From: lor@cbnewsk.cb.att.com (edward.lor)
Subject: An open letter to the Emperor Akihito of Japan
Organization: AT&T
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 1992 15:17:14 GMT


Dear friends:

As you may know from the news media, Emperor Akihito is
planning a visit to China later this year.  Historically, this will
be the first visit of a Japanese Emperor to China.  Incidentally,
this year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of
diplomatic relation between the two countries.  Thus Akihito's visit
no doubt will be one of the most significant events in the history
of Sino-Japanese relation.

It is time to let our voice be heard, otherwise our silence will
be interpreted as consent to Japan's irresponsible attitude
toward the crime she did to our country during the Sino-Japanese War.
In order to urge Emperor Akihito to "take positive actions to put the
Sino-Japanese relationship in the proper context," we have drafted 
an open letter to the Emperor, which we have enclosed a copy for your
perusal.

If you agree to the content of this open letter, please endorse 
it as an individual or an organization and e-mail it back to me.

For further information, please contact Edward Lor at 
lor@mtdcr.att.com.
 
New Jersey Hong Kong Network

*******************************************************************
 
Your Majesty:

As you contemplate the first visit by a Japanese Emperor to China,
we sincerely hope that you would keep in mind the historical
perspective of the Sino-Japanese relationship.

Japan's unprovoked invasion of China claimed as many as 15 million
lives and caused irreparable suffering to many millions more.
In the Rape of Nanking alone, three hundred thousand Chinese were
tortured and mass executed by the Japanese Army, in addition to
rampant raping, looting, and burning of the city.  Yet, Japan has
never expressed remorse, let alone apologized to China, for the
crimes and atrocities she committed.

The world have not forgotten the atrocities committed by the Japanese
soldiers in Asia from 1931-45, and Chinese all over the world are
still demanding that the Japanese government handle this tragic history
in a reponsible and honorable way.

With regard to your contemplated visit to China, we strongly request
that you

(1) formally apologize to China for the war crimes committed
    by Japan, including the establishment of wartime-brothels,
(2) begin a thorough review of Japan's school textbooks to
    ensure that the coverage of the Sino-Japanese war is presented
    in a truthful way,
(3) visit the site of the Rape of Nanking and pay respect to the
    victims, and
(4) discuss appropriate compensation for Japan's war crimes in
    China.

We sincerely urge Your Majesty to lead your country to examine,
acknowledge, and compensate for Japan's war crimes.  This not only
will help repair the broken friendship between Japan and her
neighbors, but also will serve as a reminder to the Japanese people
and potential aggressors in this world of the horrors of war.
Unless these positive actions are taken to show Japan's sincere
remorse for the inhumane suffering inflicted upon her neighbors
during the invasions, and to demonstrate a genuine commitment
to prevent future aggression, Japan will never be truly regarded as
a respectable power by nations around the world.


The undersigned are organizations or individuals around the world:

New Jersey Hong Kong Network


Newsgroups: soc.culture.china