Justice and Reconciliation: Then and Now

The United States took primary responsibility for the occupation of Japan after the war. While the occupation ushered in many positive reforms, there was definitely a dark side to this period. As one historian concluded: "One of the most pernicious aspects of the occupation was that the Asian peoples who had suffered most from Imperial Japan's depredations--the Chinese, Koreans, Indonesians, and Filipinos--had no serious role, no influential presence at all in the defeated land. They became invisible. Asian contributions to defeating the Emperor's soldiers and sailors were displaced by an all-consuming focus on the American victory in the Pacific War."

Guidelines for the trials of Japanese war criminals were formulated in the Charter of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, January 19, 1946. The Charter defined three categories of war crimes: (a) crimes against peace, (b) conventional war crimes, and (c) crimes against humanity. A similar charter had already been formulated for the Nuremberg Tribunal for German war criminals in August 1945.

This tribunal tried 28 Japanese war leaders for crimes against peace and conventional war crimes. Twenty-five were found guilty. Of these, seven were executed, and the others were given prison terms. Two died during trial, and one was found mentally incompetent.All those imprisoned were pardoned by 1957. Local military tribunals were convened in other countries-including Hong Kong, the Philippines, and the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia)-resulting in the execution of approximately 900 people and the imprisonment of approximately 3,000 others, mostly for crimes against prisoners of war. Tribunals were also held in the Soviet Union and mainland China.

But issues related to Japan's war responsibility were sidelined as US relations with the Soviet Union degenerated and American occupation policy shifted towards making Japan its outpost against communism in Asia. In order to avoid highlighting Japan's past, at least fifty alleged war criminals awaiting trial by the Tokyo Tribunal were released, and various other war crimes committed throughout Asia were ignored, such as the use of biological and chemical weapons, the system of sexual slavery, and forced labour. In particular, war crimes committed against Asians did not receive adequate attention.

In September 1951, as the Korean War raged, 48 countries, including Canada, signed the San Francisco Peace Treaty with Japan. The Soviet Union did not sign, and representatives from China and Korea were not even invited. The peace treaty saw Japan abandon all claims to its colonial territories, accept the Tokyo war crimes judgment, and give up its properties and assets abroad. At the same time, other countries received very modest reparations from Japan. Hong Kong veterans, for example, received $1.50 for each day imprisoned.

War climate of fear in the 1950s allowed conservative forces in Japan to deny the country's war crimes responsibility. This led to a chronic problem of government promotion of textbooks that downplayed Japan's colonial past. Consequently, today many younger Japanese have little idea of Japan's wartime activities. However, other citizens have demanded that the Japanese government face its responsibilities. Japanese historians and journalists, for example, chronicled the Nanking massacre for Japanese readers 20 years before Iris Chang wrote her book The Rape of Nanking for English-speaking audiences in 1997.

Victims of the war, however, were left with little recourse after the closing of the military tribunals and the signing of the San Francisco Peace Treaty. Canada's own Hong Kong war veterans are a case in point. For years, the Hong Kong Veterans Association of Canada campaigned for both a formal apology and compensation from the government of Japan for abuse suffered by POWs. In 1987 veterans took their case to the United Nations Human Rights Commission, but the government of Canada refused them support, asserting that all rights were extinguished by the San Francisco Peace Treaty. Finally, in 1998 the Canadian government paid the veterans compensation of $18 per day of captivity. Although grateful for the compensation, many veterans remain embittered by their experiences, particularly by the lack of redress from the Japanese government and corporations.

The large majority of the victims of Japanese war crimes were people from China, Korea, the Philippines, and other Asian countries. In the 1980s, as the Cold War hostilities began to settle and as Japan's economic influence in Asia grew, elderly victims came forward to demand an apology and redress.

The violations of the international law of war were broad in scope and include:

inhumane treatment of prisoners
mass killing of civilians and surrendered soldiers, such as at Nanking
military sexual slavery
biological and chemical weapons and experiments on humans
forced relocation and forced labour

Survivors and their supporters have pressed their claims for redress in a number of ways. Some have lobbied their own as well as the Japanese government and demanded a full apology and compensation from Japan. Some victims have pursued their cause through legal means, filing civil suits in Japan's courts and, more recently, in courts in the United States. In other cases, proponents of redress have taken their cases to international bodies such as the United Nations or the International Labour Organization.

As a result, the governments of South Korea and the Philippines, as well as the state legislature of California and Hong Kong, have passed motions demanding that Japan squarely address its responsibilities regarding the commission of war crimes by its military.

The Case of the “Comfort Woman”

The case of the "comfort women;' the women who were forced to become sex slaves in brothels set up by the Imperial army, stands out as a significant milestone in the redress movement. It also exemplifies the complexities of war crimes issues.

When former female victims in Korea and other countries stepped forward to demand redress, the Japanese government at first denied any involvement. Subsequent research, however, uncovered documentation clearly showing that the system had been administered by the Imperial forces. The Japanese government thereafter apologized and created a support foundation, the Asian Women's Fund, which provides "atonement" monies to former sex slaves. The government pays administrative and welfare costs, but the "atonement" monies are provided through private donations. This fund has been criticized as a means by which the Japanese government continues to avoid taking direct responsibility for war crimes. A special investigation by the United Nations has called on Japan to fully compensate victims.

The Japanese government has, for the most part, resisted the claims for compensation, arguing that:

The Japanese government has apologized for the war.

All outstanding claims were waived with the signing of the San Francisco Peace Treaty and subsequent treaties.
Individuals cannot sue a state for compensation for war crimes; only states have that right.
The statute of limitations for filing suit for serious crimes is 20 years in Japan, and thus the period for filing suits has expired.

In rejecting the Japanese government's position, the victims argue that:

The apologies offered are unacceptable, as they did not have the full support of Japan's parliament.
The lenient treatment regarding reparations in the San Francisco Peace Treaty was based on Japan's economic circumstances at the time. The treaty envisaged possible changes, which have indeed occurred. Japan can now afford to pay.
Individuals do have the right to sue a state under article III of the 1907 Hague (IV) Convention.
The state cannot extinguish individual rights.
Under the Convention on the Non-Applicability of Statutory Limitations to War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity-- passed November 26, 1968, by the United Nations--there is no statute of limitations regarding war crimes.

Some may argue that Canada, as a signatory to the 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty, has a responsibility to ensure justice for the redress movement. Global citizenship requires that we work for justice, reconciliation, and peace on behalf of all.

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