TEXT: RELATIONS BETWEEN CHINA AND JAPAN THIS YEAR -- THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE END OF WORLD WAR TWO -- HAVE BEEN TROUBLED BY SEVERAL ISSUES.

CHINA CALLED ON JAPAN NOT TO FORGET ITS PAST AGGRESSION, AND TO MAKE SINCERE EFFORTS TO EDUCATE JAPANESE PEOPLE ABOUT JAPAN'S ROLE IN THE WAR.

AT A REGULAR NEWS BRIEFING TUESDAY, CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN CHEN JIAN SAID THAT ON THIS ISSUE, BEIJING VIEWS MR. KONO'S LENGTHY MEETING WITH HIS CHINESE COUNTERPART, QIAN QICHEN, VERY POSITIVELY. HOWEVER, MR. CHEN -- SPEAKING THROUGH A TRANSLATOR -- SAID CHINA WILL CONTINUE TO URGE JAPAN TO SQUARELY ACKNOWLEDGE ITS HISTORY.

// CHEN TRANSLATOR ACT //

WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN STRESSING THAT JAPAN SHOULD TAKE A CORRECT VIEW OF HISTORY AND JAPAN SHOULD EDUCATE ITS PEOPLE WITH A CORRECT HISTORICAL VIEW. AND ON THIS BASIS, JAPAN WILL COMMIT ITSELF TO PEACEFUL DEVELOPMENT.

// END ACT //

AT A SEPARATE NEWS BRIEFING, JAPANESE GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN TAKESHI NAKANE SAID TOKYO IS SET TO ALLOCATE MORE FUNDING FOR THE JAPANESE SIDE TO CONDUCT A FULL INVESTIGATION INTO CHEMICAL WEAPONS LEFT BEHIND AFTER THE WAR.

// NAKANE ACT //

IF THE INCREASE WILL BE REALIZED, WHICH SEEMS QUITE CERTAIN, THEN JAPAN WILL BE ABLE TO CARRY OUT A FULL SCALE SURVEY NEXT YEAR.

// END ACT //

DURING HIS TALKS WITH CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTER QIAN, MR. KONO ALSO EXPRESSED JAPAN'S CONCERN ABOUT A CHINESE VESSEL CARRYING OUT GEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS NEAR A DISPUTED ISLAND IN THE EAST CHINA SEA. THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN SAID TOKYO CONSIDERS THE CHINESE BOAT TO BE IN JAPANESE TERRITORIAL WATERS WITHOUT PERMISSION. HOWEVER, HE ADDED THAT BOTH SIDES WILL CONTINUE MEETING TO TRY TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE.

ON ANOTHER ISSUE, THE JAPANESE SPOKESMAN SAID MR. KONO TOLD MR. QIAN IT IS DIFFICULT FOR JAPANESE PEOPLE TO SUPPORT AID TO CHINA AS LONG AS BEIJING CONTINUES NUCLEAR TESTING. HE URGED THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT TO STOP, AND ACTIVELY WORK FOR A SPEEDY RESOLUTION TO THE COMPREHENSIVE TEST BAN TREATY.

19-Dec-95 8:15 AM EST (1315 UTC) Source: Voice of America

Japan insists that it has the right to resources in the closer half of the continental shelf in the East China Sea because it covers the area between China and Japan. But China insists that it has the right to the entire continental shelf which ends west of Okinawa. The U.N. treaty on maritime affairs says the country has the right to resources in the continental shelf within 200 nautical miles of the coast. In addition, Diaoyutai itself is in dispute. (LI Xiaowen, Daluo JIA)

A JAPANESE Right-wing group will run an advertisement in the New York Times today claiming that the raid on Pearl Harbour was not a "sneak attack", that the Rape of Nanjing did not happen, and that the Japanese army never forced Korean women into prostitution.

The full-page advertisement is timed to coincide with the 54th anniversary of the bombing in 1941 that provoked America into declaring war on Japan.

The Youth Liberal Party, which claims 100,000 members and one MP, paid =BB= 39,600 for the advertisement. Shinji Saito, the party leader, said the purpose was to correct the view that Japan behaved abominably during the war.

"So many lies are told about Japan's war record that it looks as though we were a criminal nation," he said. "By clearing up these misunderstandings we can forge friendly ties with the rest of the world."

The advertisement, addressed to "Dear American friends", claims that America did not receive Tokyo's declaration of war until after Pearl Harbour because of a "ludicrous blunder", involving slow and incompetent typists at the Japanese embassy in Washington. Most Western historians argue that the surprise raid deliberately flouted international law, but some believe the bureaucratic bungling theory.

"These ghastly Rightists represent only a small minority of Japanese, but they are giving us all a bad name."

Almost no one, however, agrees with the group's contention that only 2,400 civilians were killed by Japanese troops after the fall of Nanjing in 1937.

China says 300,000 men, women and children were slaughtered in an attempt to terrorise the country into submission. Even Japanese textbooks admit 150,000 deaths. The advertisement shows a photograph of Nanjing citizens fraternising with Japanese soldiers to "prove" that the massacre never occurred. The picture is culled from a contemporary copy of Japan's Asahi newspaper, which was under constant state surveillance at the time.

The advertisement says it is a "myth that Japanese troops enslaved innocent women for unsavoury purposes" during the war. The "comfort women" were almost all practising prostitutes, it claims. The brothels were run by private entrepreneurs, there was no official involvement and no woman was "forced into the profession", it says.

In 1992, the Japanese government admitted that the imperial army compelled tens of thousands of mainly Korean women to serve as sex slaves. Korean historians allege that about 200,000 women, some as young as 12, were subjected to this torture. Thousands died of disease or committed suicide out of shame.

Moderate Japanese reacted with horror to the advertisement. Shinichi Sakamoto, of the Japan Socialist Party, said: "Oh no! Not again! These ghastly Rightists represent only a small minority of Japanese, but they are giving us all a bad name."

The agency that handles Japanese customers who wish to advertise in the New York Times, Nakayama Media International, confirmed that the advertisement will be run.

Matsumoto testifies that at his unit, there were seven cages in each of several rooms, the cages were only big enough for one naked Chinese to sit cross-legged. Unit members injected the prisoners with a variety of bacteria and observed them for three or four months, blood samples were then taken from the prisoners and they were killed. The cages were seldom empty. (Daluo JIA)

Chinese Communist Party senior leader HU Jingtao issued a statement condemning Japan's repeated attempts to distort history of its past aggressions, whitewash the brutal nature of Japan's militarism, seriously undermine the relations between the two peoples, and damage Japan's own image. Xinhua News agency also published an editorial expressing concern over the continuing huge increase of Japan's military budget.

Today marks the 54th Anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack by the Japanese. [CND, _From: Ignatius Ding , TANG Hong, 12/07/95]

CHINA AND SOUTH KOREA ARE EXTREMELY SENSITIVE TO ANY PERCEIVED LACK OF REMORSE BY JAPAN FOR ITS AGGRESSION BEFORE AND DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR. MR. JIANG URGES VIGILANCE AGAINST THOSE HE TERMS "A MILITARIST MINORITY." HE SAYS SOME JAPANESE POLITICIANS STILL HAVE A WRONG VIEW OF HISTORY. THAT STRUCK A RESPONSIVE CHORD IN SOUTH KOREA, WHERE RECENT REMARKS BY A JAPANESE CABINET MINISTER CAUSED A FUROR. THE CABINET MINISTER HAS SINCE RESIGNED.

14-Nov-95 7:49 AM EST (1249 UTC)
Source: Voice of America

THE LEADERS OF CHINA AND SOUTH KOREA JOINED TUESDAY IN CRITICISM OF JAPAN FOR ITS VIEW OF HISTORY. THE COMMENTS CAME DURING THE VISIT TO SEOUL BY CHINESE PRESIDENT JIANG ZEMIN, THE FIRST VISIT TO SOUTH KOREA BY A CHINESE HEAD OF STATE.

AT A JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE FOLLOWING THEIR SUMMIT, CHINESE PRESIDENT JIANG ZEMIN AND SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT KIM YOUNG-SAM CHASTIZED JAPAN FOR ITS REFUSAL TO RECOGNIZE ITS AGGRESSION BEFORE AND DURING WORLD WAR TWO. PRESIDENT JIANG WARNED JAPAN ABOUT ITS ATTITUDE TOWARD ITS ASIAN NEIGHBORS. HE SAID THE REGION MUST BE ON GUARD AGAINST JAPANESE MILITARISM.

PRESIDENT KIM ADDED -- IN LANGUAGE CONSIDERED INSULTING IN KOREAN-- JAPAN MUST CORRECT ITS BAD HABITS, SAYING JAPANESE LEADERS HAVE MADE OFFENSIVE REMARKS REGARDING ITS COLONIAL OCCUPATION OF KOREA ON 30 OCCASIONS IN THE LAST 50 YEARS.

THE JOINT CRITICISM COMES ONE DAY AFTER A JAPANESE CABINET MINISTER RESIGNED OVER CONTROVERSIAL COMMENTS DEFENDING JAPAN'S OCCUPATION. JAPANESE OFFICIALS HAVE ALSO ANGERED THE CHINESE BY MAKING SIMILAR COMMENTS IN RECENT YEARS.
14-Nov-95 6:50 AM EST (1150 UTC) Source: Voice of America

TAKAMI ETO HAS BECOME THE THIRD JAPANESE CABINET OFFICIAL TO RESIGN HIS POST DURING THE PAST YEAR-AND-A-HALF OVER THE DIFFERING VIEW OF HISTORY MANY JAPANESE HAVE FROM THEIR ASIAN NEIGHBORS.

THE SOUTH KOREAN GOVERNMENT HAD DEMANDED THAT THE SENIOR JAPANESE POLITICIAN RESIGN AFTER HE TOLD REPORTERS LAST MONTH THAT HIS COUNTRY'S INVASION AND COLONIZATION OF THE KOREAN PENINSULA EARLIER THIS CENTURY HAD, IN HIS WORDS, "DONE SOME GOOD."

MR. ETO'S COMMENTS HAD LED TO THE SEOUL GOVERNMENT THREATENING TO CANCEL A SUMMIT MEETING BETWEEN JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER TOMIICHI MURAYAMA AND SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT KIM YONG-SAM, SCHEDULED FOR LATER THIS WEEK IN THE JAPANESE CITY OF OSAKA, DURING THE CONFERENCE ON ASIA-PACIFIC ECONOMIC COOPERATION.

MR. ETO SUBMITTED HIS RESIGNATION AFTER MEETING WITH MINISTER OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND INDUSTRY RYUTARO HASHIMOTO, AS WELL AS THE PRIME MINISTER. HE REPORTEDLY SAID HE DID NOT WANT TO TROUBLE MR. HASHIMOTO ANY MORE BY REMAINING AT HIS POST. THE JAPANESE MEDIA LATER REPORTED THAT THE SUMMIT MEETING BETWEEN MR. MURAYAMA AND MR. KIM WILL GO AHEAD AS PLANNED.

IN MID-1994, THEN-JUSTICE MINISTER SHIGETO NAGANO WAS FORCED TO QUIT AFTER HE DESCRIBED THE NANKING MASSACRE OF 1937 AS A FABRICATION. LATER IN THE YEAR, ENVIRONMENTAL MINISTER SHIN SAKURAI WAS FORCED TO RESIGN AFTER HE DENIED THAT JAPAN HAD WAGED A WAR OF AGGRESSION IN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC 50 YEARS EARLIER.

13-Nov-95 11:36 AM EST (1636 UTC)
Source: Voice of America

LI Peng Criticizes Japan's Move to Freeze Aid to Beijing

Chinese Premier Minister Li Peng told a Japanese delegation that the action taken by the Japanese government was "unfriendly and undesirable", he said the China's small nuclear arsenal poses no threat to its neighbouring countries, and China was ready to halt the testing as soon as a comprehensive nuclear test ban took effect. (Reported by: Zhenzhen, Jian LIU, Daluo JIA)

[CND, 09/14/95] TOKYO -- Sixteen Japanese delegates will arrive to China on a two-week mission to clean up the chemical bombs abandoned by after WWII in China, according to AP citing the Chinese Foreign Ministry official as saying. China believes that Japanese troops used poison gas to kill 80,000 Chinese during the war, also killed and wounded another 2,000 after the war during cleanups. During a previous visit by a similar Japanese delegation to Jilin province, China last May, about 360 warheads were verified as Japanese-made mustard gas and pepper gas bombs and were sealed for safety, AP reported. This second delegation will conduct a survey in northeasten Heilongjian, Jilin and Liaoning provinces for abandoned chemical weapons. (WU Fang, Jian LIU)

[CND, 09/12/95] BEIJING -- The UN women's conference agreed today that soldiers who rape women are war criminals and should be hunted down, AP reported. This is among the measures adopted in draft Platform for Action to achieve equality for women. (LI Xiaowen, Jian LIU)

[CND, 09/06/95] BEIJING -- Chinese Ambassador to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, SHA Zukang, told Japan not to make a fuss "over a few limited number of nuclear tests," KRF reported quoting Xinhua. In his speech, Sha urged Japan not to pose as a victim of atomic bombing while "deliberately covering up or writing off its own [wartime] crimes" at the same time. A Japanese delegate rebutted that "the disarmament conference is... [for] future disarmament, not for arguing about the past," JEN reported. Japan has halted grants-in-aid to China to protest its two underground nuclear tests conducted this year. Beijing received much criticism when it demanded earlier in the conference that Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) be enacted only if all nations taking part in the Disarmament Conference ratify it. As a compromise, Beijing eventually dropped this demand; but in exchange it proposed that nuclear tests for peaceful purposes be exempted from the CTBT, which will make it difficult to monitor suspect nuclear tests. (Ray ZHANG, Jian LIU, Daluo JIA)

Jiang Zemin's Talk on the 50th Anniversary of Japan's Surrender

TEN THOUSAND PEOPLE AT BEIJING'S GREAT HALL OF THE PEOPLE HEARD PRESIDENT JIANG ZEMIN TALK OF PEACE AND FRIENDSHIP WITH JAPAN TO MARK THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAPANESE SURRENDER.

HE SAID LONG TERM FRIENDSHIP IS IN THE FUNDAMENTAL INTEREST OF BOTH THE CHINESE AND JAPANESE PEOPLE AND IS ALSO NECESSARY TO SAFEGUARD THE PEACE AND STABILITY OF ASIA AND THE REST OF THE WORLD.

MR. JIANG SAID JAPANESE AGGRESSION AGAINST CHINA HAD BROUGHT DISASTER TO THE CHINESE PEOPLE. HE BLAMED JAPANESE MILITARISM FOR THE AGGRESSION AND SAID THE JAPANESE PEOPLE WERE ALSO THE VICTIMS. BUT, AS OTHER CHINESE LEADERS HAVE DONE IN THE PAST, PRESIDENT JIANG HAD A CAUTIONARY NOTE. HE SAID ONLY WHEN JAPAN REMEMBERS THE LESSONS OF HISTORY AND DEEPLY REPENTS THE CRIMINAL ACTS OF AGGRESSION CAN IT GAIN THE CONFIDENCE OF THE ASIAN PEOPLE.

THROUGHOUT THIS 50TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR, CHINESE NEWS MEDIA HAVE PUBLISHED ALMOST DAILY ACCOUNTS OF THE HORRORS OF THE JAPANESE OCCUPATION -- AT THE SAME TIME, JAPAN IS ONE OF CHINA'S MOST IMPORTANT TRADING PARTNERS.
03-Sep-95 7:36 AM EDT (1136 UTC)
Source: Voice of America

Beijing Berates Tokyo for Failing to Apologize for WWII

[CND, 8/22/95] BEIJING -- Two months after the Japanese Diet adopted a compromise resolution expressing only remorse over its war atrocities during World War II, Beijing criticized Tokyo for having "again evaded the aggressive nature of the war launched by Japanese militarists against China and other Asia countries," AP quoted Foreign Ministry spokesman CHEN Jian as saying Tuesday. As its largest trading partner and creditor, China had restrained from harshly criticizing Japan during the commemorations of the 50th anniversary of Japan's surrender to allied forces. CHEN denied that this outburst was linked to Japan's criticisms of China's recent underground nuclear test, saying it was the result of "serious consideration and studies." Chinese President JIANG Zemin also warned last week that there would be a backlash in Sino-Japanese relations if Japan did not face up to its past. (Ron ZHANG, Jian LIU)

INTRO: JAPAN'S NEW EDUCATION MINISTER (TODAY-THURSDAY) ISSUED WHAT HE CALLS A "CLARIFICATION" OF REMARKS HE MADE REGARDING THE NEED FOR JAPAN TO APOLOGIZE FOR ITS ROLE IN WORLD WAR TWO. V-O-A TOKYO CORRESPONDENT JERRY MCKINNEY REPORTS THE NATION'S PRIME MINISTER ISSUED A PUBLIC APOLOGY FOR THE REMARKS.

NEW EDUCATION MINISTER YOSHINOBU SHIMAMURA WAS NAMED TO HIS POST TUESDAY DURING A GENERAL RE-SHUFFLE OF THE GROUP BY PRIME MINISTER TOMIICHI MURAYAMA. AT THE TIME, MR. MURAYAMA CAUTIONED ALL NEW CABINET MINISTERS AGAINST MAKING WHAT HE CALLED "INSENSITIVE REMARKS."

BUT, WHEN JOURNALISTS ASKED MR. SHIMAMURA ABOUT WHETHER JAPAN SHOULD EXPRESS REGRETS FOR ITS ROLE DURING WORLD WAR TWO, HE SUGGESTED THERE IS NO NEED FOR ADDITIONAL APOLOGIES.

HIS REMARKS BROUGHT IMMEDIATE COMPLAINTS FROM BOTH CHINA AND SOUTH KOREA. BOTH COUNTRIES SUFFERED AT THE HANDS OF JAPANESE INVASION FORCES BOTH BEFORE AND DURING THE WAR.

MR. MURAYAMA CALLED MR. SHIMAMURA INTO HIS OFFICE FOR AN EXPLANATION.

AT A NEWS CONFERENCE LATER, MR. SHIMAMURA SAID HE HAD ONLY MEANT PAST APOLOGIES WERE SUFFICIENT AND JAPAN SHOULD NOW MOVE TO ATONE FOR ITS PAST MISTAKES.

MR. MURAYAMA WENT FURTHER. HE EXPRESSED REGRETS FOR HIS NEW EDUCATION MINISTER'S REMARKS.

10-Aug-95 4:46 AM EDT (0846 UTC) Source: Voice of America

Chinese Victims To Make First Claim of War Compensation

[CND, 07/05/95] BEIJING -- A group of 36 Chinese who were victims of Japan's invasion of China will take the Japanese government to court in Tokyo next month, Reuters reported quoting one of the organizers as saying. This marks the first case of a private claim of war compensation by Chinese victims. Back in 1972, when diplomatic relations between Beijing and Tokyo were established, Beijing said it would not seek war compensation from Japan, but later denied that the agreement covered private claims. The Chinese government estimated that 35 million Chinese were killed or injured by the Japanese during the occupation. It is unclear how Beijing views such private claims. Last Thursday Foreign Ministry spokesman CHEN Jian said that Japan should treat this issue "seriously." At the same time victims were barred from protesting in front of the Japanese embassy in Beijing. Some were escorted by police to their hometowns. (Ray ZHANG, Jian LIU)

Jun 29 Tokyo. Australia has officially complained that Japanesestudents are not given accurate information regarding WWII, especiallythe conflict with Australia. It was found that officially-sanctionedJapanese textbooks had previously not mentioned the fact that Japanattacked Australia bombing several Aussie cities including Darwin[actually it was a town then], that 10s of 1000s of Australians weretaken prisoner by Japan and used as forced labour, or that Australianand Japanese troops fought in PNG.

Acting on the official request of the Aus'n Embassy in Japan theJapanese govt asked textbook publishers to "improve their maps andreferences, starting with primary school books". The Japanese ForMin'y has called the move "a welcome first step". "It is veryimportant for us to come to terms with the past... or to face the pastclearly", one rep told reporters. But the result has been less thanimpressive, according to Aussie officials. The Ambas said he was"disappointed" that only 1 in 6 books just approved for use in schoolsshows Australia as a military target during the War.

The Embassy says it considers the textbook issue "unresolved" and saysit will "beef up it efforts". Change in Japan is said to be painfullyslow. It has only been until relatively recently that the "WhiteAustralia Policy" was not part of the school curriculum on Australia.And it is one thing to change textbooks; another thing to have themread. Although history is taught in Japan the emphasis is on ancienthistory. "Many teachers run out of time even before they get to theWar", said one report.

Aussie News from La Trobe, 30-jun-95

JAPAN'S GERM WARFARE CAMP

INTRO: THIS IS THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR OF THE SURRENDER OF JAPAN AND THE END OF WORLD WAR TWO. FEW COUNTRIES AFFECTED BY THE WAR HAVE GIVEN AS MUCH ATTENTION TO THE ANNIVERSARY AS CHINA. V-O-A BEIJING CORRESPONDENT GIL BUTLER RECENTLY TRAVELLED TO A PART OF CHINA WHERE THE EVENTS OF 50 YEARS AGO ARE STILL VIVIDLY RECALLED.

TEXT: IN CHINA'S FAR NORTHEAST CORNER, ABOUT 20 MILES OUTSIDE THE PROVINCIAL CAPITAL OF HARBIN, SOME OF THE MOST HORRIBLE ATROCITIES OF THE WAR WERE CARRIED OUT BY A SECRETIVE JAPANESE DETACHMENT CALLED "UNIT 731."

OVER A 120 SQUARE KILOMETER AREA, UNIT 731 AND SOME SIMILAR DETACHMENTS EXPERIMENTED ON LIVING HUMAN BEINGS TO DEVELOP GERM WEAPONS OR TEST THE EFFECTS OF EXTREME COLD OR SUDDEN LOSS OF AIR PRESSURE.

AT LEAST THREE THOUSAND PEOPLE -- MOSTLY CHINESE, BUT ALSO INCLUDING RUSSIANS, MONGOLIANS AND KOREANS -- DIED IN THE CAMP AND WERE CREMATED. OUTSIDE THE COMPOUND WALLS, THOUSANDS OF CHINESE -- SOME RESEARCHERS SAY AS MANY AS 200 THOUSAND -- DIED FROM PLAGUE AND OTHER DISEASES PRODUCED IN THE LABORATORIES OF UNIT 731. PLAGUE-INFECTED FLEAS WERE DROPPED BY BOMB; RATS AND OTHER ANIMALS ESCAPED TO THE COUNTRYSIDE WHEN THE JAPANESE BLEW UP BUILDINGS IN AN ATTEMPT TO COVER-UP THE GERM WARFARE EXPERIMENTS.

IN THIS 50TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR OF THE JAPANESE SURRENDER, CHINA IS MAKING A SPECIAL EFFORT TO COMMEMORATE ITS SUFFERING DURING THE JAPANESE OCCUPATION.

THE OFFICIAL XINHUA NEWS AGENCY SAYS LONG LINES OF VISITORS HAVE BEEN VIEWING THE UNIT 731 MUSEUM AND THE RUINS OF THE CAMP BUILDINGS.

ON A RECENT TUESDAY, THERE WERE NO LONG LINES. IT WAS MORE LIKE A STEADY TRICKLE OF VISITORS LOOKING IN AT TWO SHABBY, POORLY-LIT ROOMS IN THE FORMER HEADQUARTERS BUILDING OF UNIT 731. THEY SAW SOME GERM WARFARE SHELL-CASINGS, A MACHINE GUN, SOME LABORATORY EQUIPMENT AND A LOT OF PHOTOGRAPHS OF JAPANESE SOLDIERS ATTACHED TO THE UNIT.

THE STORY OF THIS ATROCITY IS NOT IN THE RELICS, BUT IN THE MEMORIES OF THE CHINESE WHO WERE THERE, SUCH AS JING FU HE, WHO WAS 12 YEARS OLD WHEN THE JAPANESE PULLED OUT.

/// JING FU HE ACT ///

(CHINESE) HE SAYS THE JAPANESE BLEW UP THE BUILDINGS BEFORE THEY LEFT AND FREED SOME OF THE ANIMALS THEY EXPERIMENTED ON -- RATS, HORSES AND CAMELS. MOST OF THE RATS WERE INFECTED WITH PLAGUE WHICH SPREAD TO SURROUNDING VILLAGES -- 130 PEOPLE DIED OF PLAGUE, INCLUDING 12 MEMBERS OF MR. JING'S FAMILY.

/// END ACT //

AMONG OLD PEOPLE ENJOYING THE EVENING AIR ALONG THE RIVER-FRONT IN HARBIN, SOME BITTERNESS WAS STILL EVIDENT. CHAO YU YING WAS A YOUNG GIRL DURING THE OCCUPATION.

///CHAO ACT ///

(CHINESE) SHE SAYS, THE CHINESE WERE SLAVES OF THE AGGRESSORS ... THEY HAD NO STATE, NO COUNTRY.

/// END ACT ///

OTHERS ALONG THE WATERFRONT IN HARBIN SAY, "THE PAST IS THE PAST" WE NEED TO COOPERATE WITH THE JAPANESE.

BUT SOME CHINESE COMPLAIN THAT JAPAN HAS NOT SHOWN SUFFICIENT REMORSE FOR THE SUFFERING INFLICTED ON CHINA DURING THE OCCUPATION. A CHINESE HISTORIAN WHO SPECIALIZES IN SINO-JAPANESE RELATIONS SAYS DURING A RECENT VISIT TO JAPAN HE SAW MANY MONUMENTS TO THE JAPANESE KILLED AT HIROSHIMA AND NAGASAKI, BUT NO MONUMENTS TO THE CHINESE KILLED DURING THE OCCUPATION.

ACCORDING TO THE UNIT 731 MUSEUM RESEARCH DIRECTOR, JING CHENG MIN, THERE IS JAPANESE INTEREST IN UNIT 731. HE SAYS AN EXHIBITION ON THE GERM WARFARE ATROCITIES SUCCESSFULLY TOURED JAPAN FOR 18 MONTHS AND MANY YOUNGER JAPANESE HAVE BECOME INTERESTED IN LEARNING MORE ABOUT UNIT 731 AFTER READING A BOOK ABOUT IT BY JAPANESE AUTHOR SEIICHI MORIMURA. AND THE JAPANESE ARE HELPING PAY FOR A NEW MUSEUM AT THE CAMP SITE.

/// JING AND TRANSLATOR ACT ///

(CHINESE) (TRANSLATOR) I RECEIVE HERE MANY JAPANESE VISITORS -- EACH YEAR MORE THAN 3000. THIS YEAR THE NUMBER WILL BE DOUBLED.

/// END ACT ///

CHINESE OFFICIAL MEDIA HAVE BEEN PUBLICIZING THIS 50TH ANNIVERSARY FOR MONTHS. AS THE SURRENDER DATE NEARS, THE NUMBER OF EVENTS COMMEMORATING THAT TIME IS INCREASING. AT THE SAME TIME, JAPAN IS THE LARGEST SUPPLIER OF LOW INTEREST LOANS TO CHINA. THE JAPANESE TRADING RELATIONSHIP IS CRUCIAL TO CHINA'S CONTINUED ECONOMIC PROGRESS. SO THE CHINESE ARE WALKING THE FINE LINE THAT SEPARATES FORGIVING FROM FORGETTING. (SIGNED)

15-Jun-95 3:24 AM EDT (0724 UTC) Source: Voice of America

INTRO: LAST MONTH (MAY), A JAPANESE INSPECTION TEAM TOURED TWO SITES IN NORTHEAST CHINA WHERE THEY CONFIRMED THE EXISTENCE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS DISCARDED BY RETREATING JAPANESE TROOPS IN THE CLOSING DAYS OF WORLD WAR TWO. JAPAN HAS AGREED TO PAY FOR THE REMOVAL OF THE OUTLAWED WEAPONS, BUT THE DETAILS APPARENTLY ARE STILL UNDER DISCUSSION. V-O-A BEIJING CORRESPONDENT GIL BUTLER HAS JUST RETURNED FROM A VISIT TO HARBIN IN CHINA'S NORTHEASTERN HEILONGJIANG PROVINCE AND HAS A BACKGROUND REPORT.

TEXT: FOR YEARS DISCARDED JAPANESE CHEMICAL SHELLS HAVE BEEN FOUND IN HEILONGJIANG. EVEN MORE WERE FOUND RECENTLY IN NEIGHBORING JILIN PROVINCE.

A JAPANESE DELEGATION ACKNOWLEDGED THE JILIN WEAPONS DURING AN INSPECTION TOUR IN MAY AND JAPAN HAS AGREED IT WILL PAY FOR A CLEANUP. BUT DETAILS HAVEN'T BEEN WORKED OUT AND IT IS UNCLEAR WHETHER ALL THE WEAPONS FOUND EVERYWHERE IN CHINA ARE INCLUDED IN THE PLEDGE.

IN HEILONGJIANG, OLD CHEMICAL WEAPONS TURNED UP 20 YEARS AGO WHEN A DREDGING BARGE WAS CLEANING THE CHANNEL OF A RIVER AND THE SHELLS WERE SUCKED UP WITH OTHER DEBRIS. SEVERAL CREW MEMBERS ON THE BARGE SUFFERED LASTING INJURIES BECAUSE THE SHELLS WERE RUPTURED AND MUSTARD GAS LEAKED OUT.

IN ALL, THE CHINESE SAY, ABOUT TWO THOUSAND PEOPLE HAVE BEEN EITHER INJURED OR KILLED FROM DISCARDED JAPANESE CHEMICAL WEAPONS. DURING THE WAR, ACCORDING TO CHINA, THE JAPANESE MILITARY USED POISON GAS AGAINST THE CHINESE AND 80 THOUSAND PEOPLE WERE KILLED.

A LEADING JAPANESE RESEARCHER, PROFESSOR KEIICHI TSUNEISHI, TOLD REUTERS NEWS AGENCY RECENTLY HE HAD COME ACROSS ARMY DOCUMENTS SAYING MORE THAN FIVE MILLION POISON GAS SHELLS AND GAS GRENADES WERE PRODUCED BY THE END OF WORLD WAR TWO. AN EARLIER REPORT BY TWO OTHER JAPANESE HISTORIANS CITED ARMY PAPERS THEY SAID SHOWED JAPANESE ARMY UNITS OFTEN FIRED GAS SHELLS AND USED BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS AGAINST CHINESE TROOPS AND CIVILIANS.

PROFESSOR BU PING, PRESIDENT OF THE HEILONGJIANG PROVINCE SOCIAL SCIENCES ACADEMY, HAS MADE A STUDY OF THE CHEMICAL WEAPONS ISSUE. IN A RECENT INTERVIEW HE SAID ONE REASON FOR THE LONG DELAY IN GETTING A CLEANUP STARTED IS THAT JAPAN REFUSED TO ADMIT IT USED AND OR LEFT BEHIND SUCH WEAPONS IN CHINA.

WITH THE JAPANESE AGREEMENT TO PAY FOR THE CLEANUP, APPARENTLY IT CAN BEGIN. BUT PROFESSOR BU SAID IT WILL BE A LONG PROCESS. FACTORIES MAY HAVE TO BE BUILT TO NEUTRALIZE THE CHEMICALS. HE SAID EVEN THEN ALL OF THE WEAPONS MAY NOT BE FOUND AND SAFELY DESTROYED.

// BU ACT // (CHINESE) IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DISCOVER ALL THE JAPANESE CHEMICAL WEAPONS IN HEILONGJIANG PROVINCE. THOSE WEAPONS WHICH HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED HAVE BEEN REGISTERED AND THE PLACE THEY WERE DISCOVERED IS MARKED. BUT THERE ARE STILL A CONSIDERABLE NUMBER WHICH HAVE NOT BEEN DISCOVERED. WE DON'T KNOW WHERE THEY ARE OR EXACTLY HOW MANY. TWO FINDS OF THE WEAPONS -- ONE IN 1974 THE OTHER IN 1982 -- WERE MADE JUST BY CHANCE. // END ACT //

IN ADDITION TO WORRY THAT MORE PEOPLE COULD BE HARMED BY THE OLD CHEMICAL SHELLS, THERE ARE URGENT ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS. THE JILIN PROVINCE WEAPONS CACHES WERE BURIED IN PITS LEADING TO THE DANGER THE CHEMICALS MIGHT SEEP INTO NEARBY RIVERS IF THE SHELLS DETERIORATE.

THE CHEMICAL WEAPONS REVELATIONS ALONG WITH INCREASED PUBLIC INTEREST IN JAPAN'S GERM WARFARE TESTING GROUND IN HEILONGJIANG COME AS THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAPANESE SURRENDER AND THE END OF WORLD WAR TWO NEARS. HERE IN CHINA, THE GOVERNMENT HAS BEEN PROMOTING ALMOST DAILY EVENTS TO COMMEMORATE THE ANNIVERSARY.

15-Jun-95 7:45 AM EDT (1145 UTC)
Source: Voice of America

Mr. Murayama says -- in this year which marks the 50th anniversary of the end of World War Two -- Japan wants to express regret for its past and create new ties with its Asian neighbors.

After prolonged bickering, the three parties of his coalition compromised on the wording of a proposed resolution to renounce war and mark the anniversary of the end of the War.

The draft resolution includes a statement of deep remorse for Japan's acts of aggression and for its colonial rule in Asian countries before and during the war.

With the compromise, the three-party coalition -- at least for the time being -- managed to avert what threatened to be a major political disaster.

The Liberal Democratic Party -- which is the largest component inthe ruling coalition -- made the largest concessions to clear the draft. T L-D-P had opposed including the terms "colonization" and "acts of aggression" : the main sticking points between the L-D-P and the two other coalition parties, the Social Democratic Party and the New Party Sakigake.

Mr. Murayama wants the resolution passed by parliament before the close of the current session on June 18th. Ruling coalition officials say they have agreed to submit the resolution to a vote in the lower house and a similar resolution for a vote in the upper house this week.

However, a group of more-conservative L-D-P lawmakers has reacted with anger to the draft resolution apologizing for the country's role during World War Two. They threaten to boycott the parliament vote on the resolution, if it is submitted without changes.

The leader of the group, (former justice minister Seisuke Okuno) says the resolution would dishonor Japan's war dead. he says Japan fought the war to help liberate Asian nations from western colonialism. about the two thirds of the l-d-p legislators in the lower house belong to the group. they oppose any such resolution.

A boycott would expose a deep rift in the already-shaky coalition government of prime minister Murayama, which faces nationwide upper house elections in july.

Other Asian nations complain the resolution does not go far enough.
07-Jun-95 5:51 AM EDT (0951 UTC)
Source: Voice of America

Michio Watanabe: Japan Didn't Colonize Korea

4/6 TASS 60

BY NIKOLAI GERONIN

SEOUL JUNE 4 (ITAR-TASS) - THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA ON SUNDAY ISSUED A STATEMENT REPUDIATING SATURDAY'S REMARKS MADE BY MICHIO WATANABE, A PROMINENT FIGURE OF THE JAPANESE RULING COALITION AND FORMER VICE-PREMIER AND FOREIGN MINISTER, ABOUT THE ROLE OF JAPAN IN THE COLONIAL ENSLAVEMENT OF KOREA.

THE SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTRY EVALUATED WATANABE'S PRONOUNCEMENTS AS AN ATTEMPT TO JUSTIFY THE ANNEXATION OF KOREA BY JAPAN AND TO DISTORT HISTORY.

SPEAKING IN THE JAPANESE CITY OF UTSUNOMIYA, WATANABE ASSERTED THAT JAPAN HAD PEACEFULLY TAKEN OVER THE KOREAN PENINSULA AND HAD NOT COLONISED IT.

DATE=6/7/95

ABOUT 300 SOUTH KOREANS GATHERED IN FRONT OF THE JAPANESE EMBASSY IN DOWNTOWN SEOUL TO PROTEST WHAT THEY CALL JAPAN'S UNREPENTING ATTITUDE TOWARD KOREAN VICTIMS OF JAPANESE AGGRESSION.

GROUPS REPRESENTING WAR VETERANS AND OTHER VICTIMS OF THE JAPANESE DURING WORLD WAR TWO BURNED EFFIGIES AND SHOUTED ANTI-JAPAN SLOGANS. ONE EFFIGY WAS OF A JAPANESE SOLDIER AND THE OTHER FORMER JAPANESE FOREIGN MINISTER MICHIO WATANABE.

MR. WATANABE, VICE-PREMIER AND FOREIGN MINISTER NOW A LEGISLATOR, CAUSED ANGRY PROTESTS IN SEOUL EARLIER THIS WEEK WITH HIS ASSESSMENT JAPAN HAD PEACEFULLY TAKEN OVER THE KOREAN PENINSULA IN 1910. HE LATER RETRACTED HIS STATEMENT.

WEDNESDAY'S PROTEST CAME ONE DAY AFTER JAPAN'S RULING COALITION AGREED ON THE WORDING OF A PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION TO EXPRESS JAPAN'S REMORSE FOR ITS ACTIONS DURING WORLD WAR TWO. THE SOUTH KOREAN GROUPS REPRESENTING VICTIMS OF THE WAR SAY THE RESOLUTION IS INADEQUATE BECAUSE IT DOES NOT OFFER A CLEAR APOLOGY.

THE JAPANESE RESOLUTION WAS PASSED TUESDAY, AMID DISAGREEMENT AMONG THE GOVERNMENT'S COALITION PARTIES ABOUT THE WORDING. ONE PARTY WANTED TO INCLUDE A CLEARLY-WORDED APOLOGY WHILE ANOTHER SAID SUCH A STATEMENT WOULD BE AN INSULT TO JAPANESE VETERANS OF THE WAR.

THE FINAL COMPROMISE EXPRESSES DEEP REMORSE FOR JAPAN'S ACTS OF AGGRESSION AGAINST ASIAN NEIGHBORS DURING WORLD WAR TWO -- AS WELL AS FOR ITS COLONIAL RULE OVER SOME OF THE COUNTRIES IT OCCUPIED BEFORE THE WAR, INCLUDING SOUTH KOREA.

THE RESOLUTION IS INTENDED TO EXPRESS REGRET IN THIS, THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR OF THE END OF WORLD WAR TWO. JAPAN OCCUPIED THE KOREAN PENINSULA FROM 1910 UNTIL THE END OF THE WAR IN 1945.

DURING THAT TIME, HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF KOREANS WERE SENT TO JAPAN AS FORCED LABOR -- INCLUDING MORE THAN 100 THOUSAND WOMEN WHO WERE USED FOR SEXUAL SERVICES BY THE JAPANESE ARMY. THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT HAS FAILED TO COMPENSATE THESE WOMEN, DESPITEITS ADMISSION FORCED SEXUAL SLAVERY WAS ENGINEERED BY THE GOVERNMENT.
07-Jun-95 7:52 AM EDT (1152 UTC)
Source: Voice of America

Spokesman of a Japanese government delegation to investigate the Imperial Army's chemical weapons still left in China on Monday confirmed the existence of two chemical weapons sites containing bombs and chemicals abandoned by the Army when it retreated in the last months of the Second World War.

The delegation, composed of various organizations, including the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the Defense Agency, and private groups, visited two sites in China's Jilin Province, where the Chinese government gathered and stored large amounts of chemical weapons between 1951 and 1963.

Japanese government has agreed to finance the cleanup of those harmful chemicals.

(SMN, 06/06/95)

Japanese apology plan scrapped

Apr 29 Tokyo. Plans to pass an apology for Japan's actions in WWII have been abandoned after PM Murayama {:-| encountered stringer-than-expected opposition from within his own coal'nranks. Murayama is reportedly embarrassed by the moves and some reports even suggest he's cancelled a planned visit to China as a result. Opponents to the planned "apology" had gathered around 5 mn signatures against the resolution. Even Hosakawa -- who gave something of an official apology when he was PM -- says the issue is "dead". Right wingers in Japan have been also quoted as saying "forget about the war; think about the future". Others point to the 3mn Japanese war dead. Apparently there will still be some kind of " peace resolution" to mark the 50th anniversary of the end of WWII, but it will contain no apology.

Elsewhere 60K police officers will be on national alert over the" Golden Weekend" to guard against possible terrorist attacks.
Aussie News from La Trobe, 02-may-95