Interest In Japan Research Articles

Monetary Policy and the Lost Decade: Lessons from Japan

I investigate how monetary policy can avoid a deflationary slump when policy rates are near zero by studying interest rate policy during Japan's “Lost Decade.” Estimation results suggest that the Bank of Japan's interest rate policy fits a conventional reaction function with an inflation target near 1%. The disapointing economic performance thus seems primarily due to adverse economic shocks rather than extraordinary policy errors. Also, counterfactual policy simulations suggest that simply raising the inflation target would not have substantially improved performance. However, price‐level targeting or combining a higher inflation target with an aggressive output response would have achieved superior stabilization results.

Shin Suk-ju family’s interest in Japan through the analysis on poetry and prose

Shin Suk-ju family’s interest in Japan through the analysis on poetry and prose

Πáσχα (Easter) and dietary life in Greece

In recent years the globalization of foods has advanced by progress of the media. A model for foods and health, which is called by Western countries the ‘Mediterranean style’ has been reported, and is also of interest in Japan. Most studies, however, have not focused relationship between the dietary habits of Greece and Greek annual events. Therefore we examined Easter of Greek Orthodox (Πaσχα), and the Greek food-culture, which is concerned with customs or events in a city and local provinces. As a result, the following was clear—in the city it seemed that the following of such customs faded through the people' s senses of value being diversified by change in their life style, while people living far from their home return and celebrate Easter, and offered barbecue and a variety ram meats, and followed the old customs in the provinces. Dietary habits are influenced by the climate and religion of each race. All the same, it was found that there were common points between the events of the Greek Orthodox Easter that was based on old agriculture rites and important Japanese events, such as Shogatsu or Bon.

Rewriting History from the Shore: A Spanish Dominican Nun's Encounter with Japan During the First Half of the Twentieth Century

Rewriting History from the Shore:A Spanish Dominican Nun's Encounter with Japan During the First Half of the Twentieth Century Timothy P. Gaster (bio) Introduction There are relatively few texts dealing with Japan written by women during the first half the twentieth century, and most of the ones that do exist were authored by English-speaking women.1 As Gayle Nunley in her study of Spanish travel narratives points out, owing to the persistence of cultural attitudes and the fact that travelogues often narrate "work-related journeys," international travel and the texts generated from these travels were predominately male endeavors.2 Yet there was one career for women in Spain that provided the opportunity for travel: that of missionary. Dominican Spanish nun Sor María Rosa Miranda was one such missionary who wrote travelogues, and her A través del Japón [Across Japan] (1942) is the focus of this study.3 Paying attention to the historical context within which the text was written, I show that A través del Japón exhibits a multiple discourse on the Orient. Sor Miranda's text reflects the hegemonic discourses prevalent at that time (orientalism, fascism, etc.), but at the same time, it presents the reader with an alternative narrative: one that emphasizes the story of women and that challenges those very same hegemonic discourses. The first part of this essay points out where Sor Miranda's text manifests oriental-ist precepts. The second part outlines some of the fundamental aspects of Span ish conservative ideologies, the fascist interest in Japan in the first half of the twentieth century, and the presence of a fascist discourse on Japan [End Page 42] in Sor Miranda's text. The third part highlights the themes and writing techniques Sor Miranda employs to create an alternative narrative. The final part of this essay elucidates how Sor Miranda uses Japanese myth and legends to establish an alternative version of history and an alternative idea of education for women that works to counteract (male) tradition. However, before I examine the orientalist aspect of Sor Miranda's work, it will be helpful to detail some aspects of Sor Miranda's life and to flesh out the historical context in which she wrote her text. In the introduction to A través del Japón, Sor Miranda states that she lived in Japan for five years and spoke Japanese (10). Unfortunately, there is not much information about her life aside from this. From one other source we do know she was born in Oviedo, Spain, in 1910.4 We also know she traveled to Japan before she was twenty. After five years in Japan she spent four years in the Philippines and then returned to Spain by "superior mandate" immediately preceding the start of the Spanish Civil War.5 Owing to the persecution of the church by the communists and anarchists at the outset of the war, Sor Miranda was forced to flee to France and, later, Italy.6 From this information it can be deduced that she was seventeen in 1927 when she went to Japan. And similar to the famous Mexican colonial-period writer Sor Juana, one source states that Sor Miranda at a young age showed a desire for learning but was denied entry into the School for Women Teachers (Escuela Normal de Maestras). Not taking no for an answer, she educated herself and found another way to become a teacher.7 She traveled to Japan and worked with children in schools, probably in the kindergartens that were set up by the Dominicans.8 It seems that her place of residence and work would have been at a mission either in the rural and poor zones of the island of Shikoku (probably in Matsuyama), in Tokushima, or in the few areas of Tokyo where there were Spanish Catholic churches and schools. Early twentieth-century Spain was marked by ideological struggles and debates that resulted in long years of dictatorship grounded in conservative ideologies, starting with Manuel Primo de Rivera's rule from 1923 to 1930.10 Furthermore, the ubiquitous presence of the Catholic Church in Spanish society should be taken into account. Primo de Rivera's...

The Future of the Japanese–Chinese Relationship: The Case for a Grand Political Bargain

Compared with the strained relationship during the Koizumi era, Japanese-Chinese relations today seem to prove that despite many bilateral problems, a solution can always be found. This attitude is too complacent as a closer examination of the three main disputes shows: the history-related issues, the territorial disputes in the East China Sea, and Taiwan. Bilateral agreements, understandings, or protracted negotiations may provide temporary relief but may turn out to be very costly in the long run to Japan's national interests and to regional stability while time is not on Japan's side in view of the shifting comprehensive power relationship between the two countries. Instead, Japan should clarify its position in the Japan–US–China triangle, reform its economy, strengthen its Asian policy and sort out its priorities concerning the three main problems by striking a grand bargain.

Reply to: doi:10.1007/s00464-009-0668-z: Combined laparoscopic–endoscopic resection of colorectal polyps: 10-year experience and follow-up evaluation

This article tries to answer the question about the feasibility of laparoscopically assisted resection of difficult ‘‘benign’’ polyps. It would have been useful if the data presented had been contextualized with regard to the number of patients who underwent alternative or open procedures? Primarily, open resection of benign, even difficult polyps, is no longer the therapy of choice and almost dispensable since the introduction of combined procedures to our department in the early 1990s. Thus, all patients received the combined approach at first. Seven patients (5%) underwent conversion to open surgery due to suspicion of malignant disease (n = 3, according to institutional policy), bowel perforation during colonoscopy (n = 1), difficult closure of the colotomy (n = 2), and incomplete resection of a rectal lesion (n = 1). This was clearly stated in the article. If the polyps were classified as endoscopically resectable in a routine preoperative endoscopic examination, this was the preferred therapy. The definition of polyps deemed unresectable by colonoscopy was accepted as subjective. However, was there any screening or repeat colonoscopy by an experienced colonoscopist? All the patients had received a colonoscopy by an experienced endoscopist before presenting to our institution. However, preoperative recolonoscopy routinely performed could preserve about 5% of patients from surgical treatment. Concrete endoscopic snare resection had even been attempted for 27 of the patients but was unsuccessful. Moreover, we note that with laparoscopic assistance, only eight polyps were endoscopically approachable, as displayed in Table 2. Voloyiannis et al. [1] found that selective colonoscopy for 171 of 252 patients referred led to avoidance of resection for 101 patients. As a result, 58% of these were rescoped, and 40% of all the patients referred avoided resection. This resection rate may improve with the relatively new technique of colonoscopic (endoscopic) mucosal resection described by Saito et al. [2]. The percentage of resections avoided by recolonoscopy was comparably low in our series, as already mentioned. However, all referring practitioners are highly experienced endoscopists, and the low avoidance rate may be due to the fact that the classification of polyps as unresectable is justified to a great extent. The technique of endoscopic submucosal dissection for large colonic adenomas, as described by Saito et al. [2], is very demanding but attracting initial interest in Japan. In the Western world, endoscopic submucosal resection still is in its infancy and not a standard procedure. Additionally, it is associated with a much higher complication rate. The authors are to be complimented for their honest appraisal of complications at 25%. D. Wilhelm (&) H. Feussner Department of Surgery, Technische Universitat Munchen, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Ismaninger Strasse 22, 81675 Munich, Germany e-mail: wilhelm@chir.med.tu-muenchen.de

Ausgekochtes Wunderland: Japanische Literatur lesen (review)

Reviewed by: Ausgekochtes Wunderland: Japanische Literatur lesen Kristina Iwata-Weickgenannt Ausgekochtes Wunderland: Japanische Literatur lesen. By Irmela Hijiya-Kirschnereit. Munich: Edition Text + Kritik, 2008. 214 pages. Softcover €25.00. The title of this monograph, which can be translated into English as "Hard-boiled Wonderland: Reading Japanese Literature," plays on the titles of both Murakami Haruki's successful novel and an earlier book on Japanese literature edited by Irmela Hijiya-Kirschnereit.1 This double allusion suggests, first, that the volume at hand deals mostly with modern and contemporary literature and, second, that it is meant to recall previous works by the author. It soon becomes obvious that both are the case. Prefaced by an introductory chapter on the historical development, important characteristics, and present state of translation of Japanese literature into German, the book contains a collection of previously published book reviews and essays on translations of Japanese literary works. Aimed at a general readership interested in Japan, but doubtlessly helpful for students of Japanese literature as well, the monograph may thus be understood as a selective-yet-thorough guide to the wide spectrum of German translations that have appeared during the past three decades. Literary translations are, to a degree, indicative of the image that a certain country enjoys in another. Hijiya-Kirschnereit points out that for a long time German interest in Japan appears to have been closely connected to the latter's economic success. During the bubble period, several publishing houses established comprehensive translation series; the 1990 Frankfurt International Book Fair focused on Japan; and excerpts from Japanese literature even found their way into German school textbooks. When Japan entered a long recession in the 1990s, the enthusiasm for its "serious" literature, too, waned somewhat. Instead, products of Japanese popular culture gained unprecedented importance. Today, with translations of manga available in almost any small-scale bookstore, German youth, at least, seems to have wholeheartedly embraced Cool Japan. The fifteen essays that form the first part of Ausgekochtes Wunderland were originally written as prefaces or afterwords to German translations of modern Japanese literary works, many of which appeared in the "Japanese Library" series of books (Japanische Bibliothek im Insel Verlag, 1993–2001), edited by Hijiya-Kirschnereit.2 While each is designed to introduce one particular piece of literature in more detail, Hijiya-Kirschnereit also contextualizes the text in question within the oeuvre of its author. This essay section is thematically subdivided into four groups, the first of which centers on the two poles of exoticism—frequently discernable in the construction of "Japaneseness," both in Western countries and in Japan itself—and its literary deconstruction. The overall theme of the second group is collective traumata, such as Japan's defeat in 1945 and the horrifying effects of environmental pollution as exemplified [End Page 436] by Minamata disease. Some readers might miss discussions of works dealing with the aftermath of the atomic bombings, even though a number have been translated into German. The omission may be because the essays were first selected and then arranged by theme rather than the themes' having been chosen first. Still, given the literary and cultural importance of the so-called atomic bomb literature (genbaku bungaku), adding a review from this category might have been worth considering. The third group of texts, titled "Journeys through Space and Time," deals with metaphorical as well as actual travels, comprising essays on modern autobiographical texts and a premodern travel diary. The essay section of the monograph concludes with a glimpse into the various "inner worlds" presented by authors as diverse as the I-novelist Dazai Osamu and the contemporary poet Itō Hiromi. The second part of the monograph contains thirty-six shorter, chronologically arranged book reviews of a wide array of literary translations, ranging from collections of classical poetry to works as recent as Kawakami Hiromi's acclaimed Sensei no kaban (The Teacher's Briefcase, 2001), the German translation of which was published in 2008. The volume is thus full of erudite detail and compelling assessments of Japanese literary works and their translations. Hijiya-Kirschnereit's motivation for compiling these originally unrelated texts into one book is as simple as it is cogent. While Japan attracts constant interest from...

The Disbursement Pattern of Japanese Foreign Aid: A Reappraisal

Three perspectives on the determinants of Japan's official development assistance (ODA) program are often represented as distinct, valid explanations of the aid program. Yet few studies have attempted to simultaneously test the hypotheses generated from all three perspectives in a global study of Japanese aid flows. This study seeks to improve the understanding of the Japanese ODA program by addressing some of the gaps in the existing literature. Providing a comprehensive analysis, the article investigates the effects of different political and economic variables on Japanese aid disbursement in eighty-six countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East from 1979 to 2002. The findings of the study make several contributions to the literature. First, the results provide strong support for the claim that humanitarian concerns, as measured by poverty and human rights conditions in recipient countries, are important determinants of aid allocation. Second, although much of the previous literature has hypothesized that Japan's aid program seeks to promote Japan's economic interests, little empirical support for this view is found in the present study. Likewise, the disbursement pattern of ODA was associated with only a limited number of US security interests; US economic interests are shown to have no effect on ODA.

Wet disk milling pretreatment without sulfuric acid for enzymatic hydrolysis of rice straw

Rice straw has recently attracted interest in Japan as a potential source of raw material for ethanol production. Wet disk milling, a continuous pretreatment to enhance the enzymatic digestibility of rice straw, was compared with conventional ball milling and hot-compressed water treatment. Pretreated rice straw was evaluated by enzymatic hydrolysis using Acremonium cellulase and characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Glucose and xylose yields by wet disk milling, ball milling, and hot-compressed water treatment were 78.5% and 41.5%, 89.4% and 54.3%, and 70.3% and 88.6%, respectively. Wet disk milling and hot-compressed water treatment increased sugar yields without decreasing their crystallinity. The feature size of the wet disk milled rice straw was similar to that of hot-compressed water-treated rice straw. The energy consumption of wet disk milling was lower than that of other pretreatments. Thus, wet disk milling is an economical, practical pretreatment for the enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass, especially herbaceous biomass such as rice straw.

Advanced sensing technology in environmental field

Before the introduction of advanced sensing technology in environmental fields, environmental issues were discussed as several categories, such as local environmental issues in the 1970s, global environmental issues in the 1980s, living environmental issues in the 2000s and environmental stress issues in near future, which are of increasing interest in Japan. Using advanced sensing technologies, such as electrochemical sensors, chemically-sensitive field-effect transistors (ChemFETs) based on micro-electro mechanical system (MEMS) micromachining technology and subsequently electrophoretic separation and microfluidic Lab-on-a-Chip using MEMS technology, we have steered several kinds of environmental monitoring projects timely in response to the environmental issues for over the last 25 years. Among the local environmental issues, the global environmental issues and the living environmental issues, some fruits of R&D project will be introduced. Finally, our latest concern of the environmental stress monitoring was discussed and preliminary results were also introduced.

TAMA‐CHAN AND SEALING JAPANESE IDENTITY

On 22 February 2003 a group of foreign residents of Japan gathered in Yokohama's Nishi Ward next to the Katabira River to protest the awarding of a residency certificate (juminhyō) to a seal called Tama‐chan. Tama‐chan had frequented the river and as such was awarded the certificate because he was “more or less like a fellow resident.” The group of foreign residents criticized what they believed to be discrimination by the Japanese state because, whilst a seal is able to gain a residency certificate, foreign residents are legislatively excluded from obtaining one. The Tama‐chan protest provides an opportunity for investigating not only the residency registration system, but also other population registries such as the Japanese family registration system and alien registration system. The author of this article argues that a deeper and more informed understanding of the processes of marginalization of foreign residents in Japan can be achieved through a comprehensive investigation of Japan's population registries and their respective histories. The author explains how these population registries are sites of tension in which contained notions of Japanese citizenship and national identity are being contested by foreign resident populations with vested interests in Japan as home, thus revealing the inadequacies, inconsistencies, and ambiguities of these registration systems.

Japan's Policy for East Asia

Japanese foreign policy six decades after the end of World War II stands at a crossroads. The forces of globalization and the rise of the BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) seem to herald the end of the unipolar post-Cold War international system and the emergence of a new era defined by multi-polarity and multilateralism. Such global trends are manifest most clearly in Japan's own backyard, where phenomenal region-wide economic growth, a gradual redistribution of power (in particular the rise of China and India), and the increasingly important role of multilateral cooperation and regional institutions are dramatically transforming East Asia. This trend shows no signs of slowing down, much less reversing itself; nor would it be in Japan's interest to pursue any policy that seeks to do so. Nevertheless, the transformation itself remains almost on auto-pilot, lacking a clear long-term guiding vision. After presenting a brief overview of Japan's past policy toward the region, the goal of this paper will be to articulate such a vision through a series of policy proposals through which to ensure future peace, stability, and prosperity in East Asia.

Japan's policy on steel trade disputes with the United States: a comparative analysis

This article examines interactions among the United States, Japan and the European Union over steel trade disputes with particular interest in Japan's reactions to the disputes. For this objective, this paper establishes an analytical framework that takes into account bilateral, international, and domestic factors in formulating a state's external policy and relations. It was found that the special relationship with the United States still impinged on Japan's reactions to steel trade disputes, but its influence has gradually declined. Moreover, growing familiarity with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and practices and collaboration with other countries enabled Tokyo to expand its policy options to handle steel trade conflicts with Washington. Significantly, Japan formally adopted seemingly bold measures to cope with the US steel safeguard action, but the measures’ substantial influence on the US government was limited compared with those adopted by the European Union. Weak policy coordination among ministries prevented Japan from formulating strategic and effective measures in managing steel trade disputes with the United States.

The Foreign Exchange Origins of Japan's Economic Slump and Low Interest Liquidity Trap

Japan's macroeconomic problem has yet to be properly diagnosed. Throughout the 1990s, policy makers could not decide on the proper macro economic measures to combat the country's severe economic slump. We propose a unified explanation, with deep historical roots, of why aggregate private demand failed to recover after Japan's stock and real estate bubbles burst in 1991 and deflationary pressure continues. The problem is not purely made in Japan. It arises from Japan's unbalanced mercantile relationship with the United States. Starting in the early 1970s, numerous trade disputes between the two countries created tensions that were (temporarily) resolved by the yen going ever higher against the dollar up to 1995. In the last two decades, this persistent pressure for the yen to rise was further aggravated by Japan's large current-account (saving) surpluses as the counterpart of America's large current account (saving) deficits. The legacy is the expectation that trade and financial tensions will recur so that the yen will be higher 10, 20, or 30 years from now - with Japan's (wholesale) price level forced correspondingly lower and nominal interest rates on yen assets remaining more than four percentage points less than those on dollar assets. This fear of yen appreciation, whose timing is erratic and unpredictable, now inhibits private domestic investment by both Japanese firms and households. Our theory also explains why, in the late 1990s, nominal interest rates on short-term yen assets were compressed toward zero so as to destroy the normal profit margins of the banking system. In this liquidity trap, the Bank of Japan-whose monetary policy has been quite expansionary - is powerless to stimulate the flagging economy. To spring the liquidity trap, eliminate deflationary pressure, and restore macro economic balance in Japan, the American and Japanese governments must act jointly to quash the expectation that the yen will be higher in the future than it is today.

Why Japan May Break Loose From the Axis

Fl A RADIO speech to the world on Sunday, August 25, the British Prime Minister, Mr. Winston Churchill, revealed that there were going on conversations be tween America and Japan looking to the early settlement of war-provoking differ ences between them. After castigating Japan, the Prime Min ister declared: Every effort will be made to secure a peaceful settlement. The United States are laboring with infinite patience to arrive at a fair and amicable settlement which will give Japan the utmost reassur ance for her interests. We earnestly hope these negotiations will suc ceed. But this, I must say, that if these hopes should fail we shall, of course, range ourselves unhesitatingly at the side of the United States. These words give rise to two basic ques tions: (a) What are Japan's legitimate interests which America would acknowl edge as such, and (b) what could be the motives and justification of America to satisfy those interests? I

Science, applications, and regulation

Science, applications, and regulation

Japanese Energy Security Revisited

Facing the surge of “resource nationalism” in energy-producing countries and the rapid growth of energy demand in China and India, the Japanese government has decided to play an active role in securing its energy import, which decision seems to have received the solid support of the people. Effective support by the government to business, needless to say, is welcomed. However, experience teaches that excessive intervention in energy procurement by non-business sectors would do no good and a lot of harm for Japan's stable energy supply in the future. Furthermore, foreseeing a future energy balance in Japan, the country should refrain from engaging in the so-called “scramble for energy” occurring globally. This paper sets out in detail the argument that it is in Japan's best interests to eliminate to as great an extent as possible any political dimension from an energy product such as oil in order to reduce its importance as a strategic commodity and strengthen its characteristics as a market commodity.

日本学者F.V.ディキンズの誕生

Frederick Victor Dickins (1838-1915) is one of the early visitors to Japan during the last days of the Tokugawa regime. Unlike Ernest Satow or William Aston who came over to Japan as government officials, Dickins landed in Yokohama as an assistant surgeon on HMS Euryalus in 1863. He remained there until 1866 and during the time he became much impressed with Japan and made such remarkable progress in the Japanese language as to translate Hyakunin Isshu into English.Dickins had been a close friend to Satow and contributed to his A Handbook for Travellers in Central and Northern Japan (1881). Their friendship which appears to have started in the 1860s in Japan continued until Dickins' death in 1915. He also became acquainted with Kumagusu Minakata, a learned folklorist, who resided in London during the 1890s. He most likely assisted Dickins with translating work including Hojoki. Their contact continued even after Kumagusu went back to Japan in 1900.The purpose of this paper is to evaluate Dickins as one of the Japanologists by tracing his early days in Yokohama. I focused on this period because his deep interest in Japan was fostered then.First I tried identifying the temple where Dickins frequented for language teachers and informants. Evidently, this temple is the one mentioned in A Diplomat in Japan (1921) by Satow and Memories by Lord Rededale (1915) by Mitford. Dickins wrote to Satow that 'The old priest there in the sixties was a great chum of mine & many, many delightful hours I spent with him'. Secondly I analyzed two of his articles entitled 'Hints to Students of the Japanese Language' which Dickins wrote after learning Japanese in 13 months and 'The Temples of Kamakura near Yokohama in Japan' written after about two years in Yokohama. Both articles show Dickins' wide range of interest in the Japanese language, literature, history and culture. The final discussion is on the significance of the translation of Hyakunin Isshu, the first translation ever made from Japanese literature into English.

What's the Difference? Comparison of American and Japanese Medical Practice

Medical systems in the USA such as EBM., DRG., Informed Consent and Second Opinion have already been introduced into the Japanese medical system. However, some of these systems have met resistance from a part of the population due to the differences of social structures, morals and customs between the two countries. Briefly, I described the medical education and licensure, the private practice and "open hospital system" of the USA. The following 4 topics which drew great interest in Japan will be discussed. 1) CEREBRAL DEATH AND BIOETHICS: Cerebral death has been restrictively accepted as human death since the 1980's only in terms of terminal cares in clinical medicine. The rather simplified current neurological criteria for death are approved in the USA. In order for an organ transplant to take place, a potential donor must be diagnosed as brain dead. However, Japanese society has not accepted the concept of cerebral death completely because of an accident in the 1960's where an organ was improperly removed when the donor who was not in the state of brain death. Recently, more people in Japan are showing interest in Dignity and Euthanasia from the point of view of "Right to die". 2) MALPRACTICE AND LITIGATION: "To err is human" was introduced by the Institute of Medicine for Risk Management. Accidental deaths of patients under medical care ranks No.8 in total number of deaths in the USA. There are 100,000 malpractice cases in the "Lawsuit Society" of America, which is 100 times that of Japan. Furthermore, the legal fees and insurance premiums are extremely high in the US as opposed to very low in Japan. 3) HEALTH CARE INSURANCE: To reduce medical costs, the insurance companies introduced "Competitive Managed Care" which resulted in the formation of "Health Maintenance Organizations" (HMO). Furthermore, when you compare the two countries in respect to those who have health insurance, 44 million in the USA carry no health insurance, whereas in Japan, the government cover for everybody's health insurance. 4) DISCLOSURES IN THE USA: Medical bills and statements are sent to all patients. Maintenance records belong to the patient. The Medical Board discloses those physicians who are facing disciplinary action.

The Yomiuri Project and Its Results

In 2006 the Yomiuri Shimbun, the largest daily paper in Japan, completed a year-long campaign to clarify Japanese leaders' responsibility for World War II. Such an undertaking is rare in Japan. The campaign raised five questions: Why did Japan extend the lines of battle? Why did Japan go to war with the United States in spite of the extremely slim prospects for victory? What foolishness caused the Japanese military to employ suicide aircraft attacks? Were sufficient efforts made to bring the war to an end? And, what problems were there with the International Military Tribunal for the Far East? Our project team suggested answers to these questions and clarified who should be held responsible for the war. Throughout the project, we criticized Japan's brutal militarism. At the same time, we made clear our view that those leaders who initiated the war betrayed Japan's national interest. I believe that this project will be a cornerstone for future honest dialogue between Japan and its neighbors. Key words: Japan, World War II, history of East Asia Introduction: The Yomiuri Project The Yomiuri Shimbun, with a circulation of 10 million, is the largest daily paper in Japan. It is also known for its conservative political position. So it was a great surprise for both rightists and leftists that we started in August 2005 a year-long campaign to clarify Japanese leaders' responsibility for World War II. We finished our project in August 2006. Based on those newspaper articles, we published a pair of Japanese-language books. We have also published an English version, a book entitled From Marco Polo Bridge to Pearl Harbor: Who Was Responsible? The Chinese version of the book is scheduled to be published by the end of 2007. Some people say that Yomiuri has shifted left from its traditional position at right of center in terms of the history issue. However, if you check our editorials over the past ten years carefully, you will realize that our basic position on the history issue has not changed. Over this time we have raised many questions about the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, also known as the Tokyo Tribunal. At the same time, we have consistently criticized Japanese militarism. The following article is a typical example. Japan should calmly scrutinize the regrettable aspects of its history. Criticism of the Tokyo Tribunal should not lead to a theory that accepts Japan's wartime aggression in East Asia or to the revival of the historical view that the Emperor is a living god who should rule the nation based on Shintoism. For example, the decision to annex Korea was legal from Japan's standpoint based on the international situation at that time, the region's historical background and the approval granted by other major powers. But it is also a fact that for the Korean people, the annexation was forced upon them under the threat of Japanese military power. As for China, Japan must accept the fact that its actions there, on the whole, constituted an act of aggression, although this could certainly be debated in a number of specific cases. The war Japan waged against the United States, Britain and the Netherlands in Asia eventually resulted in independence for the Asian nations, although Japan did not start the war solely to gain their independence. Despite these facts, looking at Japan as the sole villain is too biased a viewpoint from which to judge Japan's history.1 The Five Questions and Answers Our most recent project, though, has been to criticize those Japanese leaders who caused the war. The Yomiuri Shimbun's campaign was an initiative of our editor-in-chief, Watanabe Tsuneo. Having survived the war as a private, he was struck by how cruel and inhuman Japanese militarism was. He still cannot erase the hatred he feels toward those military leaders who dragged our nation into a series of disastrous wars. He is now 80 years old. …