#25: Apology and Atonement (PART 5)

【Honest Peace Education】
Now, let’s turn to school education, perhaps the most imperative of all education for the future generations.
 
In the present-day Germany, teachers spend abundant time from upper elementary to high school in thoroughly educating students about Nazi era. History textbooks emphasize the reality of Germany as perpetrator, covering at great length the horrors of its aggression including, of course, the Holocaust. History curriculum also dives deep into the responsibility of ordinary citizens for allowing the Nazis to take control of their country.
 
Furthermore, teachers engage the students in discussions, expressing opinions and delving deeply into the process in which Hitler seized power, how that was possible, and why nobody did anything to stop it despite realizing what was unfolding before them. This approach also serves to grow the students into active and responsible participants of the democracy.
 
Upon receiving such education, how do the students feel about their own country? Do they feel “embarrassed” to be born a citizen of such country? Do they feel guilty? Perhaps, struggle to regain pride in a country with such “tainted” history? Initially, may be so. But the answer in the end is, none of the above. Upon receiving such education, many German students genuinely express “pride” in their own country for honestly confronting the historical realities as perpetrator, and educating their generation and beyond to ensure that such tragedy will never again fall upon anyone, anywhere.
 
So then, in the present-day Japan, do schools spend abundant time in thoroughly teaching about Militarist Japan? Do history textbooks emphasize the reality of Japan as perpetrator, covering at great length the horrors of its aggression including, of course, the Comfort Women issue? Does history curriculum dive deep into the responsibility of ordinary citizens for allowing militarism to take control of their country? Do teachers engage the students in discussions, expressing opinions and delving deeply into the process in which the military seized power, how that was possible, and why nobody did anything to stop it despite realizing what was happening? Do schools educate to grow their students into active and responsible participants of the democracy?
 
Unfortunately, it’s a sad reality that schools don’t spend much time in teaching about Militarist Japan, barely cover the horrors of Japanese aggression and Comfort Women issue, rarely reflect on the responsibility of ordinary citizens, routinely emphasize on rote memorization along the lines of what’s written in the textbooks, virtually never engage the students in discussions or expressing opinions, and show very limited intention of growing their students into active and responsible participants of the democracy.
 
Now, let’s also assess another vital component of history education in Japan – the textbooks. In prewar Japan, the government approved only one version of textbook permissible for school use across the country from 1903 to 1945. This Single-textbook System was strictly enforced, and as such, people had no choice but to learn as the government wishes to teach.
 
By allowing such governance, people essentially bound their children and future generations to a hopelessly narrow-minded education – which, perhaps, can be viewed as one of the main reasons that led Japan into the depth of devastating war. Citizens to demand diverse knowledge, to grow their moral conscience, to think for themselves, and to say “No” to wars. Unfortunately, the Japanese people didn’t have the independence nor the courage to do so.
 
In postwar Japan, the devastated people were furious with their government for “deceiving” them into such reckless war. To appease its bitter citizens, the government introduces Textbook Screening System in 1949. This new system stipulates that the government pre-approve multiple versions of textbooks permissible for school use, and allow each school/teacher to choose one from those state-approved textbooks. Although this is better than the previous system that allowed no choice, it’s a far cry from “Freedom of choice.”
 
Nonetheless, in the immediate aftermath of war, the textbook writers, approvers and users alike were all those who experienced firsthand the ruthless and utter annihilation of war. Blatant manipulation of information by the state won’t pass muster like it used to in the prewar days. As such, history textbooks from this period were written with more honesty than today, reflecting in part the gruesome realities of war aggression by Japan.
 
Yet, by 1963, what little choice schools and teachers had on textbooks is taken away. For public elementary, middle and high schools, the Board of Education (BOE) is given the authority to “choose” from the state-approved textbooks on behalf of schools and teachers.  BOE is an organization heavily subjected to both legal and political influence by the central and local governments. And as Japan is a country with lopsided political power in favor of the central government, in a matter of just 18 years since the total annihilation of war, Japanese education virtually reverts back to the prewar standard of people to learn as the government wishes to teach.
 
What’s more, right around the same time, the government begins to notch up its influence on what’s written in these textbooks. In 1962, a history textbook fails the government screening for “Portraying too grim a view on war.” In 1982, another history textbook that wrote “Japanese military invaded China” is approved only under the condition that it be rephrased to “Japanese military advanced into China.” Moreover in 2001, in protest of a newly approved history textbook, Nobel laureate Kenzaburo Oe and 17 others condemn the government for “Largely eliminating mention of Comfort Women . . . falsely justifying the Japanese colonialization of Korea and invasion of China . . . and vastly reducing mention of war aggression by Japan.”
 
So then, why does Japan insist so adamantly on such narrow-minded education of people to learn as the government wishes to teach? Indeed, it relates to the postwar government wishing for “The Japanese people to regain pride in their own country.” That notion, in and of itself, is perhaps not too far off from the sentiment of postwar Germany. The German government also wished for “The German people to regain pride in their own country.” Nevertheless, the pivotal difference is in the polar opposite approaches taken by these two nations to regain that “Pride.”
 
As we’ve already noted here, Germany emphasizes its historical reality as perpetrator, covering at great length the horrors of its aggression including the Holocaust, as well as the responsibility of ordinary citizens for allowing the Nazis to take control. To regain the Pride in their own country, German people deliberately chose to honestly confront their harsh realities.
 
On the contrary, Japan once again chose to manipulate the minds of its people, just as it used to in the prewar days. Upon receiving the education emphasizing on its historical reality as perpetrator, how would the students feel about their own country? Would they feel “embarrassed” to be born a citizen of such country? Would they feel guilty? Perhaps, struggle to regain pride in a country with such “tainted” history? If the history textbooks and curriculum are deemed a risk to any of the above, then the government’s choice is to apply pressure to gradually eliminate such realities from history education. Now that so many witnesses and evidence are lost forever to war, none of those realities can be proven anyways – and so their twisted logic goes.
 
To regain the Pride in their own country, Japan deliberately chose to look away from their harsh realities. And as unfortunate as the government chose to do so, it's even more unfortunate that the Japanese people jumped on the bandwagon and gravitated toward the easy way out.

Read Next: Apology and Atonement (6)【Empathy】
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Complete Series: Apology and Atonement (1)～(6)
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