Japanese groups hold rally to mark Lugou Bridge Incident
Print Edition
JAPANESE civil groups held a rally yesterday to commemorate the 82nd anniversary of the Lugou Bridge Incident, calling on people not to forget history, oppose the war and enhance the friendship between Japan and China.
It was 82 years ago, on July 7, 1937, that Japanese soldiers attacked Chinese forces at the Lugou Bridge, also known as the Marco Polo Bridge, marking the beginning of Japan’s full-scale invasion of China and eight-year atrocities perpetrated by Japanese army on Chinese civilians.
The rally was held in Saitama Prefecture, not far from the capital of Tokyo. Organizers, including Japan-China Friendship August 15 Association and other groups, have held the rally for 30 years.
“Now, the only member of our group who has actually lived through the war is 97-year-old Tomohiro Taniguchi,” Kunio Takano, one of the organizers, said in a speech.
Nobuo Okimatsu, a 94-year-old member of Japan-China Friendship August 15 Association, told reporters, “Although I have not been to China, I have been studying the history of the war.”
He showed a monthly magazine called August 15, the day of Japan’s unconditional surrender in 1945.
President of the Kanto Japan-China Peace and Friendship Association Hisao Shintaku said that only about 20 percent of Japanese people know the truth about the history of Japan’s war of aggression against China. “We must think hard about how to pass on the truth of history to the next generation,” he said.
Yang Yu, minister-counselor of the Chinese embassy in Japan, said that the basis of friendly exchanges between China and Japan lies in the people. China and Japan are neighbors. History fully proves that the two countries “benefit from peace and lose from confrontation.”
The healthy and stable development of bilateral relations not only serves the interests of the two peoples, but also contributes to peace, stability, prosperity and development of Northeast Asia and the world at large, he added.
Atsushi Koketsu, professor of Japan’s Meiji University, said that while the upper house election is coming up, he would like to call on people to guard Japan’s pacifist constitution.
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