Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C) is led by a Shinto priest as he visits Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo December 26, 2013. (Reuters / Toru Hanai)
RT: Enough with WWII apologies: Japan PM sees no need to reinforce remorse
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has implied Tokyo is not going to reiterate an apology for WWII aggression and war crimes in a special statement marking the 70th anniversary of the end of the war in the Pacific to be issued later this year.
Speaking to Fuji TV on Monday night, Abe mentioned there will be no more apologies to the victims of Japanese aggression during the WWII, as apologies made in the past have already made the point.
On 50th and 60th anniversaries of Japan’s defeat in August 1945, Abe’s predecessors issued apologies for conduct during the WWII.
WNU Editor: My nationality is Russian .... so I know full well the harm and damage that the Nazis did to eastern Europe during World War II. But I do not expect (or want) Germany's apologies .... they have done more than enough since the end of the war to atone for what they did .... it is now time to move on because I know I have .... and people like my mother .... who experienced the war first hand .... she has forgiven them and she has moved on. But I give credit to the Germans .... they still apologize and they are still sensitive to what happened 70 years ago. The Japanese .... that is another story .... they have not done enough .... but I chalk that up to nationalism and cultural pride. It is a strength .... but it is also their weakness .... and as long as they continue to be stubborn on this issue, the rest of Asia will never forgive them.
Update: Some carry their guilt for a life time .... Auschwitz guard goes on trial, says he shares moral guilt (AP).
4 comments:
It is time to move on.
But the Japanese government has never given a full apology. All they need is one apology, but a complete one.
What is printed in textbooks matter.
From what I know of the post WW2 generation (at least from 1 person) is that it is a thing of the past.
However, IMHO without a complete apology and with all the 'buts' and caveats thrown in it makes it easy for a demagogues in many different countries to inflame nationalist passions.
Which would be a problem if that country were big and looking for a pretext.
Doesn't demanding an apology after six decades also risk inflaming nationalists in Japan?
I see your point though, Aizino.
What would a complete apology look like to you?
The difference between Germany and Japan is that, Japan's role in the war is more confusing. The U.S. embargo and the blatantly racist diplomats gives off the impression of deceit and manipulation.
Then there's China using the war in arguments over stuff like the Senkaku islands, which isn't exackly helpful.
Alex,
Obviously to many observers Germany gave one and Japan did not.
The only problem at this late date is that some unscrupulous people would use a complete apology as an excuse to walk all over Japan. So an apology at this late date might be impossible or at least problematic.
Dragon,
Inflaming tensions over Senkaku islands might have been harder if Japan had issued an apology sometime between the late 1940s and the 1990s.
An embargo on scrap iron was a sanction. If we can't embargo a country waging aggressive war like in China, then we have 2 options. Sit on our hands or war then & there or in the future.
Post a Comment