Friday, July 27, 2007

Japan not observed

the posturing that leads Sakurai to claim to speak on behalf of all Japanese, who will be dishonored if this tiny non-binding resolution isn't crushed; the questioning of the motives of the US.(see the scare quotes around human rights and women): these are standard tropes in the gallons of ink spilled against this resolution of which I'm certain not even one percent of Americans are aware. This is the ugly side of America's Japanese ally. The airing of arguments such as these do not invalidate the alliance by any means (yet). I certainly don't think that Sakurai and company speak for the Japanese people. But they're out there, in positions of importance, and there is not nearly enough opposition to them in Japan's marketplace of ideas.Japan observer


I don't support for the movement Sakurai and her group are pushing.
But this is a misrepresentation of Japan---at least it is not as i see it.
It may be true that less than one percent of Americans will be aware of the resolution, but it does not follow that the resolution is right, and if the resolution is wrong, it is quite natural for Japanese to oppose it.
And it seems he does not know how this issue has evloved. The comfort women issue has
originated from demestic politics; just as the media and people opposing the ruling party are useing and abusing anything to topple the ruling party right now, it was mainly Asahi newspaper with a false testimony that fueled this campaign. And there are still a lot of Japanese people, including historians, who oppose Sakurai and her group.
I disagree with Sakurai on many points; but if I may, my advice to her would be that Sakurai should learn first and foremost this audacity the blogger shows.
But ironically it is this audacity of the the U.S. Representatives that has angered moderate conservatives, much more "ultra-nationalists"


On a side note, as for the two polls he cited,
Pew
If you look at it closely, 58(44+14)% think no apology is necessary.
Here is another poll whose objects were students in 2001
例えば、過去の戦争について、日本が中国に謝罪したかどうかの日中の学生の見方は異なっている。日本の学生の75%ほどは「十分に謝罪した」あるいは「不十分だが謝罪した」と見ているのに対し、中国の学生で「十分に謝罪した」と答えた学生は皆無だった

75 % of the students think Japan apologized.

As for the apology to the comfort women, surely Fuji's result is that 44% do not think that Japan has apologized sufficiently.
And yet there are other polls that show the contrary result.

アンケート掲示板たかじん
Of course the latter two results are not necessarily accurate. But I wonder how many per cent of people will respond "Yes" if the question is if another apology is necessary.
I also wonder if how many per cent of people will respond "Yes" to the question if, for instance, the U.S. has sufficiently apologized to the countries she intervened in history. And I am not sure if the result should entail that she should, or will apologize.

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