Zhu Rongji, who was former vice premier of the mainland, was harassed by the Japanese people during a visit to Japan, and the Japanese people asked Zhu Rongji, "When will Japan apologize?"
How did Zhu Rongji answer?
In mid-October 2000, Zhu Rongji went to Japan for a six-day visit, and one of the arrangements was for a direct dialogue with more than 100 viewers on Japanese television.
Several Japanese people mentioned the issue of Japan's aggression against China, and one of them said to Zhu Rongji: "I have a feeling of guilt for this period of history between the two countries, but every time the heads of state of the two countries meet, China demands that Japan apologize and atone for its sins.
This is a tricky question, and if you don't answer it well, it can easily cause negative effects.
How did Zhu Rongji resolve this diplomatic crisis?
cause
Japan invaded China and committed heinous crimes, such as the Nanjing Massacre, in which nearly 300,000 compatriots on the mainland died tragically and countless women and children were abused by the Japanese army. The Japanese army also forcibly robbed mainland women to serve as "comfort women" in the army.
Japan has also established a number of research bases on the mainland, and the bacteria and results of its research have been applied to the people of the mainland. For example, they were caught in the gas chambers and tortured to death. In addition, Japan has also killed people on the mainland.
The list of crimes committed by Japan is too numerous to mention, so why is Japan still unwilling to face up to this period of history and sincerely apologize to the mainland?
Some experts and scholars have done research and put forward three reasons.
The first point is Japan's sense of responsibility. For a long time, the emperor was at the top of all values in Japan, and for the Japanese, the emperor's orders must be obeyed unconditionally, and whether they are right or not has never been a question they should think about.
In the perception of the Japanese, they are loyal and responsible to the emperor and conscientiously carry out all the emperor's orders, and few people will have the idea of being responsible for their actions. As long as they do what the emperor asks, they are responsible, and as for what kind of result they cause, it has nothing to do with them, and they are not responsible for it.
This has led to a deviation in the thinking and perception of the Japanese.
The records of the Tokyo trial of that year show that the Japanese war criminals did not know why they were waging war or what they were waging it for, but they started it anyway at the emperor's behest.
Since the Japanese do not know why they want to wage war against China, let alone make them realize that the essence of the war of aggression against China is a war of aggression, which is a wrong thing?
Therefore, for some Japanese, morality and responsibility are all false, and they only have allegiance to the emperor.
The second point is the Japanese consciousness of "Muqiang".
Japan has also been opened by Western countries by violent means, which has made Japan see the strength of Western countries, and made the Japanese rulers have a sense of "Mu Qiang", but the Japanese understand "Mu Qiang" is not the same as everyone understands.
In the eyes of the Japanese, this world is dominated by the strong, and bullying the weak by the strong is a manifestation of strength. This was also one of the reasons why Japan killed the people of the mainland at that time, because in Japan's view, China was too weak at that time, and Japan took pleasure in humiliating and killing us.
Combined with Japan's lack of responsibility and morality, this makes the Japanese think that the invasion of the mainland was not a war, but a demonstration of their strength as a strong man, and according to Japan's logic, they are not wrong, and it is even more impossible for Japan to sincerely admit its mistakes and apologize.
The third point is the character of the Japanese who "shake the pot".
During World War II, many Japanese said that if they did not join the war, they would be disliked by other countries.
After Japan conceded defeat and surrendered, some low-ranking war criminals said that they were coerced by their superiors, while high-ranking war criminals said that "this was the emperor's instructions." Summarize the sentence "it's none of my business" and push the responsibility cleanly.
In addition, now that Japan's militarism is revival, the history of the war of aggression against China is basically absent from Japanese textbooks, so that young Japanese do not understand this history at all, and when faced with the condemnation of the international community and the mainland, they will naturally feel that they are not wrong.
How can the younger generation of Japanese people sincerely apologize to the mainland because they have not studied correct history since they were young?
It is an ironclad fact that Japan launched a war of aggression against China, and there are not only written materials, but also photographic materials. Japan has committed heinous crimes in China and brutally murdered thousands of Chinese people, a history that Japan will never be able to erase.
response
Zhu Rongji was too angry when he heard the Japanese people's questions, and he replied in a calm tone: "I want to remind you that there has never been an apology to the Chinese people in all official documents in Japan."
Speaking with historical facts, Zhu Rongji said: Japanese Prime Minister Murayama only expressed his apologies to the Asian people in general terms in 1995, but he never apologized to the Chinese people in all official Japanese documents. Zhu Rongji said: "It cannot be said that China is endlessly demanding an apology from Japan. It's your own business to apologize or not, but we want you to think about it."
Zhu Rongji's meaning is very clear: Japan's so-called apology is not sincere, and it simply says a few words of apology, but in fact it refuses to admit it. Japan also used the mainland's demand for an apology to stir up the emotions of the Japanese people and try to sow discord.
It is appropriate to apologize for what you did wrong. However, Japan's behavior of not apologizing, trying to cover up the truth, and trying to pour dirty water on us is simply outrageous.
Later, Zhu Rongji also said that no one should forget history, and for the Chinese and Japanese peoples, concealing, downplaying, and tampering with history is a wrong act, and it will not do any good to Sino-Japanese exchanges.
He also reminded some forces in Japan that they should draw lessons from history and not hurt the feelings of the people, so that the friendship between China and Japan can last forever from generation to generation.
Zhu Rongji's humble and arrogant answer won applause from the audience and defused this diplomatic crisis.
Resources:
[1] Zhongqing Online, "Zhu Rongji Answers Japanese People's Questions, 'It Can't Be Said that China Endlessly Demands Japan's Apology'", 20091222
[2] The Paper, "Why Are the Japanese Unwilling to Admit the Crime of Aggression against China?" 20230815