Nori's blog----Novels, Poems, Essays, from Japan

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Obama is a small city in Fukui-prefecture in Japan.

（Click here to know about Obama-City)
　　　　　　　　　　↓
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obama,_Fukui

It is a tiny quiet town facing the beautiful sea
of Wakasa-Bay and it has many beautiful Buddhism
temples as well as the beauty of nature. --It is
called “anoter NARA with the sea”.

The tiny city became famous since Mr.Barak Obama
appeared in US, for the simple reason the city has
the same name with him.
After Mr.Obama won the presidential election,
this quiet city facing the Sea of Japan excited
at the news their name has become the same with
the US president.

This morning, I watched the NHK news about the
inauguration of President Barak Obama in Wasshington D.C.

The long news showed us not only the scenes from
Washington D.C, but also people's voices about the
new president.

The news reported the voice of Japanese people
about President Obama from various parts of Japan.
For example, some Japanese in Osaka were rejoiced by
this inauguration, as usual.--Osakans like America.
But then, we were shown citizens of Obama city
who were interviewd by the TV crew on streets of
Obama-City.

They were rejoiced and said they were very glad with
the inauguration of a new president in the United
States whose name is same with their hometown.
However, two citizens who were interviewd by the
TV crew, in front of the TV camera, said they hope
President Obama will give supports to the efforts
for the Japanese abducted by North Korea will be
returned to Japan.

（Click here to know about North Korean abduction of Japanese)
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　↓
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korean_abductions_of_Japanese

Obama-City was a place where some Japanese were
abducted by North Koreans in the 1970s. They could
come back to Japan in 2002 after they were forced
to waste their valuable years of life in the
prison-state as instructors of Japanese for North
Korean soldiers, or spies, while their abduction
was kept secret. --It was after 2002 North Korean
dictator Kim Jong-Il acknowledged their crime--
abduction of multiple Japanese from Japan--and
apologized to the then Japanese prime minster Koizumi
who visited North Korea. There are, however, many
more Japanese who were abducted in Japan by Koreans
and missed after they were forced to live in North
Korea as instructors of Japanese for North Korean
soldiers and spies.

Bush administration was sympathetic to the family
of those kidnapped japanese and president Bush
expressed his anger to North Korea. Moreover,
president Bush even invited a mother of such
abducted Japanese, YOKOTA Megumi, who had been
abducted by North Korean operators on a street in
Japan in 1978, when she had been 13 years old.
President Bush, however, betrayed Japan after this
touching event. Under the treacherous dipolpmacy of
Rice and Hill, who conceded North Korea and ignored
the Japanese concern, Bush administration changed
US diplomacy to extremely pro-North Korean one
to obtain North Korean compromise in nuclear issue.

Under such diplomatic circumstance, the Japanese
are deeply concerned Obama administrarion may concede
more to North Korea than Bush administration did
and are wondering what policy Obama administration
start with North Korea.

I am one of them.
As well as the citizens of Obama-City who are concerned
about the American attitude towards North Korea, regardless
of the pleasure new president of the US has the same name
with their town, I am deeply concerned president Obama
may take more pro-North Korean policy than Mr.Bush
who betrayed the Japanese mother waiting for her daughter
30 years in Japan.

Nori

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Today is the 18th anniversary of the outbreak of
the GUlf War.

On the anniversary of this rather forgotten war
after the war of Iraq, I send you a part of a
thought-provoking article about the role of censor
in war, which is a memoir by a Japanese critic and
a historian.

It is a part of a memoir by late Mr.ETOH Jun, who was
a critic of modern Japanese literature and politics.

He was known for his unique research about the censorship
by the US Occupation in occupied Japan----He researched
extensively about the influence of American censorship in
occupied Japan on poetwar Japanese culture and politics.

With such unique viewpoint about the history of censorship
in Japan and the US, he reviewd the Gulf War from his proper
viewpoint on the role of censorship in war, right after the
Gulf War in 1991.

Following is a part of an article by a Japanese critic
who by chance heard an ex-official of the US government,
Dean Rusk, state his view on the role of censorship in
American wars.

You are urged to read this and think about the role of
censorship in American history.----America was not an
exceptinal state in its history of censorship.

-------------------------------------------------------------
(Memoir by late ETOH Jun)

Some may have recalled that there is censor in our world
during the Gulf War this year. Not a few young generation,
on the other hand, might have learnt that there is censor in
our world for the first time. Both the multinational(US) Army
and the Iraqis implemented very utter censor. As the result,
to our mystery, we are unaware exactly how many Iraqis this
war claimed. According to a certain faierly reliable source,
the war may have claimed 300 thousands Iraqi soldiers in Kuwait only.
On the other hand, the American casualities, which is supposed to be
hundreds officially, is uncertain, to tell the truth. Censor created such
image of clean war in which we cannot see the images of the dead.
The released images by the multinational Army, which we saw on
television, were made under the American control.
Seeing those images made by US, I was convinced that the US is doing
the war very seriously.

My memory is back to 11 years ago. In the spring of 1980, I was in America.
I was in America as a research fellow in the Wilson Center in Washington D.C.
I was sent there by the Japan Foundation to do research about the censor
US Occupation Army had done in Japan during the years US occupied Japan.
By chance, while I was staying there, a symposium on Vietnam War was held.
Neil Sheehan, an American journalist who had campaigned against the war
during the Vietnam War, was one of the research fellows who had been in the
Wilson Center at the time.
In contrast with the Gulf War this year, Vietnam War was a poignant war to
the United States. In addition, since the spring of 1980 was right after rescue
operation of the American hostages in Iran failed, the symposium was held in
the Wilson Center in a very depressing mood.

I must remind you of Dean Rusk here. Dean Rusk, the ex-secretary of the state
during the Vietnam War, had retired many years ago then.
He became a professor at Georgia University in Georgia State, which was his home.
He was invited to the symposium by the Wilson Center and came from Atlanta to
Washington D.C. by airplain to attend the symposium. He was not one of the
panelists nor speaker. I noticed an old man sitting silently in a corner of the floor.
When I noticed the man as being alike Dean Rusk, it was very Dean Rusk.
He was listening the panelers' debate silently.
As I am a foreigner, I was listening what Americans speak enthusiastically about
the Vietnam War silently as well, to learn about the issue.
Then, Mr.Rusk, the ex-secretary of the State, raised his arm at the end of the
symposium. He stated all who were there a very poignant comment.
“I could hear many valuable opinions here. I, however, think that we failed the war.
I guess you all agree to this point”.
The audience were silent. Mr.Rusk continued.
“Why did we fail the war? The reason was because we did not do censor even once
in the Vietnam War. In the past World War Ⅱ, we implemented a very hard censor
and won the war. But we did not do censor in the Vietnam War. As the result,
we could not get supports from the people in our own country. Imagine how the people,
who watch the images of their sons, boyfriends, or husbands, being murdered cruelly
by Vietcongs every day, would respond to our govenment's campaign to continue this war.
There's no reason people would accept it positively.
No government is capable to continue to fight and win the war under such midia
circumstances.”
When Mr.Rusk said as above, the audience were in complete silence. I was most
impressed by the sight Neil Sheehan, who was criticizing the war, did not rufute at all.
He was, on contrary, nodding with a solemn face to Mr.Rusk's words.

(from “A Personal Proposal of abolishing the Constitution 1946” by ETOH Jun:
SAPIO May.9, 1991, p.21
(translated by NISHIOKA Masanori--Note:The remark by Mr.Dean Rusk in this
translation above is my reverse translation from the original Japanese text.
As it is a reverse translation from what late Mr.Etoh recalled and wrote in Japanese,
Mr.Rusk's remark in my reverse translation above must differ from his original remark
there, which he spoke in English.)

------------------------------------------------------------------

It is dangerous many Americans are unaware that their
country has such history of censorship which was
invisible to the American public.

Jan. 17, 2009(Sat)

On the 18th anniversary of the
outbreak of the Gulf War

Nori

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References

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_War
(about the Gulf War)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Sheehan
（About Neil Sheehan)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dean_Rusk
(About Dean Rusk)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupation_of_Japan
(About the occupation of Japan including censorship by the
US occuapation)

http://www.froginawell.net/japan/2006/03/the-case-of-taiwa-shinron/
(About censorship in occupied Japan: Frog in a well)

http://www.faqs.org/abstracts/Health/Censorship-of-medical-journals-in-occupied-Japan-Censorship-of-the-atomic-bomb-casualty-reports-in-o.html
(About Censorship of medical journals in Japan)

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Today is the 18th anniversary of the outbreak of the Gulf War.

After the war of Iraq(2003), this war in 1991(the Gulf War)
seems to be rather forgotten. I recall the war, however, as a
more horrifying event I witnessed in my lofe, though I "witnessed"
the war through media--not as my real experience.

Among the many things I "witnessed" through media during the war,
I am most impressed by the image of the sea bird that was contaminated
by oil, whose image was at first explained as a victim of "Iraqi
environmental terrorism". It was told, at first, that the bird was
found at a certain sea shore of Saudi Arabia and that the bird was
standing in spilled oil after the Iraqi released oil to the Persian
Gulf.

It was found out, however, that the explanation was illogical
because the sea stream of Persian Gulf was not so fast as to
bring the spilled oil to Saudi Arabian sea shore if the oil had
been really released by the Iraqi in Kuwait. On contrary, it was
revealed later that the bird had been a victim of American air raid
that made oil flow into the sea.

I was appalled when I heard in a radio news that the report of the
sea bird outraged the public and there appeared even such opinion
as to say nuclear weapon may be used against Iraqi who commit such
environmental terrorism in the Western nations. It was appaling to
witness the public oipnion of "democratic" countires can be thus
easily misled to an emotional one to condone nuclear attack against
whatever nation, with a false caption given to a image of really
miserable bird.

Our democracy is always at the threat of propaganda with visual
propagandas. The Gulf War(1991) is a reminder "public opinion" in
democratic society can be misled with such fraud as the sea bird
standing in oil given a false comment--the Iraqis did it--to the
extent of supporting nuclear attack.

On the 18th anniversary of
the outbreak of the Gulf War

Nori

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