Features National Politics
John Hofilena on May 22 2013
Former Tokyo mayor
Shintaro Ishihara spoke out on Tuesday in defense of his co-leader of the
Nippon Ishin no kai (Japan Restoration Party) and Osaka Mayor
Toru Hashimoto’s notion of legalizing sex-related services for United States troops in Japan, saying that this view is understandable under the current circumstances. Hashimoto has been in the hot seat lately for his comments regarding “comfort women” in the Second World War and legalizing prostitution in Okinawa.
The official newspaper of the (North) Korean Workers' Party said that Japan needs to make a complete apology and thorough compensation to
North Korea and the other Asian nations which were colonized and affected by Japan's militarism of the past. The editorial came out on the Rodon Sinmun's online edition on Monday, a few days after the visit of a senior Japanese advisor to Pyongyang.
Seems that Osaka Mayor
Toru Hashimoto has a goal of trying to offend almost everyone, as his newest statement will surely cause more controversy. A week after saying that comfort women were "necessary" for the Japanese military during World War II, the outspoken right-wing politician this time said that even the
South Korean soldiers were also using women for sex during the Vietnam War in the 60s and 70s.
It's been 41 years since
Okinawa reverted to Japanese rule, and yet the residents don't feel that they are totally free yet because of the strong US military presence in the prefecture. To commemorate the anniversary last Sunday, around 3,500 people gathered in a park in Ginowan to call for an Okinawa
free of US military bases.
Former Japanese Prime Minister
Tomiichi Murayama, the same prime minister during which the 1995 apology of Japan to countries affected by its invasions and imperialistic conquests in World War II – which now is named after him, the “
1995 Murayama Statement” – has expressed his disagreement and criticism of current Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s recent remarks about the ambiguity of the word “invade”. The current prime minister went on record in April saying about the Murayama statement that, “I will not accept it as it is. The definition of invasion isn't set in stone”.
Surveys by leading Japanese newspapers show that majority of the public think that Osaka Mayor
Toru Hashimoto's controversial statements about comfort women and prostitution were "inappropriate". The outspoken politician's comments were met with outrage and criticism by Japan's Asian neighbours and even its ally, the United States.
As criticism continue to hound Osaka Mayor and
Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) co-leader
Toru Hashimoto – the outcry against his comments on Japan’s wartime sex slave system and prostitution are coming from all over the globe now – the outspoken Japanese politician put the blame squarely on the media, criticizing them for putting out what according to him were “misleading” reports.
Osaka’s outspoken mayor
Toru Hashimoto has found himself back in the center of controversy as he slammed the United States’ criticism of his earlier comments regarding “comfort women” in World War II, saying that American soldiers themselves abused Japanese women when they occupied the Japanese islands after their surrender.
China's media regulator will reportedly impose regulations on the content of TV dramas based on the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. The popularity of these anti-Japanese dramas set during World War II has led to "fabricated content" and "overly dramatic" presentations of the subject matter.
Features National Politics
John Hofilena on May 16 2013
Toru Hashimoto, the outspoken mayor of Osaka, on Thursday offered to talk to former "comfort women" and apologize for their sufferings brought by the Japanese military in World War II, this after causing an international outrage when the Japanese politician said in an interview they served a "necessary" role in wartime. Hashimoto’s comments had prompted angry reactions from China, South Korea and the Philippines for saying that soldiers in WWII needed some way to “let off steam”, which was the specific role of the
comfort women system.
