1. What is the Pacific Asia War?
Pacific Asia War or Asia-Pacific War refers to the major theater of WW2 that covered a large portion of Pacific Ocean, East Asia, Southeast Asia, spreading as far south as Northern Australia and as north as the Aleutian Islands. Officially, it started on December 7th, 1941, after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor by surprise, and launched its campaign in Hong Kong, Singapore, and the Philippines. However, one could argue that the Pacific Asia War started during the Sino-Japanese War on July 7th, 1937. Empire of Japan and the Republic of China were hostile with each other with the invasion of Manchuria since September 18th, 1931. Check this blog post for the major battles of the Pacific Asia War.
2. What is the death toll of the Pacific Asia War?
On the Allied side, there were more than 4 million casualties in military personnel with more than 26 million civilian deaths. On the side of the Axis of Power which included Thailand, Manchukuo, and Japan, there were more than 2.5 million casualties in military personnel and about 1 million civilian deaths.
3. How do the Pacific Asia War and Japanese denial of the event shape Sino-Japanese relations to this day?
The lack of apology and acknowledgment for the event definitely had soured the Sino-Japanese relationship. Especially given the countries’ past wounds, it puts a lot more pressure on contemporary issues such as the disputes over the East China Sea and put pressure on the trade war as China and Japan are the some of the world’s biggest economies, their tension can make the world uneasy especially for their neighboring countries.
4. Should guilt still be felt by Japanese people today? Should they be held accountable for denying or downplaying the massacre, when their government has heavily filtered what they learn about the event?
There are still denialist who live in Japan as well as people who lead grassroots movements to put history back into their textbooks. Here is one of the examples: http://www.e4sjf.org/about-chiba-korean-elementary-middle-school.html
I think we should look at people on individual cases instead of judging them all as one people just like the United States today. We have Donald Trump as president, but not all of us agree with his policies. There is a place for being open-minded here.
5. In my sophomore history class, we are not taught about the Rape of Nanking or Japanese atrocities in general, we are mainly directed to the war in Europe. Why is it important to remember and teach about tragedies that don’t involve our own country?
Healing historical wounds is not taken by a one-step procedure, but educating and academic work could be one of the steps toward healing that historical wound. It is important to remember and teach about tragedies even if it doesn’t involve our own country as it could offer a more neutral ground for the countries in conflict from their historical wounds. Also, it helps to learn from other countries’ past especially given that US’s history doesn’t date back so far.
6. What lasting effects does the Pacific Asia War have to this day? How did it affect the rest of the world? And why?
There are still people and families who have survived after the victims. There were people who grew up with the pain of genocide. Due to the lack of consequences, the Imperial Japanese Army faced other countries who might use it as an example to commit large scale war crimes and not face any consequences.
7. How can we as a country bring light to this tragic event that most people don’t know about? Do you believe the event be taught in schools as a fundamental part of history?
I definitely believe this event could be taught in schools as a fundamental part of history! We could become more aware of the world’s affairs just simply by reading. And of course, it is easier than ever to read up on history thanks to the internet.
8. What motivated you to learn about this event? Why do you think it isn’t common knowledge across the US, and generally across the world, in comparison to similar genocides during the time period? (like the Holocaust)
The Cold War has a lot to do with this. After World War 2, the US and Russia immediately got into a power struggle and the US desperately needed the support of Japan and forgot about the Chinese ally. Not to mention the civil war that resumed right after WW2 in Asia.
9. How do underrepresented perspectives from WWII give us a full understanding of this era?
The underrepresented perspective is, however, the global majority’s experience if you look at the number of people involved in the Pacific Asia War vs. the European Theater. This not only gives us a fuller understanding of the era but also who controls the view of the world.
10. How can I learn more about the Pacific Asia War?
You can check out our blog or our publications.
11. How can I support your organization's effort?
You can always make a tax-deductible donation here to support our work!
Pacific Asia War or Asia-Pacific War refers to the major theater of WW2 that covered a large portion of Pacific Ocean, East Asia, Southeast Asia, spreading as far south as Northern Australia and as north as the Aleutian Islands. Officially, it started on December 7th, 1941, after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor by surprise, and launched its campaign in Hong Kong, Singapore, and the Philippines. However, one could argue that the Pacific Asia War started during the Sino-Japanese War on July 7th, 1937. Empire of Japan and the Republic of China were hostile with each other with the invasion of Manchuria since September 18th, 1931. Check this blog post for the major battles of the Pacific Asia War.
2. What is the death toll of the Pacific Asia War?
On the Allied side, there were more than 4 million casualties in military personnel with more than 26 million civilian deaths. On the side of the Axis of Power which included Thailand, Manchukuo, and Japan, there were more than 2.5 million casualties in military personnel and about 1 million civilian deaths.
3. How do the Pacific Asia War and Japanese denial of the event shape Sino-Japanese relations to this day?
The lack of apology and acknowledgment for the event definitely had soured the Sino-Japanese relationship. Especially given the countries’ past wounds, it puts a lot more pressure on contemporary issues such as the disputes over the East China Sea and put pressure on the trade war as China and Japan are the some of the world’s biggest economies, their tension can make the world uneasy especially for their neighboring countries.
4. Should guilt still be felt by Japanese people today? Should they be held accountable for denying or downplaying the massacre, when their government has heavily filtered what they learn about the event?
There are still denialist who live in Japan as well as people who lead grassroots movements to put history back into their textbooks. Here is one of the examples: http://www.e4sjf.org/about-chiba-korean-elementary-middle-school.html
I think we should look at people on individual cases instead of judging them all as one people just like the United States today. We have Donald Trump as president, but not all of us agree with his policies. There is a place for being open-minded here.
5. In my sophomore history class, we are not taught about the Rape of Nanking or Japanese atrocities in general, we are mainly directed to the war in Europe. Why is it important to remember and teach about tragedies that don’t involve our own country?
Healing historical wounds is not taken by a one-step procedure, but educating and academic work could be one of the steps toward healing that historical wound. It is important to remember and teach about tragedies even if it doesn’t involve our own country as it could offer a more neutral ground for the countries in conflict from their historical wounds. Also, it helps to learn from other countries’ past especially given that US’s history doesn’t date back so far.
6. What lasting effects does the Pacific Asia War have to this day? How did it affect the rest of the world? And why?
There are still people and families who have survived after the victims. There were people who grew up with the pain of genocide. Due to the lack of consequences, the Imperial Japanese Army faced other countries who might use it as an example to commit large scale war crimes and not face any consequences.
7. How can we as a country bring light to this tragic event that most people don’t know about? Do you believe the event be taught in schools as a fundamental part of history?
I definitely believe this event could be taught in schools as a fundamental part of history! We could become more aware of the world’s affairs just simply by reading. And of course, it is easier than ever to read up on history thanks to the internet.
8. What motivated you to learn about this event? Why do you think it isn’t common knowledge across the US, and generally across the world, in comparison to similar genocides during the time period? (like the Holocaust)
The Cold War has a lot to do with this. After World War 2, the US and Russia immediately got into a power struggle and the US desperately needed the support of Japan and forgot about the Chinese ally. Not to mention the civil war that resumed right after WW2 in Asia.
9. How do underrepresented perspectives from WWII give us a full understanding of this era?
The underrepresented perspective is, however, the global majority’s experience if you look at the number of people involved in the Pacific Asia War vs. the European Theater. This not only gives us a fuller understanding of the era but also who controls the view of the world.
10. How can I learn more about the Pacific Asia War?
You can check out our blog or our publications.
11. How can I support your organization's effort?
You can always make a tax-deductible donation here to support our work!