#21: Apology and Atonement (PART 1)

【Left Behind】
Whether you’re imprisoned for life or sentenced to death, my loved one won’t come back. It breaks my heart and tears me apart, leaving me in utter despair. And those of us bereaved are left with no choice but to dig ourselves out of this abyss of rage and hatred – to try to live a normal life that’s lost every sense of normalcy. But I urge you for an apology and atonement so such tragedy will never again fall upon anyone, anywhere.
 
As painful as it is, it seems as though such heartbreaking cries of the bereaved ones are heard countlessly, time and again. The words of the surviving family just barely squeezed out in midst of deep sorrow are, “An apology and atonement so such tragedy will never again fall upon anyone, anywhere.” It’s almost as if these words are shared in every culture.
 
Imagine this fictitious yet horrifying situation.
 
Imagine that your loved one is deeply hurt beyond repair, or is killed. Your loved one’s dreams, hopes, peace and happiness abruptly cut short – and along with them yours, too, suddenly taken away. How would you and your loved one feel? What emotions will take over? Sadness? Anger? Hatred? Or is it all of those combined yet still falling way short to describe the raw emotions overbearing upon you? And what will you and your loved one demand of the perpetrator? An apology? Atonement? Life sentence? Or, is it death sentence?
 
And then years pass by, and one day you and your loved one are told from your country that, “Your incident has been resolved for good.” That the incident was resolved financially.
 
“What do you mean? How can the country ‘resolve’ such horrific incident with the heartbroken people left behind in the dark? Besides, money can’t ‘resolve’ people’s broken hearts and raw emotions.”
 
“But it's been resolved for good, and the settlement is irreversible,” your country explains. “At some point, you must stop mulling over the past, and look to the future. The perpetrator has apologized.”
 
Will you and your loved one consent to this? Will your broken hearts and raw emotions heal from this?
 
This situation illustrates what’s at the core of the so-called “Comfort Women” issue. Comfort Women were young women and girls forced into sexual slavery by soldiers at war. The issue surrounding Comfort Women is that of human rights violation, and the factual evidence such as public documents and testimonies are abundant worldwide. This heinous crime was prevalent at times of war, worldwide, including but not limited to wars involving American, German, British, Soviet and French troops. It also occurred in wartimes involving Japanese troops. However, this issue has dragged out for so long – even to this day counting over 70 years since the end of World War II – primarily due to the Japanese government’s ignorant posture taken for too many years, as well as its refusal to educate the future generations about the past atrocities committed in the darkest hours of its history.
 
For those of us who say, “I don’t believe it” or “I don’t want to believe it,” let us all spread out our blanket of compassion to truly open up our hearts and minds. That it’s not so complex to imagine what heinous and grotesquely repulsive cruelty us humans are capable of amid extreme insanity of war. That it’s not so complex to imagine what cruelty us humans are capable of amid invasion of China and many Asian nations – raping women in the villages, laughing and killing their families, and burning the whole house down to destroy evidence – all in the name of the Emperor by calling it a Sacred War just like the jihadists of today.
 
“But all countries did pretty much the same in times of war,” some may say. May be so. In wartimes, it’s not surprising at all that such egregious human rights violations can take place as if it’s just a part of everyday normalcy. That’s precisely why wars must be repudiated.
 
Yet, even if all countries did so, if such is not the right action to undertake, then it surely doesn’t justify me and you to have done the same. Besides, if it was done, then we must admit our fault, apologize, and make atonement.
 
In light of human morality, that’s the path to be taken.
 
With the heartbroken people left behind in the dark, a country that attempted to heal broken hearts and emotions by receiving money, and another that attempted the same by paying money. Both showcased their senseless absence of compassion.

Read Next: Apology and Atonement (2)【Heartbroken】

Complete Series: Apology and Atonement (1)～(6)
[1]   [2]   [3]   [4]   [5]   [6]   
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Read Theme: Violence/Peace