There continues to be controversy over whether or not the Japanese Imperial army induced residents of Okinawa to commit suicide after the Americans invaded at the end of World War II. This week, NHK will broadcast a documentary featuring rare interviews with two brothers who survived the invasion after killing members of their own family.
"Shudan Jiketsu Aru Kyodai no Kuno" ("The Anguish of Brothers Involved in Group Suicide"; NHK-G, Mon., 10:45 p.m.) relates how the tragedy unfolded on Tokashiki Island, which is part of the Okinawan archipelago. More than 300 people died during the invasion, and two brothers describe how, as a "last resort," they killed the other members of their family, but survived themselves. After the war, they went their separate ways and never saw each other again. The documentary traces their memories back to that horrible day.
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