Letter: China-Japan tension

Instead of blaming China’s lack of press freedom, the author of “China shrugs off world opinion in bullying Japan” (The Jakarta Post, Oct. 1) should really look at the history and the heinous crimes Japan committed in China starting in late 1890 and through World War II.

Maybe the author would then understand why the dispute — started by Japanese imperialists who failed to return the land taken from China in the 1890s after Japan had lost World War II — creates such high emotions in China.

Let’s not forget it is the Japanese who forcibly patrolled the disputed area with heavily armored patrol boats — without consulting with other parties involved in the dispute. It is their heavy handed approach of chasing off anyone who dared to approach the disputed area that caused this incident.

If the Japanese continue to ignore their past mistakes and continue to claim sovereignty over disputed islands, China will continue to respond strongly because of the historical context.

If Japan wants all parties to behave civilly and have diplomatic discussions, perhaps they should do their part to correct previous mistakes and return the disputed area to the Chinese. I challenge the Japanese “free” media to support this resolution which is the right thing to do, but will be hugely unpopular among the Japanese.

Richard
Jakarta