Responsibility as a pertpetrator to neighbor countries in WWII

 The 80th anniversary of defeat in WWII is coming soon. There will be a lot of papers or broadcasting programs against war publicated in mass media. Most of them are based on the experiences of Japanese people as sufferers or victims in WWII. It is worth leaving their words on record for the future generation. It is, however, only one aspect of the war.

Having invaded and perpetrated to the neighbor countries, especially, China, is the other aspect of the war for us. Of course, it has done by the people one or two generations prior to us. In the continuity of history, however, we won't be free from the crime and sin our ancestors have committed in that invading war. That invasion to the neighbor countries were plotted and executed by the military leaders fanaticized in imperialistic autocracy. It is ascribed to the Showa emperor. Still, the people could never be free from the responsibility for the war. There were ten millions of people killed in China by invading Japanese military. That memory won't be vanished among people in China. 

I recently learned some Chinese captives had been vivisectioned by Japanese military for training of the newly deployed military doctors as "a normal routine". I knew of the history of horrible human experiments done in China by the Japanese 731st troop, which had been elucidated by several researchers and are well known. I was, however, shocked to know such vivisection executed as "a normal training" in the Japanese military.

When the war was finished as defeat of our country in 1945, hundreds Japanese soldiers including those involved in that war crime have been arrested and accomodated in the camps in China. Several people have testified the communist government treated them like real guests in order to have them become aware of their war crime by themselves. While the communist government has done harsh punishment/treatment to those working for Japanese military betraying Chinese people, they have treated the Japanese prisoners with compassion. Of course, the communist government intended to propagandize their idea to the prisoners as well as to Japanese people in homeland. Japanese prisoners have been released from the camps once the camp personnel acknowledged of their reflection on war crimes. Those captured in China have never sentenced to death or life imprisonment while tens or hundreds were sentenced to death in the other countries.

We should remember what our military has done in WWII and pursue the war crime responsibility in the leaders. Without that, we won't reach the real reflection on the perpetration and war crimes to the other countries during the war. It seems we have not gone through thorough pursue of the responsibility for the war. 

This is another aspect of war crime responsibility we should not forget. Without that, there would be ultra right political movements which aim at restoring regime of the imperialistic autocracy.