In Japan, the miseries of war, air raids, and atomic bombs are often discussed, while other aspects, particularly the memory of war crimes, have been far less explored.
Many Japanese people may be familiar with the daihonéi happyou, or forced military propaganda. However, what is less well-known is the censorship system imposed by the occupation forces after the war, as well as Japan's ranking of 67 out of 180 in the 2018 World Press Freedom Index (and 72nd the previous year).
That's why I would like to draw attention to this aspect of our history. I highly recommend "Hiroshima and Nagasaki Censored", a thought-provoking work by poet Kiyoko Horiba, which was published this year by Meiji Gakuin University's International Peace Research Institute. Please share this important work with as many people as possible.
- Hiroshima and Nagasaki Censored by Kiyoko Horiba
Direct Access
- to start reading in English (p. 50, PDF format)
- to start reading in Japanese (p. 4, PDF format)
