A war criminals were added to the military shrine in the 1970s. Does Chancellor Merkel ever visit the Nazi general's grave annually? Can you imagine the outrage by its neighbors if she did that?

So, in a nut shell, it's not so much Korea or China still asks for apologizes or hold grudges. Even UK soldiers mistreated as POWs have spoke out against Japan, and protested when Emperor of Japan visited UK. When you apologize, do it like you mean it. And why after 70 years, do these neighboring countries still don't get along? It shouldn't be that way. The people who did it are mostly all dead now, while their ancestors have to deal with their crimes. It should have been dealt with decades ago. That's why I do think the current Emperors gesture or speech somewhat more optimistic in helping to turn down that nationalistic and revisionist movement in Japan. That will be a good step in preventing future wars.

This is a neat read about some decedents of Japanese war criminals trying to make a positive difference. There is still hope.

http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/1849837/descendants-japanese-leaders-during-second-world-war-reach-out?r44b=no

7 decades after WWII, many praise Germany, scorn Japan

By FOSTER KLUG

http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/7-decades-after-wwii-many-praise-germany-scorn-japan/comments/popular/id/5704775

​

Why Japan Is Still Not Sorry Enough

By Kirk Spitzer

​

http://nation.time.com/2012/12/11/why-japan-is-still-not-sorry-enough/

​

Yasukuni isn't a war memorial dedicated to only those war criminals... it's originally dedicated for anyone in the Japanese armed forces that gave up their lives for their country. Going there doesn't automatically mean you're denying the crimes of the past and glorifying the war.... it means you're respecting the fallen, in spite of certain "undesired" being there.

It's true that adding war criminals probably wasn't the best thing to do, but protesting the "Class A" is more political than supposed outrage. Class A means that anyone who was "against peace", meaning the politicians and high level people in charge, except for the Imperial family. The foreign ambassadors, finance ministers, the generals, etc.... were tried and convicted.... hardly the really "war criminals" type you imagine they'd be. When I first heard "Class A", I automatically assumed they were the guys running Unit 731, in charge during the Rape of Nanking, people running the death camps, etc.... but nope, they are "Class B" and "Class C". If the leaders of China and Korea are really pissed about something, it should be the Class B and C folks.

I always believe that action worth more than words. Japan paid money, invest capital, and even giving military equipments to their neighbours.... plus tacking on apologies given already.... it seem to me that the issue should already be settled.