Poll Shows Lack of Consensus on WWII
Tuesday, August 16, 2005 Posted: 08:58 PM JST
A Mainichi survey over the weekend showed a lack of consensus on WWII. Some 43 percent of respondents consider Japan's wars against the Allies and China in the middle of the 20th century a mistake. However, 26 percent of respondents said they were unable to provide an opinion on Japan's role in World War II. Some 29 percent felt the wars were unavoidable.
Even 60 years after the end of WWII, 75 percent of the respondents feel that there has not been sufficient discussion about responsibility for Japan's wartime actions. This discussion was virtually impossible for many years after the war, because people who were considered responsible by many war veterans, like Emperor Showa (Hirohito) and many politicians and bureaucrats, were allowed to stay on. The Cold War also forced Japan to shift its focus away from the discussion about responsibility.
Recently, this discussion has begun, fired up by Koizumi's visits to Yasukuni Shrine, the textbook controversy and anti-Japanese demonstrations in Korea and Japan.
Keywords: national_news
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