When The Dragon and The Tiger Clashes
The Sino-Japanese affair is an awkward one. Recent politically-charged events such as the Chinese military activities over and in Japanese territories, Japan’s claim of the Diaoyu-Senkakus islands and Japan’s history textbooks presenting “whitewashed” account of its wartime activities had further murked the water between the two countries. While political quarrels had always marked the relationship, Sino-Japanese trade partnership remained, surprisingly, unaffected, at least till now. Morgan Stanley reported at the final quarter of last year that both countries are each other’s second largest trading partner with Japanese investment in China expected to make up more than 20% of Japan’s total trade. Bilateral trade has grown at a tremendously increased rate of 23% per annum since 2001 compared to the previous 9.5%. Their economic interdependence is at once a story of success and shame. While China provides Japan with the much needed low-cost labour, Japan in return opened up a lucrative ground for export of Chinese goods and transfer of high-level technology to China.
The two way business traffic, nonetheless, has caused many embarrassments, especially among the Chinese who are still bitter over Japan’s military atrocities during the War. Many Chinese felt guilty working in Japanese-owned businesses and enjoying Japanese products (including films and movies from the entertainment industry which is popular with the younger generation). Out of patriotism, Japanese goods are shunned as much as possible in China. The Japanese on the other hand, are rather appalled at the treatment shown to them. Many younger Japanese, who were sheltered from the horrendous accounts of history, seemed to be confused at the tremendous hatred of the Chinese people towards Japan. On one hand, Japan is trying to forget the past, but on the other, the past is constantly haunting them, now even to the point of threatening their economic and political survival.
During a certain period in the not too distant past, Japan, through its colonial rule and aggression, caused tremendous damage and suffering to the people of many countries, particularly to those of Asian nations. – the Murayama Statement
Critics has called Japan to emulate Germany in the latter’s repression of militarism and utter rejection of any revival of Nazism. Japan umpteenth apologies seemed unable to pacify its enraged neigbours. Although the country has repeatedly showed its commitment towards world peace by their military participations and contributions towards peacekeeping and adherence to the armed forces boundary imposed on them after their defeat in the War, the neigbouring nations are always suspicious and skeptical of Tokyo’s official statements. Prime Minister Koizhumi who was branded as a conservative nationalist angered the international community with his visits to the war shrines. The move was lambasted as distasteful and unwise gestures of Japan’s unrepentant of its war crimes. It does not help that Koizhumi insisted that the Japanese defence forces – Self Defence Forces (SDF) - the only armed forces they were allowed to keep, is a military organization. (The SDF is also the recipient of one of the largest defense budgets in the world) This approach was seen by many as contrary to Article 9 of the Constitution of Japan:
(para 1) Aspiring sincerely to an international peace based on justice and order, the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes.
(para 2) In order to accomplish the aim of the preceding paragraph, land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained. The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized.
China and the other Asian neighbours have every right to be angry with Japan, especially when considering the government’s endorsement of a revised and whitewashed history of wartime Japan. The inconsistency of speech and action ought to be lamented. Many times, Japan’s actions just do not warrant the sincerity of their apologies. If such is the case, if they cannot win the good rapport and support of their neighbours, Japan ought to rethink their attitude and policies, especially foreign policies, before considering the SC entry issue. But at the same time, Asia should be optimistic of Japan’s proposal to enter the SC. The UN has come to a time when a revamp is inevitable to reflect the current climate of the world. Asia should be given a larger piece of the pie and Japan being the small giant of the East ought to be welcomed to play the role of the mouthpiece of Asia in the SC beside China, the big giant. Chinese top officials must now decide how to handle the current political quarrel diplomatically. The two countries must use the Asian-African Summit as a forum to make peace with one another and come to amicable solutions to the problems between them. China needs to listen to Japan, and not be quick to condemn. When China the dragon roars, the other neighbours will inevitably ride on its glory to target Japan and this can only worsen the matter at hand. China must realize that they too are guilty of the many crimes they charged at Japan. If Nanking is the ghost that haunts Japan, Tiananmen continues to cry out from beyond the grave that the Chinese government had dug for it. The difference between the two incidents is; the one was a murderous atrocity by an Enemy, while the other was a murderous atrocity by their own government. Though the damages may not equal quantitatively, the degree of destruction is nonetheless as tremendous in both massacres. Beijing, as well as Tokyo, must sincerely, with words and actions, “squarely face these facts of history in a spirit of humility” to quote the apology of Koizhumi in the Asian-African Summit. President Hu of China must give Japan a fair hearing not only because the two are close neighbours whose economies hang onto one another for survival, but also for the fact that both have done gross errors in the past. To recover from these ghosts of history, both nations must work together and continue to help one another to live out the principles embedded in the preamble of the Constitution of Japan:
[Desiring] peace for all time and are deeply conscious of the high ideals controlling human relationship, and determined to preserve…security and existence, trusting in the justice and faith of the peace-loving peoples of the world. [Desiring] to occupy an honored place in an international society striving for the preservation of peace, and the banishment of tyranny and slavery, oppression and intolerance for all time from the earth. [Recognizing] that all peoples of the world have the right to live in peace, free from fear and want.
[Believing] that no nation is responsible to itself alone, but that laws of political morality are universal: and that obedience to such laws is incumbent upon all nations who would sustain their own sovereignty and justify their sovereign relationship with other nations.
[Pledging] national honor to accomplish these high ideals and purposes with all our resources.
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