Japan must stop denying the past

A memorial to the victims of Korean internment installed in Gunma\'s Forest, a prefectural park in Gunma Prefecture, Japan, in 2004. Yonhap News

The prefectural government of Gunma, Japan, on January 29 began the removal of a memorial monument for Korean victims of Japan’s wartime forced labor, which was erected in a public park 20 years ago. The monument was set up by a Japanese civic group in 2004 to honor painful history between Korea and Japan and promote the friendship between the two neighboring countries. There are about 150 memorials for Korean victims across Japan, but this is the first time that a local government has taken action to remove them. I feel angry and miserable at the reality that Japan's "erasure of history," which began in earnest under the Shinzo Abe administration, is spreading to the local level.

The memorial monument was made by citizen fundraising to commemorate the Koreans who were forcibly mobilized to mines and munitions factories in Gunma Prefecture and died from the harsh labor during World War II. It is said that more than 6,000 Koreans were forced to work in Gunma Prefecture. The words "Memory, Reflection, and Friendship" are written on the front of the memorial, while the back reads, "We deeply and sincerely reflect on the historical facts that caused great damage and suffering to Korean people," and "We hope for a new mutual understanding and friendship by not forgetting the past and looking forward to the future.”

The memorial, which contains the aspirations of Japanese citizens, suffered because right-wing groups took issue with a participant's mention of "forced mobilization" at the memorial service event in 2012. The local authorities accepted the claims of right-wing groups that the participants violated the condition of "not having political events," which the authorities attached while permitting the installation of the memorial monument, and refused to extend the installation. While citizens refrained from holding memorial services for more than a decade after the speech became a problem, Japanese courts sided with the right-wingers. Right-wing groups that demanded the demolition by citing clear “historical facts” are problematic, but it is also extremely regrettable that the local authorities accepted their absurd claims and pushed ahead with the removal. Do they really want to erase history this badly?

I am concerned that the demolition will signal an attack by right-wingers against memorial monuments for Korean victims of Japan’s wartime forced labor across Japan. I am also afraid of Japan’s "historical revisionism" that is focused on glorification and division, rather than reflection and introspection on its history of aggression. Despite this situation, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs only said, "We expect this issue to be resolved in a way that does not hinder friendly relations between the two countries." The Yoon Suk-yeol administration's low-key diplomacy with Japan is creating an environment where Japan can freely erase history. To prevent a similar incident from happening again, the government should not let this happen. The government should sternly protest the Japanese government and get a promise to prevent a recurrence.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.