Wednesday marks the 73rd anniversary of the end of World War II. This is the last Aug. 15 of the Heisei era.
A government-sponsored national memorial service for the war dead will be held at the Nippon Budokan hall with the Emperor and Empress in attendance. This is the day to pray again for the repose of the souls of the 3.1 million people who were forced to give up their lives during the last war, and to renew an oath in pursuit of peace.
About 5,500 relatives of the war dead are invited to the memorial service. Only 13 spouses of war dead will attend. Attendees mainly comprise people from the generation of the children and grandchildren of the war dead. This illustrates the passing of 73 years since the end of the war.
Repose of souls sought
The Emperor will abdicate on April 30 next year. Today will be his last time to mark the anniversary of the end of the war in the capacity of an emperor.
The words "deep remorse" have been incorporated in the Emperor's address during the memorial service since 2015. The Emperor has also said repeatedly that "when I look back on the sufferings and tribulations of the past, I cannot help but be overcome with deep emotion."
The Sino-Japanese War broke out when the Emperor was 3 years old. He saw the end of the war at the age of 11. In Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture, where he had been evacuated, he listened to the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War that Emperor Showa delivered via radio broadcast to the public. Later, the Emperor recalled, "I grew up without knowing a time when Japan was not fighting a war."
His desire for peace, which was fostered in his childhood, has never wavered, even after he ascended to the throne at the age of 55. The trips the Emperor has taken to console the spirits of those who died in the war can be said to have expressed these feelings.
In 1995, the year marking 50 years since the war's end, the Emperor visited such places as Nagasaki, Hiroshima and Okinawa. The Emperor visited Saipan Island in the year coinciding with the 60th anniversary of the end of the war, and Peleliu Island in Palau in the year that marked the passage of 70 years.
Among other locations, the Emperor and Empress have visited Okinawa many times.
Large land battles took place there in which many people died. By being deeply intimate with the feelings of the people of Okinawa, who were forced to suffer hardships, the Emperor has confronted the sorrow brought about by the war. These actions surely reflect his feelings that the ravages of war must never be forgotten.
From next year on, Crown Prince Naruhito, who was born after the war, will attend the memorial service as the new emperor.
The crown prince has said "it is important that Japan's dire experiences and the history that Japan followed be passed down properly to the generations who do not know the war."
How can the feelings of the Emperor, who sincerely prays for peace, be relayed to the next generation? This is a task that the public also must not forget.
Steadily collect remains
What is important in this respect is continuing to ensure the war is retold from generation to generation, through various activities.
"Kono Sekai no Katasumi ni" (In this Corner of the World), a cartoon by Fumiyo Kono, depicts the modest daily lives of ordinary people in wartime Hiroshima Prefecture. Two years ago, the work was made into an animated film, and it brought a massive response. This summer, it has been broadcast as a TV drama.
The work's detailed depiction vividly conveys the severity of the home-front life in those days. The sight of people living in a positive manner despite grim social conditions is deeply impressive.
"Nihongun Heishi" (Japanese soldiers) by historical researcher Yutaka Yoshida is a much-talked-about book. It accurately portrays the conditions that rank-and-file soldiers were placed in, and how they lost their lives during the last world war.
With no rations given to them, some soldiers had no choice but to plunder. Others were reported as having been killed in action, but in many cases they starved to death or committed suicide. The book depicts these realities.
How would the extreme situation of war change people? That is what this book makes us realize.
More than two years have passed since the effectuation of the law seeking to promote the collection of skeletal remains of the war dead. The government has designated the collection of such remains as "an obligation of the state," and it regards the nine years from the law's enforcement as an intensive period of implementation.
As many as 1.12 million sets of remains have been uncollected overseas. Of the total, a maximum of 590,000 sets are believed to be recoverable. In recent years, however, about 1,000 sets of remains have been collected annually. If this goes on, no major progress can be expected during the implementation period.
It is a step forward that the Japanese and Philippine governments have agreed to resume the collection of remains in the Philippines. This is because a predominant 370,000 sets of remains are said to lie in the Philippines. No headway has been made in China or elsewhere.
Peace built on victims
Many families of the war dead are still longing for their deceased kin's remains to be returned home. Efforts should be made to steadily accelerate the collection work.
After the end of the war, Japan declared its renunciation of war under the Constitution, and it has since enjoyed peace. The Japan-U.S. alliance has played a major role in maintaining Japan's peace.
The East Asian situation cannot be described as peaceful in recent years. Despite a U.S.-North Korean summit meeting having been realized, the North's future moves are uncertain. China is also continuing its maritime advances. It is important to deepen the Japan-U.S. alliance.
It is vital to continue protecting the peaceful society that has been built, with many war victims as its foundation.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Aug. 15, 2018)
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