If you don't like your country?

[Musha]

Blame some country that invaded you over fifty years ago and helps your country by making investments .

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4432535.stm

Never thought I'd be posting here in the flames section but in Japan the news has been filled with these protests and riots in China over Japan not apologising for the second world war.

When I first heard about China and Japan my mother said "You musn't ever confuse a Japanese with a Chinese!". It's like an English guy beeing called German or French or some thing.

Its one thing China saying they don't really like Japan but saying its right not to like Japanese because "it's being petriotic duty" and then of all things pelting my favoret junk food resutorant YOSHINOYA, its got past a joke .

http://www.tanizawafoods.co.jp/yosinoya.jpg

[Zaphiel]

hi musha
I'm german and you know.....it's okay when we apologise all the time for what my country did 50 years ago...but somehow I'm starting to wonder why I should apologise for something when i haven't even been planed by my parents nor were they by their parents.....

And i'm with you when you say it's not right when they call it a "petriotic duty"....as for your fast food restorant...I'm really sorry

[Akai Bushi]

A possiblity is that the Chinese government wishes to keep the hatred against Japan going among their citizens. If you're angry at someone outside of the country then it takes the spot-light off of how badly your own government is.

And when they say that Japan has never apologized that is completely wrong the diet and Prime Minister Koizumi have both apologized. Japan also gives alot of money to China every year. I mean if China hates Japan so much why not stop giving them money. China is a big boy again 6th largest economy in the world. Huge military. China doesn't need Japanese money. And most of the people who would even remember the war are dead or dieing. Why does someone who has no memories of a war that happened 30-40 years before they were even born have so much anger pent up? Just let things go. No since in hateing people for the next two centuries.
(And no one get me wrong about what happened in WWII was wrong, but no one is innocent in war. Almost every country is guilty of something in the past. Just some worse than others. But, again let it go don't damn someone for what their anestors did.)

[KenShi_JoB]

I agree that it's crazy, but as in bakumatsu, outside lord still hate tokugawa for the events 250 year ago. I think this is the way of the world, conflict.

[crabbi]

...My understanding is that this all erupted over the publication of a new history book for Japanese schools that makes light of a massacre of Chinese people in Manchuria...

...and it's not just China... Korea too... Check out : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asi...ic/4411771.stm

This is so common... in all countries... we tell our children what we want them to believe and then they have to discover the truth for themselves when they are adults (if they can be bothered!)...

[Musha]

On Japanese news they interview people from different countrys which were affected by the pacific war.

China
Hates Japan

Korea
Hates them but some people like there music and goods.

Other countries don't care and welcome the help Japan gives them in veriouse ways.

I really do think that China is having troubles and the need some one to put the blame on. They can't blame the government because they will be quick to round people up and put them in jail or some thing so its best to blame another country instead .

[Akai Bushi]

...My understanding is that this all erupted over the publication of a new history book for Japanese schools that makes light of a massacre of Chinese people in Manchuria...

...and it's not just China... Korea too... Check out : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asi...ic/4411771.stm

This is so common... in all countries... we tell our children what we want them to believe and then they have to discover the truth for themselves when they are adults (if they can be bothered!)...

Sounds like from this article that the Japanese Government has very little control of what textbooks their children use. That some local districts are the ones choosing these textbooks. I guess the only way for the Japanese National government to step in is if they reform their education system so that the National Education Ministry has more power in these matters. Of course Japan is always slow to reform its government and usually when National governments take over education as apposed to local governments education starts going down hill. In the United States when the Federal government wishes to institute something in state schools they say either do this or we'll with hold money and of course my state, California, always caves in. And we have some of the worst schools in the United States. I think 5th from the bottom out of the 50 states.

[Commander]

Why do the Chinese hate the Japanese?

[crabbi]

Why do the Chinese hate the Japanese?

Oops! Now you've done it!!! Just wait for the battle to commence!!!

Cheers

[kanyil]

Oops! Now you've done it!!! Just wait for the battle to commence!!!

Cheers

hahaha, let me take the first swing by offering the short version of the story. btw, as opposed to the Chinese, Taiwanese have very mixed feeling about Japan, but we won't go into the reasons for that here. I think the entire situation is a little political as well, but as they say, "there is no smoke without fire".

The short version is that Japan invaded China sometime around WW2, and murdered, enslaved, and raped legions. The incident of the "Rape of Nanking" has ever since been used as an icon of Japanese atrocities (used in the same fashion as Auschwitz etc).

Unlike Germany, which is courageously taking responsibility for its WW2 atrocities and made a point to educate its younger generations to ensure "never again", Japan has chose to hide the entire incident from its younger generation, which is not a little like rubbing salt into wound.

The less publicized fact that the Japanese High Court has just rejected the claims of the many Chinese, Korean and Taiwanese "comfort women" (who were pressed into service as sex slaves for the Japanese occupation army during WW2) probably added fuel to the fire.

[ChaShu]

Why do the Chinese hate the Japanese?

Whoo... I could fill a page with just some bullet points with this question. I actually have "discussions" with my wife about this sometimes (I'm Filipino-Chinese and she's Japanese). Primary among this arguement is Japan's atroceties and aggressive actions against its neighbours during the first half of the last century (not just WW2). While there have been numerous statements of regret over the years (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...ssued_by_Japan), part of what makes this sensitive is how long it took for a statement to be forthcoming. Also this recent publishing of textbooks contravenes a 1980 agreement that Japan would pay attention to the content regarding the period and make corrections.

I believe (IMHO) that while the government position outwards may be one of regret and reconciliation, many Japanese today do not know or actively deny Japan's negative actions against its neighbours. While in Germany, it is illegal to deny the Holocaoust (Germany is now prosecuting Ernzt Zundel for actively promoting that the holocaoust was a hoax), in Japan, it is either not illegal to deny atroceties or if it is, it is not actively prosecuted. Additionally, Japan has prominent politicians like Shintaro Ichihara who was quoted in Playboy as saying that the Nanjing Massacre "never happened" and was a "Chinese creation" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shintaro_Ishihara), and other politicians protesting a manga publishing details of the massacre because they believe that it is not true http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content...at=1&id=315342.
Despite the apologies, the general Japanese populations does not seem to believe that these actions never happened.

Now to the present... Currently there are a few contentious events that have stirred up the pot between Japan and its neighbours.

• One is a dispute over maritime territories which Japan and it's neighbours all claim as their own. Not coincidentally, there is reputedly oil beneath SOME of the said territories.
• Japan is currently (and has been over the last few years) in discussions to make changes to its constitution and the fear is that they will remove the constraints placed on its military as a solely self-defence force and a renewal of military buildup. This is seen by many of its neighbours as a threat. Couple with that it's already large military budget (5th largest military spend in the world behind USA, PRChina, UK, and France (???)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan_Self-Defense_Forces) this can seem very scary to East Asia.
  
• Rising Japanese Neo-Nationalism ala Shintaro Ichihara and his like have begun to give Japan and the Japanese a growing reputation of racism. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_nationalism
• Continuing visits by the Emperor to shrines honouring what is considered by many of Japan's neighbours as WW2 war criminals.
• Japan's recent bid to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor...isty_diplomacy has also raised doubts about Japan's policy of pacifism in the region.

While these reasons do not justify the violent protests, I hope this clarifies some questions about the animosity that Japan's neighbours feel.

[Wifenmummy]

It suprised me hearing bout theese protests and hatred by the chinese towards the Japanese... forgive me i did ancient history at school (not modern history)
The chinese need to be more forgiving of the japanese... from what i know its not like japan had a easy time during the war or anything themselves but thats all part of it i suppose.. I think the past shouldnt be forgotten but the future and present should be more focused on....

[ChaShu]

It suprised me hearing bout theese protests and hatred by the chinese towards the Japanese... forgive me i did ancient history at school (not modern history)
The chinese need to be more forgiving of the japanese... from what i know its not like japan had a easy time during the war or anything themselves but thats all part of it i suppose.. I think the past shouldnt be forgotten but the future and present should be more focused on....

Fortunately and unfortunately part of what defines the East Asian psyche is their strong connection to the past. The idea of holding a multigenerational grudge is not unheard of. Now recognizing that though it would follow that asking them to forgive is a difficult thing for them to do. An injury to an ancestor, even in the case of the first half of the 20th century where a direct relative may not have been affected, is an injury to oneself (a collective "ancestor" if one will...). Just as the the Chinese (and OTHER neighbours of Japan) have trouble with forgiveness, so do the general Japanese population have trouble with admitting their mistakes of the past. It defines them and their self image, their "face" if you will. Understanding this will help in understanding how difficult it is to ask all the parties to change their behaviour.

[ISSAC RU]

Japan doesn't face what they have done to the asian countries during WWII.
In China , 23 Million People died because of the Japanese invasion.Not just only WWII , the conflicts between China and Japan started around the mid 17 century when Japanese partriots started harass the soutern coast of China.
After that , the Sino-Japanese war . ....nurmouse conflicts after entering the 20s century..!

The thing that piss most of the Asians off is that Japanese don't want to face the history truth , they rather live in their little own isolated world .

Now the Japanese want to join the Secruity council in UN , but nobody would accept them as a major power when they can't even face their own history.
116 countries in the world joined together as a organization called " Coffee Club''
to oppose to the idea of letting 1 more chair in the Secruity Council.

I am surprised when I saw most of the western history text book , it seems to me that Japanese role in the WWII only started when they attacked Pearl Harbour. That is very B.S. ...A text could go on forever talking about the mass murder of the jews but never mentioned a single word about what Japan did in WWII.

For Musha :

Hatred towards Japan is not something called " giving away the blame ''.
Do you think one day the jews going to live happly ever after with the Arabs ?
I don't think so , your prespectives are being propergandaly washed by the Japanese Media. They repeaetly show those video clips about chinese destroying Japanese embassy and shops and that makes you think Chinese hates Japanese. Chinese don't hate Japanese for them being Japanese , Chinese hate Japanese for what they have done and never apologize for it .
How come nobody in the world oppose to Germany right now ? because they admitted and apologized for what they have done .
You only be living in Japan for a short period of time , soon you will discover what kind of the people they are . If you really interested in the Japanese people , you should read a book called : The Chrysanthemum and the sword.


Japan is a very dangerous country . They spent the world 2nd highest of amount of money on Millitary( just behind U.S.A.). That doens't make sense after all for a defeated loser with the help of the Americans.

For Kanyil :

One more time , bro. There is not such word called " Taiwanese '' . If lets say I m tokyo , Do I say I am Tokyosian? Japan did a unforgivble crime to the people of taiwan , I don't understand how can those people just go to their freakin shinine and bow to those bastard criminals?

[Musha]

Well every country in the world has done some thing bad to another country. The Romans invaded half the world and enslaved many people, the Vikings, Spanish and South America and many other countries, England also invaded half the world. The Americans almost wiped out the native Americans so if every country in the world were to appologize to every other country, that would mean every one would live in harmony with each other and there would be no more wars . What does it matter if some president apologises to some one else for some thing only afew old people know about.

In England alot of people still think of the war when they see a German person. And Russians are still thought of as communist. Almost every war you can think of happening at the moment is because of some thing that some other country did in the past.

So if you see some guy is from a country that had some a war with your country working in a Resutorant trust that guy because he might do it again or spit in your soup or some thing .

And about text books, why in England do we never learn about British colonialism? All the Africans better start burning posters of Tony Blair.

The Chinese better stop living in the past and think about there own country..

For Kanyil :

One more time , bro. There is not such word called " Taiwanese '' . If lets say I m tokyo , Do I say I am Tokyosian? Japan did a unforgivble crime to the people of taiwan , I don't understand how can those people just go to their freakin shinine and bow to those bastard criminals?

BTW my spelling is crap too but you need to think a little about your grammar ISSAC RU.

jews going to live happly ever after with the Arabs ?
think Chinese hates Japanese.
How come nobody in the world oppose to Germany right now ?
You only be living in Japan for a short period of time ,

Sounds like you have been taking grammar lessons from Ali-G or some one.

Das Jews going to live happly ever with za Arabs ya thinks does yo?
think za Chinese going to hates Japanese.

Sorry I better get off my soap box . This thing would be funny if for the fact it doen't stop some one like America is going to have to step in and fight a war with China and North Korea. I can see it coming in less than 10 years...Crap!