A Thousand Confirmed Dead - All China Wants is an Apology - Comments?

Question

A site in Nanjing, the capital of east China's Jiangsu Province, was recently confirmed as the place where more than 1,000 Chinese were massacred by marauding Japanese troops on December 13, 1937, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Nanjing Massacre Site Unearthed

http://www.china.org.cn/english/China/221287.htm

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The Chinese government wants an apology from Japan and for Japan to stop rewriting history, especially to their children, of what really happened in China during WWII

Peace

Jim

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Answer 1

Jim..., I really do not understand why you posted this question here (history forum).



While I've been reading the other answers, I felt like people rubbing salt on our (Chinese) wounds, bleeding wounds, they were supposed to be scars.



Well! Enjoy the freedom of speech here - 200,000 or even millions dead of whoever means nothing to those who answered as outsiders (non-Chinese) in here, it happened long time ago and it was in China - who really cares? Who's Japanese or Chinese that answered this question here till now?



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To answer your question:



What else the Chinese should ask for after 70+ years? Any other options?



Don't you think the problems in Middle East is more than enough on this planet? Why do the Chinese (1.3 billion) want to mess up Asia for revenge? Didn't the history tell us enough how bad the war was?



When the wound stop bleeding, it would recover and turn to be a scar, it would never disappear but it reminds you how did you get hurt!



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Below are my answers to some other questions about the Sino-Japanese Wars



https://answersrip.com/question/index?qid=20061108194948AASGKAu&show=7#profile-info-3289319b0eb3fc7429d2552f5a733234aa



P.S. to J Kibler



I do not agree with you!!!! Culture difference can't be a damn good excuse for rewriting history in their text books!!!!! I spent my college time in Tokyo, worked in an International Japanese firm for 5 years, I do know Japanese culture quite well because I started to read their comics and magazines since I was 8 till now. You sounded like you are not a Chinese (I guess, from your words), there is nothing in common regarding to this issue between you, the Chinese and the Japanese even though you married a Japanese woman or you speak Japanese, you never can understand how my grandparents hated Japanese nor you ever would try to understand it!



++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



Jim... if you are really interested in this topic, you may google the links I posted in my 2nd answer up there, 300,000 were killed in Nanjing - there was an answerer (Japanese) posted to the same question said it was a lie, the total population in Nanjing in those days was less than 200,000 and how could the Chinese government make up that dead troll! So, he thinks less 1/3 of civilians were killed in Nanjing is the fact and he has the right to sound it out loud to correct this error. Certainly, I don't see any meaning of "apology" in his words. Typical Japanese - "CULTURE"? according to what J Kibler refered..., isn't it?



I do have quite some Japanese friends apologized to me (well.. never anyone said ... "on behalf of our government" though!) when we talked about the WW2.



Indeed, since the war broke up, refugees from Shanghai, Hangzhou... etc. areas were moving to far west and rushing towards Nanjing all the way to Xian, Chongqing.., etc. How could this person know the true figure of how many civilians were there in Nanjing? As what you said, the figure doesn't matter, how they killed / raped in the past and then they now still avoid telling the truth to their young generation in their history text book is a fact and would be recorded in Chinese history books.



+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



By the way, Jim, have you heard of "Comfort women"? They were the Asian sex slaves kept in the Japanese Military Comfort Stations all over Asia during the WW2.



One of the reasons for establishing the comfort-station system was



- The prevention of mass rapes of civilians, which led to great difficulties in controlling local populations once they were conquered. (The tens of thousands of rapes of the women of Nanjing were a key factor in motivating military leaders to institutionalize comfort stations on such a large scale.)



For the full list of reasons and further information about "comfort women" please refer to below website.



http://www.apublicbetrayed.com/case_studies/case_study5.htm



Here are some others about "comfort women"



http://www.jpri.org/publications/critiques/critique_IX_2.html

http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/55a/012.html

Answer 2

Dear Mr Jim,



I really admire and respect you for having stood by us on so many occasions. Thank you on behalf of my race even though I'm not from China. I'll answer/comment for you first. I agree wholeheartedly with Aileen2003_hk. First of all, it seems that alot of people are just rubbing salt to our injuries and quite plainly, just couldn't care less about the feelings of 1.3 billion Chinese and plenty more around the world. If one were to read most of the comments, one would almost think that they are actually implying that the Chinese deserved what they got and so they should shut their mouth instead of keep asking for an apology that is long overdue.



What the hell is wrong with all you people out there? Why are there so many people hating Chinese? Just because mainland China is a communist country? Is that a justification for people like DS to hate Chinese then? Is that also a justification that China do not deserve to receive a public apology from Japan? What if those brutally murdered are your own race of people, would you have said the same despicable thing and show the same contempt that you have for China?



Second, irregardless of what the Chinese government policies are (now or in the past) and what they did in the Tiananmen Square (those are different issues, by the way), the facts remain that Japanese troops did kill more than 300,000 Chinese during the WW2. The whole world knows this. There are material evidences and live witnesses attesting that this event did happen. So why are there people trying to deny those horrific crimes now by talking craps about other unrelated issues?



Third, I understand that there are alot of people associated with Japan but why defend the indefensible when there are plain evidences that prove what horrible crimes the Japanese have committed during WW2? This is a matter of justice which China never receive till this day. And yet, all they are asking is just a simple apology from the Japanese government to acknowledge the atrocities of war and to stop trying to rewrite history. Why is that asking too much?



Last but not the least, to the ignorant Americans (not you, Mr Jim), you have only a few thousands killed in the 911 terrorists attack and you immediately waged war against the perpetrators. The Chinese have more than that amount massacred and what have they done to seek justice? Absolutely nothing. Did they attack the Japanese? Or show any retaliation? What makes you people more special than the Chinese then? In the end, we are all of the same race, Homo Sapiens. I say that the Chinese government has been really patient with Japan for so long now. Don't get me wrong, I love Japan and its culture. (heck, I even fashioned myself a Japanese pseudonym). But I know what is right and what is wrong. My sense of justice is not warped unlike some users here. Japan is clearly wrong in this matter. They should properly apologise to China for the atrocities committed against the Chinese. It is as simple as that.



P/S. To DS, you have completely lost the ability to think rationally and judiciously. God help you.

Answer 3

It is interesting that Japanese tend to downplay, if not outright deny the things they did in China, while in Germany it is a punishable crime to even deny the Holocaust.

Answer 4

I give you my utmost respect for willing to look into the matter.



Everybody knows it happened, there are primary source witnesses 2 generations back. The worst is, there are people out there who say it never happened and turn over to say we fabricated this event. Or there are some that puts the blame on the Chinese side or downplays this event because of Japan's closer relationship with the "old imperial powers in the west"



J-kibler - the Chinese gov't have already openly held a meeting to condemn Mao back in Deng's(previous chairman) era, they call it "self-reflection" conference on Mao. you can find those records.



About a month ago, it was the 70th? anniversary of the war, what they want now is not looking to further condemn the japanese govt but to find a way to work thru and build a better relationship in the future for people of both sides in the future.





-as for "new american century" - boy, i see you came fully prepared? lol

Answer 5

Its possible that they may apologize, they apologized to the Philippines!

When the Japanese occupied the philippines in 1941-45 they set up these brothels and filipinas were forced into them as sex slaves.

An apology was made then they denied making it and then the Japan leader Abe sent an envoy here to apologize in person.

Nothing said about any restitution for these poor elderly women whose lives had been ruined and torn apart!

I would like to hear an apology from them for the Bataan "death march" in 1942, when some 20,000 American and Filipino troops died along the way!

My father was one of the lucky ones who escaped, he later helped train the guerrila forces in the mountains.

Answer 6

What will happen if Germany never apologized to Jewish people? At least the Holocoust is the in the textbook, but when was the last time you learned about what happen to China?



Japan should apologize, not because the Chinese government want it, but Chinese PEOPLE want it. Bring up something like "oh how many people Mao killed" is irrelevent because not only it's a different story. Germany can't just tell Israel "look how may Palestinian you killed".

Answer 7

Hi Jim. I argee with Aileen's answer. But the older generation who survived WWII like my own grandparents will NEVER forget the Japanese's sins againt my people but they also feel that it's time to put the issue to rest (not forget about what happened, though) and move on.



Now I want to talk about the two ignorant racist morons here like 'The New American Century'(aka 'I hate commies' & 'kill a commie') and 'DS'. These absolute CLUE-LESS, close-minded and hateful idiots are the reasons why people dislike the US.



Since the answer from 'The New American Century' was copied from 'DS' I am not going to make a reponds to it. But I am making one for 'DS'.

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Dear DS,



Don't you do ANY kind of nomal human actives? I mean what is wrong with you? Why are you such a racist?



You may say that you are not a racist because you only hate Chinese not Asian(In fact it seem you love Japnese people).



But what I think we as people should understand is the fact that it is not only kind of prejudice that is bad. There ARE other kinds and you just displayed one to us all. The fact is, you show yourself as a an classic hateful trailer trash. You show hatred towards everyone that disagrees with you on any issue at all. You showed your hatred towards native Chinese, Chinese Americans, Americans that live in China and thiests of any kind.



In your postings you called us Chinese names like 'pigs', 'Chinaman', 'small penis'(Are we in Bio class?), 'slanty eyes', 'brainwashed scum' and all kinds of stereotype names. Which is just sick.



You show yourself to be someone with no moral or any decency at all. There is always this war againts anyone who believe someting different from you. You just showed yourself to be intolerant, rude and indecent. Which is what your posting has proved.



And the fact that when a person from the so called "advanced society" think it is ok to insult and say hurtful things to people from "primitive China" just show the level of prejudice and hate that you have inside yourself.



The funny part is you you claim to hate Chinese people because we are close-minded which is what YOU realy are. How many Chinese do you see on Yahoo! or YouTube that goes around spaming Americans with e-mail or cursing the American culture with baseless facts and rumors? Is it Chinese that kept on getting a new account just because they want to post hateful questions? NO! It is people like YOU and 'The New American Century' all the time.



You can lean from people that can disagree yet without saying nasty thing to one and and other.



Peace



And I mean that specialy to people like you that have a hateful soul and should see a doctor.



chankljp

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P.S. If you realy live in China I want some prove. Give me the name of the school that you teach in or at lease where you live.



Edit:



(1) You seem to enjoy calling me closeminded and ignorant.



No, I don't enjoy calling you closeminded. I not the kind of people that pick fights.



(2) Yet, in all your rambling, you didn't say a single thing that proves my posting incorrect.The article is about asking Japan to apologize for Nanjing (again). I merely explained that Japan has apologized many times. If you don't agree with that, then prove me wrong. I mentioned that China is being hippocratical for even asking for an apology, again prove me wrong.



You are right on this one but that was a message to get your attention. Since I now have it I will proves your posting incorrect in the end of this message.



(3) Can you honestly say China has been a peaceful country for the past 100 years?



Nobody is saying China is a peaceful country. But in the same time, who can honestly say their own country is peaceful? Can you say the same about your own country? Is the US a peaceful country? Face it, as long as there is man there will be war.



(4) You said you're from Hong Kong. What was the population of Hong Kong in 1900 and what is it now? Where do you think the extra millions of people came from? Oh and why is the fence at the LuoHu (Lo Wu) border crossing both facing toward the mainland like a prison fence keeping Chinese in if it is such a utopia?



I never said that China is a utopia. It never was and never will be. Many Many of the mainland Chinese came to Hong Kong in the 1940s' beacause of WW2 (which was carried out by You-knows-who).BTW, you stole the line of the utopia with a prison fence from Milton Friedman's book of Free to Choose. How creative of you.



(5) You've called me racist several times. For God's sake, Chinese isn't a race. How can China claim to have 56 ethnic groups yet be a single race? It makes no sense.



YOUR claim makes no sense. You are like saying that someone holding up a sign with the words 'I hate black people' is not a racist beacuse there are all kinds of black people. There are native Africans, African Americans and all kind of race mix so that person is not a racist. Does that make any sense to you? In any case, even if you are not a racist I have said that racism is not only kind of prejudice that is bad.



(6) You then said I love Japanese and yet then claim that I called you slant-eyes?? Read that sentence again and please realize how absurd it is.



I know, it is absurd. But it YOU that called me slant-eyes in that letter you sened me some time ago. YOU are the biggest lier here.



(7) I do not hate Chinese people. I have many Chinese friends and friends with Chinese ancestory. Why is it that anyone who doesn't believe the official Chinese explanation for history is a racist?



I don't call you a racist because you doesn't believe the official Chinese explanation for history. I called you a racist because you called us Chinese names like 'pigs' small penis' and 'brainwashed scum'. If you don't hate Chinese people you have one hell of a way to show it.



(8) You want to see racists? Go to the comment section on the China Daily website and read the filth that comes out of your countrymen's mouths.



No thanks. the filth that comes out of your mouth is good enough to see the meaning of racists.



(9) I don't mind you going out of your way to insult me, I actually find it amusing. But please learn how to form a simple argument. If you don't agree with what I write then explain what you don't agree with. Simple enough for you?



This is what I am going to do right now.



Your claims have no logic at all. As Shiori Tomoe has said, Tiananmen Square and the Nanjing rape are different issues. It is like saying that it will be fine for Americans to hijack an Arad plane and hit a mosque with it because of 911. What will if someone said that it is fine for terrorists to kill Americans because the US did attacked Islamic nation and nobody want to help to hippocrates?



It is quite funny actually. I am a Chinese myself and all other Chinese that I know of knows Mao's failed policies. Stop cheery picking your facts.



One last thing. You love to write about how China's pollution and you went as far as to calling us a toxic waste dump. Here is a message to you, if you can really read Chinese you should understand it:



你又要馬兒好，但又要馬兒不吃草。簡直不知所謂、胡說八道！



你這個法西斯主義的神經漢，來香港的話請到青山精神病院求助。



Edit 2:



This is a message to DS if he is reading:



I see that your account got suspended. If wondering who reported you I now let you know it was me. I reported all of you racist postings that I could find and you are now a goner.



Haha, sorry of getting your account deactivated you 王八蛋. I know it hurts DS, don't cry. I am doing this because all of your racist junk needs to be remove from this great website: Yahoo! Answers.

Answer 8

Well the Vikings recently apologised to the Irish.

Answer 9

Brutality of war,the waste of slaughter of the innocent, Man 's inhumanity to man,without regard to his future place in the history of humanity itself!

Answer 10

It, sadly, will never happen. That is why history tends to repeat itself.

Because 100 years later, these "Things" never happened.....

Answer 11

Very good research, Marie! But there are many, many flaws in this theory. FIRST: They are directly comparing apples and oranges - i.e., Christianity against Darwinism. - I dare say that if Hitler had been a Buddhist, there would have been no Holocaust.. If Hitler had been a Hippie-Atheist, there would have been no Holocaust. If Hitler had not had psychiatric problems, there would have been no Holocaust.... Are you beginning to see the point? Just because someone was influenced by something good to do evil, does not make the influencing device evil. To wit: The Inquisition, The murders of The Son of Sam, Jim Jones and the suicide cult, Mormons and the Mountain Meadows Massacre, Slavery, wife-beatings.. Every one of these evils has direct connections with the Bible. We know that selection is effective in "refining" gene pools. This is not a theory. ..and in all honesty, genetic selection has benefited mankind for centuries - the idea that human genetic selection is some kind of "sacred cow" stems merely from religious people who decry atrocities brought about by the likes of Hitler, etc. This is a prime example of "throwing the baby out with the bathwater." Remember, Communism, totalitarianism, dictatorships - are NOT atheism! Though they hold atheistic beliefs, such as "Religion is the opiate of the masses..." There are other factors that add up to atrocity. As you have seen, The Bible can be a good source for great evil (Have you never read the Old Testament?) But ultimately, it is the sanity of the dictator and the pure atheist understanding that love for others is a fundamental and logical tenet of Atheism. An atheist of understanding would never condone the abuse of any person.

Answer 12

Many thoughtful responses above.



I agree that the continued tendency to deny war crimes in Japan is troubling, and adds insult to injury for many Chinese.



I also agree that China's Maoist policies wrought havoc on the Chinese people generally. Even before the Cultural Revolution, the Great Leap Forward followed the awful, massively lethal 15 Years War, which blended into the horrific Chinese Civil War, which followed on the devastating Taishan Rebellion (I have family ties there), and that's only the 20th century!



I think a Truth and Reconciliation approach might be the most productive. I'm sure a Chinese/Japanese truth and reconciliation process would have to differ from the South African, Rwandan and Guatemalan approaches.



In truth and reconciliation, the freedom to speak without fear of punishment loosen tongues, and rewards those who abstain from retaliation by giving them the psychological satisfaction of finally hearing confessions.



The United States ought to have a similar process regarding the war and occupation in Iraq.

Answer 13

A Chinese apology or a Japanese apology?



As someone who knows Japanese culture quite well, I can tell you that many times when a Japanese apologizes for something, you do not even realize they have apologized. First of all, the way they say things that they consider embarrassing or dishonorable is very indirect. For example, when they surrendered on VJ Day back in 1945, the exact translated words coming from the Emperor Hirohito were "The state of the war has come to a point where it can no longer be continued" ...now if you are an American or Chinese and listen to that, you think the man has said nothing and is just pure rhetoric, but to a Japanese these sentence means "We have been defeated in a humiliating way" , It all has to do with the Japanese culture understanding of those words.



The same goes with the Nanjing apologies, numerous times politicians have said sentences that to the Japanese mean a clear apology, but the Chinese probably consider it mere rhetoric. This is a large cultural divide what we are facing, but the fact is, Japan has aplogized many times, what happens is that the Chinese leaders do not want to accept that because they badly need a scapegoat for their own problems.



After all, didn't Mao kill far more Chinese than the the Japanese did? I never heard an apologize from the communist party for that one.



NOTE

With so many "edits" done every few hours, it is obvious you do not seek for real answers, but you just want to hear what you want to hear. In that case, better ask the Chinese, and get the answers you really want to hear.



YE ANOTHER NOTE

My bad, apparently the communist party has distanced themselves from Mao. But that does not imply they have achieved democracy or abandoned totalitarianism. Please people, do not idealize such a regime, the Chinese government right now have more things in common with the Japanese Imperialism of the 1930s than the modern Japanese Government of today has.

Answer 14

Neither Japan nor China have achieved the post-nationalist utopia that our European brethren think is inevitable, and this is just the latest salvo in a continuing battle of blame. It doesn't help that both countries are what sociologists call a 'shame culture,' in which reputation or 'face' are more important than in the West. Western cultures are considered 'guilt cultures.' I don't consider myself enough of an expert to dissect this difference in detail vis-a-vis this case, but it does seem pertinent. Anyone?

http://www.doceo.co.uk/background/shame_guilt.htm



(Sometimes this shame approach might come in handy. What if the chairman of FEMA during the Katrina disaster, 'Brownie,' had felt compelled to commit ritual suicide to atone for his failures? Might this not have a salutary effect, 'pour encourager les autres?')



The immediate cause of this salvo was probably the recent unveiling of a new edition of the government-approved history texts in Japan, which were once again too silent on Japanese responsibility for the war to satisfy foreign observers, especially the Chinese.



On both sides, it's mostly about domestic political advantage. In Japan, as an earlier poster has noted, the Japanese government never quite admits that it was the aggressor in China, preferring to emphasize the suffering - the victimization - of the Japanese people later in the war. The fact that Japan was the only place that atomic weapons have ever been used helps immeasurably with this, of course. There is a strong strain of right wing nationalist public opinion in Japan that rejects any politician who apologizes for the war at all, and celebrates any who is willing to publicly visit the Yasukuni shrine where Japanese war dead, including some war criminals convicted by the Allied courts, are interred. Of course, the Chinese and South Koreans erupt when this happens, which only makes the Japanese right wingers happier.



At the same time, the Chinese, faced with unresolved questions about where to go next, with a Communist government of increasingly dubious legitimacy presiding, so far very successfully, over a great capitalist success story (but largely ignoring those who can't keep up, or are hurt along the way), are resorting to 'waving the bloody shirt,' as Republican politicians so often did in the decades after the American Civil War to silence Democratic opponents.



Compared to the Rape of Nanking, when perhaps 200,000, perhaps twice that, Chinese were killed one at a time by vindictive Japanese soldiers, annoyed that the Chinese army dared to defend the city, this is trivial. But it's something the Chinese government can bring up, again, to get the Chinese people to rally round. There were enough barbarities committed during the war in China that I'm sure the Chinese government can bring up a new one and demand an apology every week for the next year or two, if they wish. Of course, the Japanese can be forgiven, perhaps, for rolling their eyes a bit at this rehashing of 'ancient' history for modern political point scoring.



As earlier posters have noted, this attack upon Japanese-perpetrated atrocities sixty-odd years ago would be more convincing if the Chinese authorities would be similarly able to admit the excesses (atrocities) of the Cultural Revolution and even of the Tien-an-men massacre, their occupation of Tibet, or would take a more responsible tack on Darfur.



Also, let's recognize the splendid job the Germans have done in facing their own demons. Would that the Russians, or the Austrians, or to a lesser degree the Swiss or the French or the Catholic Church, were so brave.



(In response to the questioner's comments, I don't believe the Chinese have really begun to explore the true tragedy of what happened during the Cultural Revolution, or of other abuses that preceded that. Until they open the archives, and let the scholars go where they will, and, most importantly, allow them to publish their conclusions in Chinese popular publications, I will continue to think that they are more remiss than the Japanese are on their guilt during the war in China. At least they Japanese are allowing mostly foreign scholars to study the period, even if they don't publish the conclusions in Japan.)

Answer 15

Jimbo, between Dec 1937 and Jan 1938 the Japanese held a killing feast which became infamous as the Nanjing Massacre. About 300,000 people were killed during this time and countless rapes were committed. Why the friggin' hell are you or is anybody even talking about those 1,000 people? In the total head count this is nothing.



The Nanjing Massacre happened, it's well documented and the Japanese have to acknowledge their brutal past just like the Germans had to do. This is not only about these 1,000 dead you mention or the 300,000 dead of the Nanjing Massacre but this is about all the people the Japanese have killed during WWII.

Answer 16

Governments tend to do things which promotes government intervention into the private lives of individuals and go through all types of convolutions justifies such actions. Cultural evolutions as well as specific times in histories of peoples and areas can encourage the justification of such acts.



Most nations have historic events in which such events have occurred. More often than not such events are anomalies in the context of cultural histories and are rarely the product of ethnic intent of one people against another. That doesn’t lessen the brutality of a specific act but there is a difference between acts occurring due to the lapse of humanity and the military intent of one people against all others of another people.



The rape of Nan King and other similar acts of the Japanese military circa World War II was a result of military policy resulting in an intent to control a people by cowing the civilians through brutality. That similar acts in the histories of the Chinese people (i.e., the acts of the Mongols) also occurred doesn’t lessen or justify subsequent acts by the Japanese. Within the United States similar acts have occurred but have usually been of the type considered anomalies relative to military policy, however, there have been some exceptions. One is the intent to control a native people by decimating the American Bison and thereby destroying the viability of a culture.



Another, and less well known, was during the Civil War. Specifically on direct order of the President to the Generals Grant and Sherman, to directly attack the civilians of the South during Sherman’s march to the sea through Georgia. The intent was to destroy the civilians’ desire to support their government in the war and thereby bring the war to an end.



For any government entity to apologize for such acts requires a number of factors to exist. There must be wide public (and growing) awareness of the act(s); there must be pressure by the winning side to force the losing side to face these acts; there must be in the government doing the act a cultural ethic that such act is unjustifiable.



In other words, anticipating any real excuse will mean a life time of waiting.

Answer 17

I have heard of this and worse happening during that war. I have also heard of an incident where the Chinese were buried alive while a Japanese general ate his dinner on top of the then dying and suffocating Chinese. An apology is long overdue, whey is it an issue now, is it because it was just discovered. I think that if we were to ask nations for these apologies we would all be in a mess. In the US we have a lot to apologies for just to the American Indian, never mind the cruel and inhuman slave traders, the way the Chines coolies were treated by the railroads. What about how the Turks tortured the Armenians, what about the Holocaust.

I am not by any means saying that it was a terrible thing to do, people do these things in war and when the conscience of society convenient turns off due to greed. Where do we stop, that is my question, where do we stop so we don't have to be sorry any more. Is this not enough. http://www.ikjeld.com/japannews/00000132.php

Answer 18

first,I want to say,if you know much about the Japanese culture,you will see,these people have the ideology that the weak ones should be kicked out of the world.So I'll never believe that this country will apologize for their gulty genuinely.

In terms of the disasters happened after the foundation of the PRC,I think we are ashamed for that.but I don't think it is just some one's fault or the fault of communist party. It is the madness of all the country then.some suffered then,and some are suffering from guilty now.It is just like we slapped on our own face.So I don't think there should be some apology,but remember our fault,and never repeat it.

and with reference to democracy,or the so-called "freedom",I don't think there is absolute freedom at all.(you see cctv in Britain,is it freedom?) there is one Party in China,and to an ordinary people,there is no concept of party at all.I mean if we work for the party,it is just the same as we are working for the whole country.the party members are from us,and I believe the disaster of ruling of dictator is not likely to happen anymore,for the party is so huge and members are from the people,it just can't be in one man's hand.and the statesman we selected are not likely to be some warlord.they know what is good for the country.

Answer 19

Japan will apology when China becomes too powerful for Japan to handle...

Answer 20

When the federal government apologizes for Ruby Ridge, Waco Texas, indian massacres, and the shooting of striking textile workers and striking miners and striking factory workers in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Answer 21

Although your question has some merit, I believe China should apologize to it's own people for the millions of people killed and starved during the reign of Mao Tse Tung. They could even admit and apologize to the ones killed at Teneman square. Charity begins at home!

Answer 22

Who is China to ask Japan for apologies? The cultural revolution began by the man who founded modern China after Japanese occupation, killed more people than the Japanese did. The cultural revolution began by Party Chairman Mao, a man still idolized in China, was wholesale slaughter and torture of the Chinese people. The government still posts his picture, but they want an apology from Japan for crimes against the Chinese people?



The mayor of Berlin couldn't even answer what year WWII began and they certainly have their share of neo-nazis. And they didn't prosecute a single one of their own criminals. Germany has apologized to Poland and no one else. Now, stop holding up Germany as a symbol of regret.



Oh, and Germany did more than their fair share of medical experiments. They left behind a rich source of literature http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/nazi_human_...



The reason China hasn't receive anymoney is because Mao Zedong refused war reparations. And actually, Japan has given China more money than any other country, including the US.

{(a) Loans: 3,133.1 billion yen (Cumulative Total until FY 2004)

(b) Grants: 145.7 billion yen (Cumulative Total until FY 2004)

(c)Technical Cooperation: 144.6 billion yen (Cumulative Total until FY 2003) }

And, as a condition for reestablishing diplomatic relations. Beijing agreed that all war debts were settled.



China had almost 30 years to sue Japan and decided not to and even declared they wouldn't in the future. That's China's fault, not Japans. And don't say that is the fault of an idiotic government. Those people who survived WWII are the same people who put the present government in power. It's their own fault they didn't get any money. Don't get me wrong, I feel sorry for them, but if they thought it was THAT important, why did they wait 60 years? The purpose of the suits are to build nationalism in China. They used to do it by blaming the US, Russia, Taiwan and even India for their problems. They even blamed the US of the disaster of the Great Leap Forward (still do). The first big protests against Japan didn't happen until 40 years after the war was over and the Chinese government has a long history of deciding the topic of protests. Now take your head out of your *** and put 2 and 2 together. Maybe Japan itself can sue Mongolia for the invasion of Ghengis Khan and England can sue the US for Lèse majesté.



Oh, and Germany was responsible for the deaths of over 20 million people. They only personal apology they made was to the Jews of Poland. They haven't apologized for invading France twice. They just apologize for WWII in general, which is exactly what Japan has been doing for the past 60 years.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/list_of_war...

Answer 23

Oh my God? Are you quoting a Xinhua article? Does everyone know what Xinhua is? It's the Chinese governments official newspaper. The only one allowed to take pictures of politicians or anything else it arbitrarily decides is sensitive.



So, another Nanjing site has been uncovered? Japan has apologized for WWII every year on the anniversary of it's ending every year for the past 60 or so. Does China really expect Japan to apologize for EVERY single fatality? They probably have sh!t to do. Could you imagine if the Chinese people demanded that their government apologize for the 30 million who died of starvation during the Great Leap Forward or if families of professors slaughtered during the Cultural revolution and what if Tibet wanted it's temples back that were burnt down? (other than the obvious, arrest them and shoot them). Yes, it was a tragedy, but if every detail had to be apologized for and mourned then Mongolia and Spain would STILL be apologizing.



It's obviously being used for political purposes. Hence the Xinhua article. Jim, you live China, you should be very aware that politics is Xinhuas sole purpose. If it was completely fact checked and validated, it would allow other jounalists to cover it.



"China officially regards Mao as 30% bad and 70% good. The bad comes from his terrible policies which resulted in 60 million starving to death, to the Cultural Revolution where roving gangs of Revolutionary Guards slaughter thousands.



Yes, China has apologized for that."



This is quite funny actually. I was an English teacher in China and asked my students about this very thing. They refused to believe that that many people died and that the deaths they had heard about were attributed to natural causes and of course America's fault. They were told that China had natural famon and America refused to aide them. If they only knew that China was exporting wheat to Russia at the very moment they were starving. Apologized? ha ha ha. You mean "denied" right? Oh, and the 30%-70% is Dung Xiaoping. Not the Chinese people. Funny, they guy was one of the ones Mao threw in jail.





"As far as Tianamen, the Chinese people regard the protesters and hoodlums and they got what they deserved. I don't agree with that assessment, but I do understand why it was repressed."



-You understand why, but don't comment on it's ethics. Why was it? To keep the Commies in power, duh. Gee, is this denial of thousands of death. You know, maybe all the survivors want is an apology? Or does this only apply to Japan? Wow, you've been in China too long, you're using Chinese logic.



"If it has to do with the way the Japanese apologize and the Chinese don't accept their words because they are not strong enough -- then by God, since the Japanese caused this, then they should get down on their hands and knees and apologize in the most exceptional fashion. Plus, as the Chinese have stated, tell their own people the truth in the same fashion and stop rewriting history."



- what if Japan says "you first." Confucious and Jesus would both agree that nobody listens to hippocrates.





"I am well aware that upwards of 300,000 people died in Nanjing. This new site adds more credibility to China's claim that for years, Japan wouldn't even admit anything happened. Now they are willing to say "something" happened. Regardless if it was 1 person, or 300,000, it was wrong then, and it is wrong now."



-ok, this is called incultation. Just because you say it enough, doesn't make it true. Japan has never denied the Nanjing Massacre. Some do, but that's expected in a population of 120 million. There's also people who believe they were abducted by aliens, but I don't take that as the word of the majority. But the 300,000 number is even more irritating. That is a Chinese government number and it includes the suburbs of Shanghai and doesn't take into account military deaths. It's nice to imply that the only people to die in Nanjing were civillians. The Chinese army didn't protect the capital? Where the he11 were they? Why not take a few minutes and look it up instead of just reading a CCP sponsored sign and government written text books.









You worry about Chinese children not being able to know what happened to their grandparents 70 years ago. China already spends more time on Japanese massacres during WWII than they do on the next 30 years of history which is often summarized in a few short vaguely detailed pages. Jim, you've completely lost the ability to think independently. God help you



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Chankljp below me.

You seem to enjoy calling me closeminded and ignorant. Yet, in all your rambling, you didn't say a single thing that proves my posting incorrect. The article is about asking Japan to apologize for Nanjing (again). I merely explained that Japan has apologized many times. If you don't agree with that, then prove me wrong. I mentioned that China is being hippocratical for even asking for an apology, again prove me wrong. Can you honestly say China has been a peaceful country for the past 100 years? You said you're from Hong Kong. What was the population of Hong Kong in 1900 and what is it now? Where do you think the extra millions of people came from? Oh and why is the fence at the LuoHu (Lo Wu) border crossing both facing toward the mainland like a prison fence keeping Chinese in if it is such a utopia?

You've called me racist several times. For God's sake, Chinese isn't a race. How can China claim to have 56 ethnic groups yet be a single race? It makes no sense.

You then said I love Japanese and yet then claim that I called you slant-eyes?? Read that sentence again and please realize how absurd it is.



I do not hate Chinese people. I have many Chinese friends and friends with Chinese ancestory. Why is it that anyone who doesn't believe the official Chinese explanation for history is a racist? You want to see racists? Go to the comment section on the China Daily website and read the filth that comes out of your countrymen's mouths.



I don't mind you going out of your way to insult me, I actually find it amusing. But please learn how to form a simple argument. If you don't agree with what I write then explain what you don't agree with. Simple enough for you?



If I sound like I'm being condescending it's because I am. It's not because you're Chinese. That has nothing to do with it. I'm talking down to you because you're an idiot. Oh, and I love Taiwanese people. So, If I'm racists against Chinese then Taiwanese mustn't be Chinese. But if Taiwanese ARE Chinese, then I can't be racist. You're decision. (this is called logic in case you're not familiar with it)

Answer 24

I think they need to build a bridge, and get over it...