On this day in 1937, Western expatriates living in Japanese-controlled China were forced into the Weixian internment camp in Shandong Province. They would remain there for the rest of the war.
You can read the recollections of a man who was interned there for three years before he escaped at the link.
On this day in 1954, the United States conducted what was its biggest H-bomb test yet in Bikini Atoll. Unfortunately, two Japanese fishermen were in the area and did not hear the warning sirens go off. One of them quickly died from exposure to nuclear fallout.
The ensuing attempted coverup by the U.S. shocked Japan, which led to anti-nuclear sentiment in the Land of the Rising Sun. This event would later go on to inspire Gojira.
Read on at the link to learn more about the Bikini Atoll test and its effect on U.S.-Japan relations.
npr:
For today’s Morning Edition.
The latest story from NPR’s Elise Hu. -Emily
New for 2016 - a series of ‘Art at the Palais’ posts which will spotlight the unique and historic pieces of art at our home the Palais des Nations - and how they reflect the global aims of the United Nations Charter.
First is a sculpture called “The Blue Planet of Human Life”.
This dreamy blue and white globe was gifted to UN Geneva by Japan, and is located in front of the Council Chamber, where the Conference on Disarmament carries out its work to banish nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction from the world forever.
The plaque on the sculpture reads: “A porcelain globe designed and produced in the Tobe style with a prayer to safeguard peace on earth and the irreplaceable Earth of Humankind.
By Yasuhiko Shirakata, Ceramic Artist, Tobe-cho, Ehime-ken, Japan. October 1995”
On Monday, Japan and South Korea reached an official agreement that they say will close their years-long dispute over Japan’s guilt and responsibility for enslaving Koreans as “comfort women.” The terms of the agreement are still forthcoming, but it appears that Japan will officially admit wrongdoing and offer an $8 million compensation fund for victims, and in return South Korea will promise to stop raising the issue.
But this is about much more than just the comfort women issue. It’s about litigating what kind of country Japan is allowed to be, both in the history books and in the world today. It’s about shaping the 21st century order in Asia. And the story of why this is happening at all — and why only now, nearly a century later — goes back to some grave and long-lasting American mistakes in its wartime occupation of Japan.
“Comfort women”: Japan’s 70-year sex slavery controversy, explained
“In 1989, I realized that the keys to oyster farming are the rivers and the forests upstream. I organized fishermen to start caring for the forests. We call it ‘the forest is longing for the sea, the sea is longing for the forest’. As a result, the condition of the ocean has gradually improved.” - Shigeatsu, UN Forest Hero, Japan
Known as the “Grandpa Oyster” by the locals, Shigeatsu has spent more than 20 years developing the forest environment that keeps the Okawa River clean and his oysters healthy. His efforts encouraged water drainage regulation reform and promoted organic farming practices.
Goal #15 aims to protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems. By the end of 2020, we will ensure the conservation, restoration and sustainable use of terrestrial and inland freshwater ecosystems.
In Japan, crime rates are low and the state incarcerates far fewer people than in other rich countries.
But when people are accused of a crime they are almost always convicted. Why?
To find out, watch our video on Japan’s prisons
On this day in 1941, the United States declared war on Japan. However, there were still diplomats living and working in the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo.
You can read about what it was like to live at the U.S. Embassy after Pearl Harbor and the subsequent declaration of war at the link.
On this day, we remember the attack on Pearl Harbor. Read on at the link to see December 7, 1941 through the eyes of Niles W. Bond, who was a Consular Officer in Yokohama from 1940-1942.
Tomorrow will be the 74th anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack. Many people in the U.S. know about the attack, but it is lesser known that the U.S. and Japan had been not-so-friendly to each other since 1937.
In the years leading up to Pearl Harbor, there had been many diplomatic attempts to keep the United States out of the war. You can read about them at the link.
