Japan furious at UNESCO listing Nanjing Massacre documents

[GennGreymane]

http://www.dw.com/en/japan-furious-a...nts/a-18790477

The campaign for Japan to "act decisively" in its dispute with the United Nations Education, Science and Culture Organization (UNESCO) over the listing of documents on the 1937 Nanjing Massacre is gathering steam, with conservatives calling on the government to halt funding for the organization in protest.

Yoshihide Suga, the chief cabinet secretary, hinted on October 12 that Japan might reduce or halt entirely the financial support it provides to UNESCO after China was successful in listing documents, photographs and film footage relating to the Imperial Japanese Army's attack on the city and the subsequent killing of civilians in its "Memory of the World" repository.
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The "Documents of the Nanjing Massacre" also include paperwork from the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, during which several Japanese military leaders were convicted of war crimes for the atrocities carried in the city.
China insists that 300,000 people died in the assault on the city and in a bloody rampage by Japanese troops following its capitulation, the majority civilians.

Independent assessments of the incident put the death toll at between 20,000 and 200,000. And while Japan admits that civilians died in Nanjing and that looting took place, it takes issue with the number that China claims and is angry that the documents submitted by Beijing were not examined by other experts and simply accepted at face value.
Authenticity 'unverified'

"The authenticity of the documents has yet to undergo verification by experts," Suga told a press conference. "Our country would like to strongly call for fairness and transparency in the [screening] system of this program, so that it is not used for political purposes," he added.

The feeling among many Japanese is that China will use every opportunity to publicly chastise Japan, part of a broader campaign to win support for its own geopolitical and territorial ambitions in the Asia-Pacific region. And many in the country feel is UNESCO is helping it to achieve that.
"Irina Bokova is director general of UNESCO at present, but she is ambitious and wants to be the next secretary general of the United Nations," claims Yoichi Shimada, a professor of international relations at Fukui Prefectural University.

"She was recently in Beijing for the ceremony to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the war," he pointed out. "It is ironic that this military parade took place in Tiananmen Square, the place where the Chinese military massacred so many young people who were demanding democracy and freedom in 1989.

"I believe it is outrageous that an executive of the UN took part in that parade," he said, adding, "Bokova was busy trying to buy the favor of the Chinese, who have a veto on the UN Security Council and could block her appointment."
China Militärparade in Peking 70. Jahrestag Ende 2. Weltkrieg Bildergalerie
China held a massive military parade last month to celebrate the 70th anniversary of Japan's World War II surrender
Tokyo must 'act decisively'

Professor Shimada supports calls for Tokyo to withhold its contributions to UNESCO, which amounted to $31 million in 2014, making Japan the second-largest contributor to the organization, and says Tokyo must "act decisively" and could potentially go further.
"The US, under Ronald Reagan, withdrew from UNESCO on the grounds that it was politicizing issues and over management of its budget, so I do no believe there would be any problem in Japan withdrawing," he told DW.

"And perhaps there is more we can do to make our feelings known," he added. "Maybe Japan should only help fund specific projects that are not anti-Japanese. I feel that the power of the purse is necessary in this situation."

Other organizations are voicing similar opinions, with the far right Society for the Dissemination of Historical Fact repeating its claim that the "so-called 'Nanking Massacre' was nothing more than wartime propaganda."
Demands to reconsider

The society's position is that allegations of a massacre in Nanjing in 1937 were Chinese propaganda that were seized on by the victorious allies in 1945 to deflect public criticism away from Washington's use of atomic weapons against civilians in the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
In an open letter signed by Secretary General Hiromichi Moteki, the society said it "would be morally and academically wrong for UNESCO to decide to register the so-called Nanjing Massacre as a 'Memory of the World' based on one-sided assertions and materials that have not been objectively verified.
"We strongly urge UNESCO to reconsider its decision," he added.

Garren Mulloy, an associate professor at Daito Bunkyo University, point out that the number of Japanese who deny outright that anything amiss occurred in Nanjing is indeed "very small."

Japanisch-Chinesischer Krieg 1937
Experts say the problem is that nobody knows exactly how may people died in the Najing Massacre
The problem is that nobody knows the precise number of casualties, the extent of culpability of the state - given that the Japanese military was essentially a law unto itself in China in the 1930s - and what it all means to Japan and its relations with China today.
"It is not surprising that the Japanese government has protested at the listing of the documents by UNESCO, but the strength of the objections has come as a surprise," he said. "I see the heavy hand of the 'conservative regime of [Prime Minister Shinzo] Abe' behind this, and that's not a good development."

In many ways, Japan may have painted itself into a corner with the vehemence of is opposition, Mulloy added.
"Tokyo can demand changes, but they cannot force UNESCO to comply," he said. "Or they could withdraw their funds and give up fighting their position. Either way, the end result is lose-lose and they just end up looking silly."

[Reeve]

I don't understand why Japan doesn't just admit the "rape of Nanking" and move on. The people responsible are mostly all dead by now I'm sure. It's like in the US we don't deny the Trail of Tears, Slavery, the nuking of Nagasaki/Hiroshima, and such things. Just admit it, recognize your ancestors weren't perfect, and try to move on and do better in the future.

[Emageht Tsoluoy]

I don't understand why Japan doesn't just admit the "rape of Nanking" and move on. The people responsible are mostly all dead by now I'm sure. It's like in the US we don't deny the Trail of Tears, Slavery, the nuking of Nagasaki/Hiroshima, and such things. Just admit it, recognize your ancestors weren't perfect, and try to move on and do better in the future.

The US doesn't deny any of those things because we do not generally give a shit about what the outside world thinks of us.

[Deleted]

I don't get that either, but what I also don't get is why bring this shit up in the first place? Who cares whose ancestors slaughtered whose ancestors lol.

[GennGreymane]

The US doesn't deny any of those things because we do not generally give a shit about what the outside world thinks of us.

Do you think Japan is any different?

[Emageht Tsoluoy]

Unless there is oil, rare-earth metals, or straight up cash involved.

(Then we will pretend not to notice your human rights violations.)

[GennGreymane]

I don't get that either, but what I also don't get is why bring this shit up in the first place? Who cares whose ancestors slaughtered whose ancestors lol.

Its recent history

History must also be a lesson. Denying history is denying lessons.

[Emageht Tsoluoy]

Do you think Japan is any different?

They care enough to make a ruckus over it.

[Deleted]

I don't understand why Japan doesn't just admit the "rape of Nanking" and move on. The people responsible are mostly all dead by now I'm sure. It's like in the US we don't deny the Trail of Tears, Slavery, the nuking of Nagasaki/Hiroshima, and such things. Just admit it, recognize your ancestors weren't perfect, and try to move on and do better in the future.

I was going to say Germany does it as well, admits pretty much all of their horrors doing the second world war. I don't know if it is something to do with Japanese culture, that you don't admit to wrong doings or terrible acts, as some form of pride? Someone enlighten me!

[GennGreymane]

They care enough to make a ruckus over it.

With some of their cultural exports..... I dunno if they really care what we think

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I was going to say Germany does it as well, admits pretty much all of their horrors doing the second world war. I don't know if it is something to do with Japanese culture, that you don't admit to wrong doings or terrible acts, as some form of pride? Someone enlighten me!

Germany along with the U.S and other western powers have to be the big boy countries when it comes to history.

[Cerilis]

The US doesn't deny any of those things because we do not generally give a shit about what the outside world thinks of us.

Well, ancestor worship is big in both Japan and China, isn't it?

Anyway, do I understand correctly that this is mostly about the death toll-controversy, right?

[Adam Jensen]

I'm really not sure what the big deal about the Rape of Nanking is. It was over 80 years ago, almost everyone involved is dead. Japan of today is not Japan of the 1930s, as much as Germany is not the Germany of Adolf Hitler. The past is the past, it cannot be changed, move on.

[Deleted]

I guess it has something to do with "losing the face" a Jap.Friend of mine explained it a couple of years ago so i dont rlly remember but its somehow like - If you win the loser cant complain afterwords (Like they Gang up Many on one ,use Weapons like Bats/Knifes and stuff on unarmed or see it as legit to kidnap/Rape a Girlfriend or something that they get a lead on someone and on the other side praise being Manly/Respekting Women/Warriorhood/Honor) its somehow a really complicated logic that we western ppl barely unterstand .

I would have to ask my friend nexttime i see her for more Information .

[Auxora]

I don't think any country was without some moral questionable (to horrible) actions in WW2, but Japan is certainly quite touchy when it comes to taking responsibility for their actions in China. Then again sometimes China also uses it as political leverage as it sounds like they are doing now, which is kind of silly this far past. I would just sometimes they play up being the victims in Nagasaki/Hiroshima and downplay their actions both in China and that lead to Nagasaki/Hiroshima. Japan was also doing suicide kamakazi attacks daily, were arming every man/woman/child to fight to the death, and had been told that the US had a superweapon and to surrender before it was used (and they were even given the list of cities), and both before Hiroshima and even after, they didn't believe the US and refused to. Even after Hiroshima they just thought it was a large scale conventional bombing. It wasn't until Nagasaki that they decided the US wasn't bluffing. So it's hardly fair to compare that to the Japanese in China doing mass-scale rapes, using chemical weapons on civilians without warning, testing chemical weapons on prisoners, etc.

[Independent voter]

Here's that HBO documentary about Nanking. There was this American school teacher back then who ran an all girls school for rich Chinese kids. Japanese soldiers would come and take her students, later the teacher committed suicide.

[Deleted]

the title should be 'Japan fuehrious...'

[Emageht Tsoluoy]

The US doesn't deny any of those things because we do not generally give a shit about what the outside world thinks of us.

Let me amend this by appending the following:

*except where anything Native American is concerned, then whatever you heard, probably did not happen.
**Especially the whole "you stole my land" thing. That definitely did not happen. Who says it did? What have you heard.

[Garnier Fructis]

Whitewashing conservatives in Japan can suck a dick.

[satimy]

Let me amend this by appending the following:

*except where anything Native American is concerned, then whatever you heard, probably did not happen.
**Especially the whole "you stole my land" thing. That definitely did not happen. Who says it did? What have you heard.

Manifest Destiny, at least we came up with a bullshit justification

[Kurioxan]

I don't understand why Japan doesn't just admit the "rape of Nanking" and move on. The people responsible are mostly all dead by now I'm sure. It's like in the US we don't deny the Trail of Tears, Slavery, the nuking of Nagasaki/Hiroshima, and such things. Just admit it, recognize your ancestors weren't perfect, and try to move on and do better in the future.

Because if it is bs and didnt quite happened as China is trying to sell it, there is reason to be outraged id think.
How you are perceived by others is very important in Asian cultures, a difference of 100.000 people killed is enough to make a scandal of it.

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Let me amend this by appending the following:

*except where anything Native American is concerned, then whatever you heard, probably did not happen.
**Especially the whole "you stole my land" thing. That definitely did not happen. Who says it did? What have you heard.

Eeeeh, land is no ones, thus only those who have the capacity to defend it have a right to it. Thats how it has been through the entirety of human history, why would that particular case be any different? Just another population conquered and their lands taken by those who could work it and defend it. Tragic, but hardly different from how every country in the world came to be.