Schools should teach the controversy in history  History lessons in school are not just about providing children with some sanitised version of national history. Instead they are about teaching points that are controversial or relevant to the modern world. Both of which is the case with the issue of comfort women and Japanese imperialist aggression. They must teach why these actions were wrong and why they are now controversial.  If a non-controversial history is taught which glosses over bad actions this may lead to real political results. In Japan there have regularly been suggestions that the constitution should be changed, and in particular that Article 9, the provision that renounces war should be amended or abolished. [1] If the Japanese are not taught about the actions that lead to this provision or are given a distorted view of it then the resulting change in perception would make altering the constitution much more likely. [2] Ultimately this may well be a case of those who ignore [or misrepresent] history are bound to repeat it.  [1] Martin, Craig, ‘Why Japan should amend its war-renouncing Article 9’, The Japan Times, 4 August 2012,   [2] Cooley, Aaron., ‘The Textbook Controversies in Japan: What History is Taught?’, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2003,