Japan air force chief sacked over WWII comments

TOKYO (AFP) - Japan sacked its air force chief Friday after he wrote an essay in which he denied the country was an aggressor in World War II, a stance likely to anger its Asian neighbours.
China, the two Koreas and other Asian nations still have painful memories of Japan’s aggression and colonial rule, and there had been speculation that General Toshio Tamogami’s comments could strain relations.
“What he said was inappropriate for an air chief of staff as it differs from the government’s position. He should not remain in the job,” Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada told a news conference announcing his dismissal. Prime Minister Taro Aso, also known for his conservative views on history, told reporters: “Even if he expressed it personally, it is inappropriate.”
Tamogami, chief of staff of Japan’s Air Self-Defence Force, offered the opinion in an essay on the theme of “true views of modern history.”
The General wrote, “Even now, there are many people who think that our country’s ‘aggression’ caused unbearable suffering to the countries of Asia during the Greater East Asia War.”
“But we need to realise that many Asian countries take a positive view of the Greater East Asia War,” Tamogami said, according to the essay’s English version. “It is certainly a false accusation to say that our country was an aggressor nation.”
The Greater East Asia War was a term used by Japan to describe the conflict in the Asia-Pacific theatre, emphasising that it involved Asian nations seeking independence from the Western powers. The thesis runs counter to a 1995 statement issued by then prime minister Tomiichi Murayama and endorsed by his successors which apologised for Japan’s past aggression and colonial rule in Asia. When Aso took office in September, he pledged to stand by the apology. The Murayama statement acknowledged that Japan through its colonial rule and aggression “caused tremendous damage and suffering to the people of many countries, particularly to those of Asian nations.”