Japanese Emperor’s Remorse and Efforts to Make Amends for His Father’s War

TRANSCEND MEMBERS, ANGLO AMERICA, MILITARISM, ASIA--PACIFIC, HISTORY, 20 Aug 2018

Satoshi Ashikaga – TRANSCEND Media Service

20 Aug 2018 – On August 15, 2018, the Associated Press (AP) reported about Akihito, the Japanese Emperor, with the following headline: “Japanese emperor tries to make amends for his father’s war“.

The headline of that article exactly expresses the Emperor Akihito’s struggle over peace through his agony and moral responsibility. In addition, the Emperor does not hesitate to express his opinion which clashes that of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.  While the Emperor believes that it is his duty to protect the Peace Constitution, Abe intends to amend it. (See, for example: Is Japan’s Emperor Akihito Trying To Stop Abe?  Emperor Akihito Plays Defense on Japan’s Constitution. 
Hirohito, Akihito’s father, was obviously one of the very main war criminals of WWII in the Asian-Pacific region.

Emperor Akihito

For example, among many others: Horrific Japanese Crimes in WWII That History Forgot. However, he did not take any substantial responsibility for that war. Besides, Douglas McArthur, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) did not prosecute Hirohito at the International Military Tribunal for Far East. There were two main war criminals who survived the war crime trial: Hirohito and Nobusuke Kishi. The former was not even prosecuted; the latter, Prime Minister Shizo Abe’s grandfather, was prosecuted but not sentenced. See Nobusuke Kishi, Ex-Tokyo Leader.  CONFIDENTIAL-Central Intelligence Agency: Nobusuke KISHI 

It is unclear if Hirohito himself spoke about his own political and legal responsibility for that war. However, he had the role for WWII. (See New record of WWII role of Japanese emperor Hirohito: )  Not only that, he was warned not to begin the war. Nonetheless, he began the war in the Asia-Pacific region as part of WWII. (Japan: Hirohito warned attack on Pearl Harbor would be ‘self-destructive‘)  In the Constitution of the Empire of Japan, it was clearly stipulated that he was the supreme commander and, therefore, he was the supreme responsible person.

Emperor Hirohito

(See Articles 1, 11, 12, and 13 of the Constitution) Furthermore, in his statement at the official press conference on October 31, 1975, about the atomic bomb attacks, he stated, “I think that the atomic bombings were unavoidable.”  What did the citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki think about Hirohito’s words as such?

(See 昭和天皇「原爆投下はやむをえないことと、私は思ってます。」:

httpv://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NQhVOTS0j7A

or the same press conference video around 2:40. 1975 昭和天皇初訪米＆初公式記者会見:

httpv://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4b6VuxlBUYI&hl=ja&gl=JP

It seemed that the two atomic bomb attacks to Hiroshima and Nagasaki were not that definitive problems for Hirohito even though how desperately his people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki suffered. These two attacks were not attributed to Japan’s surrender. (See, for instance: The Bomb Didn’t Beat Japan … Stalin Did;  Researcher: U.S. Atomic Bombs Not Main Cause of Japan’s Surrender;  The Atomic Bombs and the Soviet Invasion: What Drove Japan’s Decision to Surrender?)

This implies that if the USSR did not invade Manchuria, Hirohito might have continued the war even if the United States dropped more atomic bombs into more Japanese cities. Were the untold sufferings of his people and virtually no possibility for winning the war not the reason for him to terminate the war by surrendering to the Allied Powers?

As such, it is debatable how much Hirohito was empathetic to his people then, especially near or at the end of the war when his country was catastrophic. For example, in his “Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War”, Hirohito did not express his apology or remorse for giving enormous sufferings to his people, not to mention tremendous sufferings of peoples in the neighboring countries, which were caused by the Japanese military forces whose supreme commander was Hirohito himself. (See the full text of his Imperial Rescript in the official English translation)
Moreover, it was Hirohito’s idea, not the political pressure by the US government, that Okinawa was offered to the US military forces for their permanent use.

Hirohito sent his messenger to McArthur’s office for that purpose. Today almost all Okinawan citizens know that. (See  Enclosure to Dispatch No. 1293 dated September 22, 1947, from the United States Political Adviser for Japan, Tokyo, on the subject “Emperor of Japan’s Opinion Concerning the Future of the Ryukyu Islands“: and Okinawa) To this date Okinawa has been the US military main strategic focal point in Far East. Meanwhile, Okinawan residents’ sufferings have also been enormous.  (Japan’s Sacrificial Lamb – The Okinawa Military Base Controversy; US military in Okinawa: 70 years of crimes, militarism, pollution’;  Okinawa and the U.S. military, post 1945)

Hirohito began the war and ended it with a horrendous result. After that, he kept his mouth shut. Akihito saw the untold grief and disaster of his country when he was a child. He also saw his father’s “attitude” (i.e. keeping his mouth shut) after WWII toward millions of suffering people both inside and outside Japan. Probably Akihito learned lessons from his father.

Now, Akihito is carrying a huge and unbearable cross on his shoulders, created by his father, Hirohito. Akihito cannot avoid carrying it. He has been carrying it for decades. I am impressed by his courageous and sincere attitude. It is difficult to overcome one’s fear, caused by possible physical danger, for instance. It is far more difficult to overcome one’s ego and pride to accept the supreme political and moral responsibility for the sufferings of peoples, caused by the war that was declared by his father. Without any excuse or complaint, Akihito accepted his father’s tremendous scale of political and moral responsibility.

The Japan Times, on August 14, 2018, reports as follows:

Quote
[O]ne of the duties that Emperor Akihito has apparently imposed on himself as the “symbol of the state” is his series of visits over the years to places, both in Japan and    abroad, that were the sites of fierce battles and devastation during the war — including Iwojima in 1994, Hiroshima, Nagasaki and Okinawa in 1995, Saipan in 2005, Peleliu Island in Palau in 2015 and to the Philippines in 2016.

According to people close to him, his visits to these sites were intended to pray for the souls of all the people who died in the war — not just the Japanese — and to keep the memories of the war from fading away.
Unquote

It may be said as follows: If Hirohito was the Emperor “of the Japanese Empire”, Akihito is the Emperor “for the Japanese people” and is a “sincere and empathetic neighbor” for peoples of the neighboring countries. (In this regard, see: Akihito reflects on peace in his last address on end of the war)

Akihito’s struggle for peace reminds me of one of Dag Hammarskjöld’s poems:

Tired
And lonely,
So tired
The heart aches.
Meltwater trickles
Down the rocks,
The fingers are numb,
The knees tremble.
It is now,
Now, that you must not give in.
On the path of the others
Are resting places,
Places in the sun
Where they can meet.
But this
Is your path
And it is now,
Now that you must not fail
Weep
If you can,
Weep,
But do not complain.
The way chose you —
And you must be thankful.

__________________________________________________

Satoshi Ashikaga is a member of the TRANSCEND Network for Peace Development Environment. Having worked as researcher, development program/project officer, legal protection/humanitarian assistance officer, human rights monitor-negotiator, managing-editor, and more, he prefers a peaceful and prudent life, especially that in communion with nature.  His previous work experiences, including those in war zones and war-torn zones, remind him of the invaluableness of peace.  His interest and/or expertise includes international affairs, international law, jurisprudence, economic and business affairs, project/operations or organizational management, geography, history, the environmental/ecological issues, audio/visual documentation of nature and culture, and more.

This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 20 Aug 2018.

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6 Responses to “Japanese Emperor’s Remorse and Efforts to Make Amends for His Father’s War”

1. Gary Corseri says:

   22 Aug 2018 at 05:00

   Satoshi-san,

   You have a very impressive bio note, and I thank you for your service to humanity–to humane causes.

   I began to read your article from the back–with the inspiring poem by Dag Hammarskjold–a hero of my youth who set examples for courage, peace-advocacy, and the search for truth.

   I believe you, too, are a truth-seeker…. And your article raises various questions about human psychology related to guilt, fear and aggression.

   Frankly, I have a lot of trouble blaming any single individual for the “Pacific War,” World War II, World War I, the American Civil War, Japan’s civil wars, the War of the Roses, the Trojan War…or any other war I can think of!

   Rather than attach blame and guilt and crucify one individual for all our sins (I believe that was attempted unsuccessfully in Roman times a couple of thousand years ago!)–why not admit that we humans are very fallible and gullible creatures…often misled by our own inner demons–our fears, delusions of grandeur, etc.?

   To quote Lincoln: “Now we are engaged in a great civil war….” But, our civil war is not merely on the North American continent, but on planet Earth–where a global population “bursting at the seams” has been battling itself for control of resources and for dominion and power. We have been battling Mother Nature, too, and it should be clear from recent weather patterns and catastrophes that we have been losing this battle!

   Let us recognize past errors, but not dwell on them–ascribing blame to individuals. Let us consider the Zeitgeist of Now. The greatest crime is ignorance. The great gift is understanding.

   As Hammarskjold wrote:

   …it is now,
   Now that you must not fail
   Weep
   If you can,
   Weep,
   But do not complain.
   The way chose you —
   And you must be thankful.

   • Satoshi Ashikaga says:

     22 Aug 2018 at 19:48

     Dear Gary-san,

     Thank you very much for your kind and worm words and sharp insight! I agree with you 100% or more than that. In addition, as you quoted the last part of Hammorskjold’s poem, I am also aware that this final part is the essence of this poem.

     Allow me to quote the essence of your comment above, because it is critically important for all peace-loving people on this planet as follows:
     “Let us recognize past errors, but not dwell on them–ascribing blame to individuals. Let us consider the Zeitgeist of Now. The greatest crime is ignorance. The great gift is understanding.”

     With peace, respect, and appreciation,

     Satoshi Ashikaga

     • Satoshi Ashikaga says:

       22 Aug 2018 at 20:20

       Correction: Not “your kind and worm words” but “your kind and warm words”.

     • Gary Corseri says:

       22 Aug 2018 at 22:28

       Arigato, mo ichi-do, Satoshi-san, for your kind words. Good to meet you here!

2. Satoshi Ashikaga says:

   23 Aug 2018 at 14:40

   When I submitted the manuscript of the above article, I was told “[L]et’s hope your piece stirs some debate and dialogue; it is important.”  At that time, I thought about some possibility of counter-argument(s) to my article from some people, especially from those who admire Showa Emperor, Hirohito, without critical examining thoughts about him. However, no such counter-argument has been posted so far. Because TMS is weekly, the time for effective debating is very limited. Besides, everyone of us is busy with our routine. Nonetheless, even only a few times of exchange of views can bring about better mutual understandings to the debaters (and to the readers).

   Constructive debate or discussion in strict rules of logic with the respecting manners of the participants on an open stage (such as on a website like TMS) makes one of the vital basic elements for democracy. That may be one of the main reasons why TMS allows discussion by the readers about the given article: “Join the discussion! We welcome debate and dissent, but personal — ad hominem — attacks (on authors, other users or any individual), abuse and defamatory language will not be tolerated. Nor will we tolerate attempts to deliberately disrupt discussions. We aim to maintain an inviting space to focus on intelligent interactions and debates.”

   Perhaps the followings can be considered as some possible basic rules for debating on the TMS website:  (1) We should argue strictly in accordance with rules of logic.  (2) We should never insult the counter-part or opposing debater or attack their personality or character. In other words, the debaters should respect each other. (3) We should never be pugnacious in debate. In other words, the debaters should know when to stop arguing.

   It is said that debate is a path to truth. This saying is true if the winner of the debate is the truth itself, neither one of the debaters nor his or her ego or pride.  Accordingly, we should avoid this: “Reason Seen More as Weapon Than Path to Truth”: https://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/15/arts/people-argue-just-to-win-scholars-assert.html

   Three quotes about debate:
   – “You know what ‘DOUBT’ stands for? It stands for ‘Debate On Understanding Bewildersome Thoughts.'” – Gary Busey  (https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/gary_busey_457783?src=t_debate)
   – “For good ideas and true innovation, you need human interaction, conflict, argument, debate.” – Margaret Heffernan  (https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/margaret_heffernan_556959?src=t_debate)
   – “The power of real debate is in the language and intellectual honesty of the debaters, alongside the engagement of spectators.” – Ruzwana Bashir  (https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/ruzwana_bashir_542554?src=t_debate)
     

   =================

3. Satoshi Ashikaga says:

   24 Aug 2018 at 12:52

   I have found this YouTube video just now.

   YouTube: “Japan’s Emperor Akihito expresses ‘deep remorse’ over second world war” (2:16): ” Published on Aug 17, 2018
   “Japan’s Emperor Akihito marked the 73rd anniversary of the end of the second world war by expressing his “deep remorse” over the conflict. It was 84-year-old Akihito’s final official war-end anniversary speech as reigning monarch. Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed never to repeat the horrors of war.” https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sIUu5mz83ZM