Tag - wwii

 
 

WWII

JAPAN / History
Aug 5, 2015
How The Japan Times reported the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
This newspaper described the ebb and flow of the war in considerable detail. Censorship was in operation, but the Nippon Times offered voluminous coverage in English based on statements by the Imperial authorities, reports by vernacular Japanese newspapers and foreign news agency dispatches, archival...
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 5, 2015
Hiroshima after 70 years
If the war had not been brought to an end in August 1945 with the atomic bombings, many Japanese who went on to see the revival of Japan would not have survived.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Aug 5, 2015
Mount Koya sites exemplify 'parallel universe' where war criminals are martyrs
Japanese leaders who continue to condone the country's wartime actions inhabit a 'parallel universe' whose version of WWII history is at odds with the rest of the world's.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO
Aug 5, 2015
Abe, offer a WWII apology alluding to the shame the West should share
The prime minister should explain to the world that he is sorry for the implications of Japan's warmongering past but rather glad that Japan avoided the fate of its neighbors by treading the imperial path.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 5, 2015
A more complex portrayal of Emperor Hirohito
Emperor Hirohito, who is posthumously known as Emperor Showa, had a procession of public images during his long reign from 1926 to 1989 — though none were quite accurate.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 4, 2015
Abe losing to his demons
On the 70th anniversary of Japan's defeat and surrender, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has a wonderful opportunity to set a new path for Japan, for Asia and the world. But will he take it?
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 3, 2015
Taiwan school textbook row highlights antipathy to 'one China'
Protests in Taiwan over textbook revisions that students say aim to brainwash them into accepting a "one China" view of history underscore the island's growing sense of independence from its vast neighbor and geopolitical foe.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Aug 1, 2015
The top-secret flights that ended the war
Seventy years after the atomic bombings, time stands still on the Pacific island of Tinian.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Aug 1, 2015
Exploring Japan's military past
History buffs in Japan can also visit a variety of sites related to this country's military past. In addition to the enormous Yushukan Museum on the grounds of the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward (www.yasukuni.or.jp/english/yushukan), numerous spots with historical significance can be found within...
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Aug 1, 2015
Pictures of World War II Imperial shelter released to public for first time in 50 years
The Imperial Household Agency on Saturday released the first images in half a century of an air-raid shelter where Emperor Hirohito and his ministers made some of Japan's most momentous decisions during World War II.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Aug 1, 2015
Master recording of Hirohito's war-end speech released in digital form
A recording of Emperor Hirohito's voice declaring Japan's surrender in World War II has been brought back to life after 70 years, in a previously unavailable, higher quality recording of the historic broadcast that was made available to the public Sunday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 30, 2015
Nation's political culture stands at major crossroads
Will Japan be dragged down by egocentric anti-intellectualism and suspension of judgment, or will a new civic culture turn the nation into a more mature democracy?
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 27, 2015
A crash course in wartime Japanese terminology for foreign demons
Ahead of the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, here's a look at the words, phrases and concepts that found wide usage in the fateful years leading up to 1945.
JAPAN / History
Jul 25, 2015
Winds of war: Japan's balloon bombs took the Pacific battle to American soil
In May 1945, a pastor from Bly, Oregon, led his wife and a group of children on a day trip near Klamath Falls. They were all looking forward to hours of fishing and picnicking in fine weather. Everyone got out of the car while the Rev. Archie Mitchell was parking along a remote logging road and unloading...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 25, 2015
Abe battles to prevent support slipping toward danger zone
Public opposition to defense bills, the Olympic stadium debacle and concerns about China force Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the offensive as his support slides.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 13, 2015
Zero fighter plane being prepped for first flight since WWII
Almost 70 years after it was flown by the Imperial Japanese Navy, a Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter plane is being prepared to once again take to the skies of Japan to mark the anniversary of the end of World War II.
JAPAN / History
Jul 11, 2015
Chiune Sugihara: man of conscience
Chiune Sugihara, Japanese consul in Kaunas, Lithuania, awoke on the morning of July 18, 1940, to a disturbing sight. He peered through the curtains of his bedroom window just before 6 a.m. Sugihara and his wife had been living in the consulate building since their arrival at the end of August 1939, just...
Japan Times
WORLD
Jul 7, 2015
Shot down over France in '40, now flyable, Spitfire to be auctioned for charity
A restored World War II Spitfire that was shot down over northern France in 1940 is expected to raise about $3 million for charity when it goes up for auction in London next week.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 6, 2015
China stresses 'nationalism' in war anniversary propaganda push
China plans to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II in Asia, and its fight against Japan, with a stream of movies, concerts, performances and exhibitions, officials said on Monday, in an effort to strengthen "nationalism and culture."
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 3, 2015
China and Japan are getting on better, but how long will it last?
Money and power are combining to create a tentative thaw in the relationship between Asia's two biggest economies.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past