Regarding the June 7 editorial, "": As a student, I sang the national anthem "Kimigayo" and felt that I was a Japanese. I cannot agree with former Tokyo-area high school teacher Yuji Saruya's opinion and I wonder if he has contemplated the importance of the national anthem.
The national anthem makes us conscious of being Japanese and it connects Japanese people to each other. According to a newspaper report, Saruya said his conscience wouldn't let him sing the national anthem in view of Korean and Chinese students who had studied the history of Japan's modern war.
Yet, Korean and Chinese people are actually subjected to anti-Japanese instruction straightaway because of education policies in their countries. I think we Japanese tend to be too softhearted, so we have to get correct information and approach the question (of whether to stand and sing "Kimigayo" in front of the "Hinomaru" national flag ) from various angles.
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.