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War-displaced Japanese on Philippine island stand up to claim roots

12 Comments
By Maricar Cinco

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This is the way they wanted it, no doubt.

I visited Palawan at the recommendation of a couple of Dive Masters I met, while on a month long Dive Sabbatical to the Philippines after leaving Iraq. I had no idea:

In Palawan, the center traced 53 Nikkeijin since it began its work on the island in 2012. Thirty-one have since died without recognition by the Japanese government.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

".... the time is ripe for the Nikkeijin (in the Philippines) to "take pride in your Japanese roots."

If you feel the need to do that, then do it very quietly. I recently read about the Battle for the Philippines, and the Japanese atrocities against the civilians were about as sadistic as atrocities can be. For example, any Germans living in Israel should probably avoid openly "taking pride" in being German.

-3 ( +6 / -9 )

People have healed already

Have they healed already ?

I sincerely doubt that .

These atrocities are too cruel and unnecessary to be just forgotten.

1 ( +8 / -7 )

Just can't believe that there are those who could be real nikkeijins who are aren't proud of their roots! I thought those who are even in Japan who aren't just "bought" their nikkeijins bloodline.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

"The war ended seven or almost eight decades ago. People have healed already," Mallari said, adding the time is ripe for the Nikkeijin (in the Philippines) to "take pride in your Japanese roots."

In a case like this, you should only speak for yourself. There may be a lot of people that do not feel the same way so it's best to tread lightly.

-2 ( +4 / -6 )

Kaminari:

"People have healed already" (Article)

Have they healed already ?

I sincerely doubt that .

Depends on which country you are talking about.

Here is a survey by PEW Research Center on "Asian's View on Each Other"

Percentage of People Who Consider Japan favorably:

Malaysia 84%

Vietnum 83%

Philippines 81%

Indonesia 71%

...

S Korea 25%

China 12%

2 ( +4 / -2 )

KaminariToday  10:37 am JST

People have healed already

Have they healed already ?

I sincerely doubt that .

These atrocities are too cruel and unnecessary to be just forgotten.

Healing and Forgetting are not one and the same. True healing requires not forgetting.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Quite interesting article about something I was not familiar with, one of the many different consequences war can have and hopefully something that can be taken into account also for the future.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

"I realized people never (easily) forgot these incidents," Inomata said.

As they were not incidents but systematic occupation and war crimes and touched all people in the region (and other countries…), they were passed on with history, oral or written. Only the descendants of those who committed those crimes have the luxury of forgetting them. For those who suffered them, forgiving is possible. Forgetting, never.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Socrateos

Depending on whose survey and research your believing.

If the people are all healed up already there would be no need for the article to mention the war atrocities.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

OssanAmerica

Healing and forgetting are not one and the same

I never said healing and forgetting are the same thing though did i !

Don't twist my words into something i didn't say and try to portray yourself as being wise.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I never said healing and forgetting are the same thing though did i !

Don't twist my words into something i didn't say and try to portray yourself as being wise.

Your original post was

Have they healed already ?

I sincerely doubt that .

These atrocities are too cruel and unnecessary to be just forgotten.

You made a statement that you "sincerely doubt" that people have healed, then immediately followed it up by pointing out that the atrocities were too cruel and unnecessary to be forgotten. The implication being that, since the atrocities were too cruel to be forgotten, then there is no way there could possibly be healing. You connected healing with forgetting, not OssanAmerica. The implication of your statement was "The only way people could have 'healed already', is if they've forgotten the atrocities. And since the atrocities are too heinous to be forgotten, there is no way healing could possibly have occurred."

Ultimately, I think it's a good thing that these people be able to recognize their roots and take some pride in their heritage. Remember, these are descendants of Japanese civilians, not soldiers.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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