Posted on 07/03/2006 7:16:31 PM PDT by Aussie Dasher
Japan's Foreign Minister has attended a ceremony remembering allied prisoners who died during World War II.
Taro Aso attended the ceremony as a private citizen after last week rescinding invitations to foreign ambassadors to attend the service.
The ceremony was held at Jugangi, a Buddhist temple in Osaka that commemorates more than 1,000 prisoners of war who died during World War II while working in forced labour camps around the city.
The temple holds a similar ceremony in August each year, but this was a special event timed for the minister's visit.
A company owned by Mr Aso's family has been linked to the use of forced and prisoner of war labour during World War II.
Yes, it's a start - I hope they will someday address the fact that whereas the fatality rate among Allied POWs in Nazi Germany was 2%, for those held in Japanese POW camps it was a staggering 33%.
What can you say, it dredges up strong emotions among everyone involved, but this kind of house cleaning needs to be done.
It is a step in the right direction.
bump!
From hated enemy to honorable ally. It is good to see.
Amen, however, the house cleaning the really needs to be done is restitution to surviving POWs and spouses for using the POWs as slave labor. My wife's uncle survived the coal mines in Japan. He never talked about it and I found out about his past (Bataan Death March, Hell Ships, Japanese coal mines) after he passed on in 2003.
For a good read about the whole Japanese POW disgrace see "Surviving the Sword" by Brian MacArthur.
Japan * ping * (kono risuto ni hairitai ka detai wo shirasete kudasai : let me know if you want on or off this list)
"Amen, however, the house cleaning the really needs to be done is restitution to surviving POWs and spouses for using the POWs as slave labor. My wife's uncle survived the coal mines in Japan. He never talked about it and I found out about his past (Bataan Death March, Hell Ships, Japanese coal mines) after he passed on in 2003. "
I read most everything on WWII I can and have since childhood, my dad was on the Marblehead and spent 39 to 45 almost entirely in the Pacific.
Getting justice like you are talking about could be gotten from the Germans but not from anyone else, with the Japanese, Soviets, North Vietnamese and hopefully in the future the North Koreans, the best we can hope for (and will request) is a gesture bold enough to give us something to work with, (any politician that pushes for more from these groups will be attacked by the media)
If you go back and read the posts on this thread, you'll notice something very reserved about everyones responses, it's because they know about men like your wife's uncle and millions more in places like China and Korea.
"Aussie Dasher said about all that needs to be said."
anse112
I agree with you about the reserved nature of the comments and I feel that way as well. We must never, ever forget the sacrifices made by so many for what we have today. My hat is off, especially today, to your father's duty as well as my wife's late uncle and all the other men and women who have or currently are defending our freedom and way of life.
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