- NIIGATA (Kyodo News) -- The
head of a government education panel said Sunday one of the remote causes
for the outbreak of the 1941-1945 war in the Pacific theater was a U.S.
decision to stop oil exports to Japan, stressing that Japanese were the
victims of the war.
-
- "At that time, 80% of Japan's oil imports were from
the United States...Japan headed for Vietnam and Indonesia because there
was no alternative, and the U.S. couldn't forgive it and had no choice
but to wage war," Central Education Council Chairman Yasuhiko Torii
said at an education reform forum in Niigata.
-
- "It was the Japanese who became victims of the war.
There's no doubt," Torii said, responding to other panelists criticizing
the council's proposal to include patriotism into a revision bill for the
1947 Fundamental Law of Education.
-
- But he also blamed the Japanese military for the war,
saying, "If a military shows up, it will be our responsibility to
ensure the past will not be allowed to repeat."
-
- The governmental council is discussing ways to resolve
pending education problems and is calling for nurturing strong, spiritually
rich and more patriotic Japanese ÷ moves which are causing rising
concerns as the suggested changes may violate freedom of thought and principles.
-
- Many experts who attended the discussion questioned how
the law revision and the inclusion of patriotism will resolve education
problems, while Torii defended his council's proposals.
-
- Sunday's forum was the third of its kind held by the
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.
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- http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=261045
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