Ex-member of Japanese biological warfare unit revisits China

Initial rection was "just dont go ", but he is expressing remorse in accordance with Buddhist teachings.

But, bit late.

However there's still resistance in Japan to showing the fact about that unit for public display event after decades.

https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14982616

Better late than never. So many kept silent. Brave man.

There are direct air connections between Narita and Harbin, which is an amazing place to visit, with onion-domed Russian Orthodox churches and a historic old town full of 1920s architecture. While there in 2018 I visited the remains of the Unit 731 complex and museum. I've met Japanese who deny what happened there to this day. Spending a couple of hours walking around the site (yes, it's that big) might change their opinions.

Denying Unit 731's existence and activities is futile, it is all documented and in the hands of both the Japanese and US governments.

Denying Nanking is something else as it is not documented. The Republic of China attempted to bring charges at the Tokyo Trials on the basis of 100,000 victims, but was rejected by the Tribunal for "lack of evidence".

Mr Shimizu was a teenager when he joined the notorious unit. He wasn’t one to the doctors who were actually involved in “human experiments.” It’s possible that his knowledge of what the unit did may have been formed not by his experience but by what he read and heard about the unit after the war. I’m afraid he was used as a tool of the CCP propaganda.

It’s possible that his knowledge of what the unit did may have been formed not by his experience but by what he read and heard about the unit after the war. I’m afraid he was used as a tool of the CCP propaganda.

So your argument is that you should not trust someone that was actually involved and instead other people that neither were there and profit from denialism?

That is not a good argument.

Attempts of revisionism will fail every time.

ossan:

Denying Unit 731's existence and activities is futile, it is all documented and in the hands of both the Japanese and US governments.

And your country had a big hand in letting criminals off in exchange for all the information gained from their evil, inhumane experiments and torture. Let's not beat about the bush. And Shimizu-san was but a child and I can't imagine how he was affected by it mentally.

Nanking had many many witnesses. It was so horrific, it even shocked Nazi members there. John Rabe

This man is trying to deal with his past, and that takes considerable courage. Doesn't for a moment excuse what went on, but he's doing the right thing.

It's a lot better than people endlessly dragging up the past just because they need to win an online argument that nobody really cares about.

The price for denuded coverage of 731 and Nanking. Perpetual war raparations to the US in the form of hefty defence payments. It took the Aztecs 200 years to cease to exist. I don't think this will be Japan's fate. But I hope the great nation of Japan rises again somehow and use these payments for internal defence. The old Japan was self sufficient. This new Japan should at least try.

I still wonder, after all those years, why they are not teaching in schools all those acts of atrocities, savageries and barbarism of the Japanese Imperial Army? If you check the history manuals here in Japan, there is no word of it, the children are taught that Japan was a victim and that's it.

When in fact they were the main aggressors of WW2, and their crymes were x2 bigger and hideous, than Germany' Nazi regime.

Pukey2Today 08:39 am JST

ossan:

Denying Unit 731's existence and activities is futile, it is all documented and in the hands of both the Japanese and US governments.

And your country had a big hand in letting criminals off in exchange for all the information gained from their evil, inhumane experiments and torture. Let's not beat about the bush.

Don't worry, Russia got it's share of results from the suspiciously light sentences they handed out.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khabarovsk_war_crimes_trials#Trial_controversies

rocketpigToday 09:42 am JST

The price for denuded coverage of 731 and Nanking. Perpetual war raparations to the US in the form of hefty defence payments. It took the Aztecs 200 years to cease to exist. I don't think this will be Japan's fate. But I hope the great nation of Japan rises again somehow and use these payments for internal defence. The old Japan was self sufficient. This new Japan should at least try.

Japan's payments to the US are 0. 5% of Gdp. Hefty defense payments not found.

0.05%

And your country had a big hand in letting criminals off in exchange for all the information gained from their evil, inhumane experiments and torture.

This isn’t really a fair assessment of the operation. The U.S. had no idea at the time of the horrible things done to the Chinese citizens as a result of Unit 731. They were completely surprised when all the information about the experiments was finally disclosed to them

The price for denuded coverage of 731 and Nanking. Perpetual war raparations to the US in the form of hefty defence payments. It took the Aztecs 200 years to cease to exist. I don't think this will be Japan's fate. But I hope the great nation of Japan rises again somehow and use these payments for internal defence. The old Japan was self sufficient. This new Japan should at least try.

I have great news: Japan is allowed to cancel all defense treaties anytime they like! There are no reparations like you claimed. Pretty cool huh?

"... THOUGHT to have undertaken covert biological and chemical warfare research..."

"... BELIEVED to have included lethal experimentation and testing on humans..."

We call these "weasel words".

taiwanchina:

Don't worry, Russia got it's share of results from the suspiciously light sentences they handed out.

This article is about China and Japan. But nice try.

Why use vagaries like thought to and believed? Is there any doubt? Is it a translation of Japanese news?

Why use vagaries like thought to and believed? Is there any doubt? Is it a translation of Japanese news?

It might well be, actually. Japanese is famous for the use of things like ...と思われる

Could also be a legal safeguard. There's a famous UK TV quiz show based on current affairs, which they initially record in front of a group of lawyers who then cut anything that could get them sued. The running joke is that you can basically call someone anything as long as you preface it with "allegedly".

 but was rejected by the Tribunal for "lack of evidence".

That, my friend, is hornswaggle. If the Tribunal rejected it, then why was General Iwane Matsui, commander of Japanese forces at Nanjing, hanged in December 1948?

Pukey2Today 11:53 am JST

taiwanchina:

Don't worry, Russia got it's share of results from the suspiciously light sentences they handed out.

This article is about China and Japan. But nice try.

Introduces the US into the picture and tries to claim off topic on Russia. Nice try indeed.

So the Japanese witness"s words regarding this horror site is about his fellow workers in a place where such people have commited among the worst atrocities in the world.

I know he was child then but in this article it conveys like Japanese articles modyly do the victim card. This in addition to the use of verbs involving doubt about the events which unfolded there, like some previous commenters have rightly spotted.

Personally, I don't feel there is full shame or remorse expressed, which shocks me.

I have read many articles and also seen television programs in Japanese that do not deny the facts of the Unit 731. Those clearly write about experiment on humans.

taiwanchina:

Introduces the US into the picture and tries to claim off topic on Russia. Nice try indeed.

Because the US allowed those criminals off scot-free and allowed them to work their way up the government. Totally on topic. I'm sorry if this makes your country look bad, but tough.

It’s a Kyodo news article thus the ambiguity.

If younger generations aren't taught about the terrible things in their nation's past, they are more likely to repeat it. Every country has some shame. All of them.

When in fact they were the main aggressors of WW2, and their crymes were x2 bigger and hideous, than Germany' Nazi regime.

Why do Western people often say this? Is it hard to accept that Europeans behaved in such a savage manner and uncivilized manner? What Germany did to the Jews and other innocents in the concentration camps was just as bad!

Because the US allowed those criminals off scot-free and allowed them to work their way up the government. Totally on topic. I'm sorry if this makes your country look bad, but tough.

By that argument the Soviets(Russians) allowing them off after seven years and allowed them to work their way up the fields of work is totally on topic. I'm sorry if that makes a country you admire look bad, but tough.

Pukey2Aug. 14 09:20 pm JST

taiwanchina:

Introduces the US into the picture and tries to claim off topic on Russia. Nice try indeed.

Because the US allowed those criminals off scot-free and allowed them to work their way up the government. Totally on topic. I'm sorry if this makes your country look bad, but tough.

Still defending the "it's all you but not me" nonsense I see. Not going to work here.

Because the US allowed those criminals off scot-free and allowed them to work their way up the government. Totally on topic. I'm sorry if this makes your country look bad, but tough.

Russia did this too you know

Why do Western people often say this? Is it hard to accept that Europeans behaved in such a savage manner and uncivilized manner?

It’s brought up because most western education is based around the atrocities the Nazis committed. We don’t really focus at all on what went on in China and the atrocities that the Japanese committed

What Germany did to the Jews and other innocents in the concentration camps was just as bad!

What Nazis did to the Jews is horrible, but the scale doesn’t come close to what the Japanese did to the Chinese. There’s also the difference in how each nation approached committing their atrocities. The Nazis in many ways tried to cover up their crimes, but the Japanese had absolutely no shame and left their atrocities open for all to see

Why do Western people often say this? Is it hard to accept that Europeans behaved in such a savage manner and uncivilized manner? What Germany did to the Jews and other innocents in the concentration camps was just as bad!

Japan had many years of imperialism throughout Asia with many atrocities BEFORE WW2.

Every country has some sort of atrocity in their history. While all are terrible, using a "life taken count" by a specific leader seems as reasonable as any other way, assuming nobody in your family that you knew directly was impacted.

Hideki Tojo (5M deaths)

Leopold II of Belgium (2-15M deaths)

Adolf Hitler (17M deaths)

Jozef Stalin (23M deaths)

Mao Zedong (49-78M deaths)

Colonization of the Americas is estimated to have killed 50M people either directly or indirectly (diseases). The initial count is under 1M, which is probably direct killings. That happened over hundreds of years.

Empire of Japan at 5,964,000 (1900–1945)

Nationalist China (1925–1949) and later Taiwan (1949–1987) at 10,214,000,

Nazi Germany at 20,946,000 (1933–1945),

China at 76,702,000 (1949–1987),

Soviet Union at 61,911,000 (1917–1987),

Democratic Kampuchea (1975–1979) at 2,035,000,

There's overlap in the first and second lists. Before WW2, Imperial Japan killed about 1M people. During WW2, another 5M where killed. Is that worse or as bad as Hitler? By the numbers, no. But the impact to relatives even 1 death is devastating. Hitler and Japan both starved prisoners. Both appear to have performed chemical testing on humans. Read if you like:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_human_experimentation

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unit_731

Both Nazi and JIA's crimes and atrocities were the worst in the history. However, while the Nazi's had an agenda, the Jia was killing people just for fun, competition between generals, experimentation, etc, all in all crimes so hideous, they made even the Nazi's sick..