The Japanese Islands Are In Anger. “Not Even Explaining the Cause of Death…”

Dong-A Ilbo ^ | 09/18/02 | Young-Eee Lee

[TigerLikesRooster]

The Japanese Islands Are In Anger. “Not Even Explaining the Cause of Death…”

SEPTEMBER 18, 2002 22:39 by Young-Ee Lee (yes202@donga.com)

The Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi attended the Government and Administration Party meeting and explained the result of the Summit and the early coming back of kidnapped Japanese people, and he is planning to meet the families of the kidnapped people in person and explain to them.

However, the Administration Party said, “We value the result of the summit, but we cannot forgive that 8 kidnapped people were dead,?and strongly asked to find the truth and punish the related North Korean officials instead of amity negotiation.

The Minister Abe Sinjo, who attended the summit, visited the hotel in Tokyo where the families of the kidnapped people were staying and said that he would find the way to ask North Korea to examine the kidnapping or compensation, and he would install a special unit to bring back the alive kidnapped people in the cabinet.

According to the Foreign Affairs Department, all four kidnapped people showed there will to come back during the meeting with the Foreign Affairs official on the 17th. The Japanese Government is planning to help the families of the surviving people to visit North Korea and meet them, and reconfirm their will and bring them back before reinstating the amity negotiation.

The Foreign Affairs Department understood that it was unreasonable to have the amity negotiation in Tokyo considering the emotion of the people, so it is trying to find a way to change to PyeongYang.

In response to this, the gathering of the families was still angry and pressed the government, “If the Government hurried up little bit, the total dead was not this much.?They asked to ¡âbring back the survivors within a month, ¡âfind out the dead and alive situation, and ¡âapologize and compensate by the Japanese Government, which neglected the situation for 20 years, and North Korea.

The Japanese media bring into relief the kidnapped Japanese issue on newspapers on the 18th, and broadcasting stimulated the viewers?anger and tear fountain by airing the news conference of the families of the kidnapped people. However, some newspapers like Asahi appealed, “Let’s calmly evaluate the result of the Summit and develop the North Korea-Japan relationship.?br>

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[TigerLikesRooster]

FYI

[altair]

Thanks for the ping. I don't know why the Japanese should be forgiving about this, nor why they should give North Korea aid at all after all they've done in recent years. That missile shot over Honshu was unforgivable (in my opinion).

[Boot Hill]

Article says:   "However, some newspapers like Asahi appealed, 'Let’s calmly evaluate the result of the Summit and develop the North Korea-Japan relationship.'"

The anger and anguish of the families is understandable, however I believe the conciliatory tone expressed by the Asahi Shimbun accurately reflects the attitude of the Japanese government and (eventually) the majority of the people as well. North Korea would be well advised though to follow through on this initiative in earnest.

--Boot

[fortheDeclaration]

The anger and anguish of the families is understandable, however I believe the conciliatory tone expressed by the Asahi Shimbun accurately reflects the attitude of the Japanese government and (eventually) the majority of the people as well. North Korea would be well advised though to follow through on this initiative in earnest

If those were Americans what would you expect us to do?

[lavaroise]

The anger and anguish of the families is understandable,

You are being abnoxious. The victims have permanently or virtualy been permanently shut up by death by the NKs. The only thing them speaking us adds to this travesty of justice where the living thugs seek again the credit at the expense of the dead who cannot even object.

Last but not least, what makes us think it is not NK trying to convert the Japanese to their ways? In any case, gloating over converting or having been converted defeats the whole purpose of redemption. One does not ask to be paid for service not rendered, and that is the case here for NK. Hell! if one converts to good from evil, one should be paid by the person to whom this service means anything, technicaly. However NK did not convert to anything and is under no obligation, save for insulting further Japan.

[Boot Hill]

fortheDeclaration asks:   "If those were Americans what would you expect us to do?"

I would expect us to act as Americans
I would expect Japan to act as Japanese.

Different culture, different geography, different history.

--Boot

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

Background?

Also, a smoother translation would help.

Thanks.

[Boot Hill]

I have no idea at all what you were trying to say.

[lavaroise]

Sorry, typos

You are being abnoxious. The victims have permanently (or virtualy permanently) been shut up by death by the North Korean regime. Then them speaking up adds to this travesty of justice, where the living thugs seek again the credit of superiority at the expense of the dead victims who cannot even object or pronounce themselves.

Last but not least, what makes us think it is not NorthKorea trying to convert the Japanese to their ways? In any case, gloating over converting or having been converted defeats the whole purpose of redemption, overtures and forgiveness. One does not ask to be paid for service not rendered, and that is the case here for North Korea. Hell! if one converts to good from evil, one should be paid by the person to whom this service means anything, technicaly. However North Korea did not convert to anything and is under no obligation, save for insulting further Japan, by asking Japan to convert to the notion that North Korea is well meaning while demanding credit for it.

[CJ Wolf]

This smells like blackmail. Give us money or we blow Tokoyo to middle kingdom come. A warning shot over the bow that missle was.

[Boot Hill]

lavaroise,

I checked your profile page and noticed you are from Italy. I mean no disrespect, but you are not competent enough in English to hold a coherent discussion. It is not your spelling. That is OK. I have read your post several times and it makes no sense. I have no idea what your argument is, nor how the comments in my post relate to your argument. If you are at work, maybe one of your co-workers can help you with the translation from Italian to English.

--Boot Hill

[AmericanInTokyo]

Asahi Shimbun was the only one of the majors to adopt a conciliatory, naive approach toward the NorthKorea meeting. The others, Yomiuri, Sankei, Mainichi, etc. bashed it fastidiously. And the governor of Tokyo, Ishihara, went (forgive the pun) 'ballistic' over this.

This evening' poll in Japan says 91% of the Japanese people OPPOSE any kind of normalization of relations with N. Korea until everything about the kidnappings is cleared up. Irate people all over the place in Japan.....

[AmericanInTokyo]

That's funny.

I quite well understand what the poster was trying to articulate. (His/her English is way better than my Italian!)

[johnny7]

why they should give North Korea aid at all after all they've done in recent years.

The NKs see Japan as a ripe plumb... a turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce.

“Sepuku” on a national scale.

[lavaroise]

Furgetaboutit.

1.You are being abnoxious. The victims have permanently (or virtualy permanently) been shut up by death by the North Korean regime. So why should we listen to the North Koreans when their victims are still hostage? Their victims are either dead or still somewhere else confined from home.

2.a. When the North Koreans speak up, it adds to this travesty of justice, where the living thugs seek again the credit. Credit they earn because of their inherent superiority at the expense of the dead victims who cannot even object nor pronounce themselves.
2.b. (Indeed, the murderer should not plea mercy to the executioneers but to his victims, but that cannot happen, can it? So any plea from the murderer is travesty of justice.)

3. Last but not least, what makes us think it is not NorthKorea trying to convert the Japanese to their ways - to believe them?

4. In any case, gloating over converting or having been converted defeats the whole purpose of redemption, overtures and forgiveness.

5. That is, one does not ask to be paid for service not rendered, and that is the case here for North Korea which seeks credit for turning Japan to its ways. If anything, it should be Japan getting any credit, yet the dictator seeks the credit concurently.

6. If one converts to good from evil, one should be paid by the person to whom this service means anything, technicaly. Indeed, when converting to goodness, it is a service to the camp of goodness, so why should the camp of goodness be paid in addition to benefit from its persuasiveness?

7. However, in our case here of North Korea, it is even more obsene. North Korea did not convert to anything and is under no obligation, save for insulting further Japan. North Korea insults by asking Japan to convert to the notion that North Korea is well meaning all the while demanding credit for it.

[lavaroise]

I quite well understand what the poster was trying to articulate. (His/her English is way better than my Italian!)

The more he will ask, the more I will post it again and again. So, it defeats his purpose, if any.

[lavaroise]

Irate people all over the place in Japan.....

Go Japan!

[dfwgator]

Of course had Japan never occupied Korea in the first place, there never would have been a "North Korea."

[Fishing-guy]

Certainly the Japanese have the rights to be angry, just as the Koreans have the rights with be angry about past Japanese atrocities.