Comments on: Textbook Changes

By: Mika

Mika — Sat, 01 Apr 2006 12:46:32 +0000

Japan has never engaged in the war since WW2, while China and Korea has been at war(Korea War, invasion of VietnamÃ�Â£Ã¢â��Â¬Ã¢â��Â¬etc.). Moreover, Japan tries hard to protect human rights while Chinese and Korean governments help a dictatorship regime like North Korea. If you feel Japan hasn’t learned from the past, and if that’s why you think something must be wrong with Japanese history textbook, then I want to know what it means to learn from the past.

By: moorethanthis

moorethanthis — Sat, 01 Apr 2006 05:30:44 +0000

A mixed bag indeed. Anyone without an ideological axe to grind would have hard time extracting a particular “line” from those changes. But I agree with MF’s proposal that the education system be less heavily regulated by central government. One of the reasons it probably won’t happen is because a lot of teachers are dead against any sort of “revisionism” – whether real or percieved (see the recent cases of teachers who refuse to sing the national anthem).

By: Mutantfrog

Mutantfrog — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 22:49:30 +0000

To be clear, I think the correct response would not be for the Japanese Ministry of Education to mandate the history taught in schools at all. I like the DPJ proposal to simply eliminate the approval process, and make text book publishing a free market.

This could also be combined with supplemental, but optional, materials on certain topics of interest, such as war crimes. If you provide these materials to all teachers, but let local teachers and school districts have more control over their own lessons, then a more balanced picture may be taught.

But there is one piece of the puzzle that all of us are missing. While Curzon and Adam may have studied in a Japanese high school and had firsthand experience with the textbooks used, NONE of us has taken an entrance exam for a Japanese university. That is really the ultimate goal of a Japanese high school education, and I for one would like to see if any of these tests have any questions related to these controversial issues, and what slant is presented.

By: Mutantfrog

Mutantfrog — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 22:33:51 +0000

I think the absolute best thing Japan could do as a “sincere apology” would be to teach more of the dark past to their kids. They don’t have to go down the near masochistic levels that Germany has-after all, that level of overexposure just makes moody teenagers resentful-but it is sad how little the average Japanese high school graduate knows about the atrocities committed by the Japanese military in the first half of the 20th century.

I do think that any more of these ritualistic public apologies are an utter waste of time. Education is the only thing that will make a difference.

By: Younghusband

Younghusband — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 19:12:01 +0000

HCPEN, what would you consider a “sincere” apology? And how does it differ from Japan’s previous apologies?

By: HCPEN

HCPEN — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 18:14:22 +0000

they have apologised many times but none have been sincere and none have been backed up with actions.

By: Curzon

Curzon — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 03:40:21 +0000

Minseouk: Japan has come out on numerous occasions on the history issue.

By: Minseok Kim

Minseok Kim — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 03:12:57 +0000

I'm not saying that Japan should accept what Korea's version of things. Lord knows, our government is trying its darndest to change facts about Korean history as well. What I'm saying is that Japan should just come right out and say that it caused suffering in the past, and stop trying to hide the facts. Same goes to Korea as well. I fully agree with your comment that Korea should stop acting like a petulant child, as well as stop biting the hand that feeds itt. Unfortunately, with Korea's vocal left-wing groups, lack of jounalistic integrity, and the Korean people's lemming-mentality, I don't think Korea will be growing up anytime soon.

By: Mika

Mika — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 15:59:53 +0000

Minseok Kim,

Are you saying Japan should accept whatever the Korean government says about history? I have to say Japan is way ahead of Korea when it comes to personal and scholarly study of the historical issue. Do ordinary Koreans even know the 1999 fisheries agreement with Japan? You can read about it here.
Before emotionally protesting against Japan, why don’t the Korean government keep agreement?? Korea has the potential to be a respected world leader if it stops acting like a petulant child in the international community.

By: Minseok Kim

Minseok Kim — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 13:20:13 +0000

I’m wondering if these revisions indicate some sort of hope within the Japanese government that Japan’s past atrocities will eventually be lost and unknown to future generations. Do they think that such actions will help Japan save face? There is nothing honorable in deception, and the kind being employed here will only serve to sully Japan’s reputation for years to come.
The world has moved on since World War II and Japan is no longer a hated enemy but a respected world leader. It is time for Japan to face facts head on, admit its mistakes and crimes and end the squabbles it has been causing.

By: Saru

Saru — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 12:41:41 +0000

Great post. What else could I expect from a true Japanophile such as yourself! ;-> Truly a mixed bag, though I fear that many readers (and more than one government) are just going to extract convenient facts and ignore the ones that challenge their own views on the matter.