by Pino Cazzaniga

Fumio Kyuma, who held the Defence portfolio, maintained that the two atomic bombs had served to prevent a Soviet invasion that would have led to the break-up of Japan. Prime Minister Abe sought in vain to defend his statements.

Tokyo (AsiaNews) – The Japanese Defence Minister, Fumio Kyuma, has stepped down after being overwhelmed by the protests that followed his statement about the “inevitability” of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the price to pay to avert the break-up of the country that would have followed a predictable Soviet invasion.

The controversy erupted on 30 June during a conference held at a university in Kashiwa, near Tokyo, when the minister affirmed that the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan was an inevitable military action to prevent its break-up. In particular, in his view, Nagasaki had been shelled with an atomic bomb on 9 August 1945 to force Japan to surrender immediately and thus to prevent the Soviet Union from occupying Hokkaido Island. This preoccupation would explain the choice of the atomic strategy adopted by the American President Harry Truman. Kyuma said: “Fortunately, Hokkaido was not occupied otherwise it would have become the territory of the Soviet Union.” And he added: “I nurse no rancour against the United States.”

The history of the last week of the war appears to bear him out. Two days after “Little Boy” (the first atomic bomb) was dropped on Hiroshima, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan and its military immediately occupied a group of Japanese islands a few dozen kilometers north of Hokkaido.

This strategy, described by Kyuma as “inevitable” and “fortunate” came at the price of the annihilation of 140,000 civilians in Hiroshima and 74,000 in Nagasaki. Politicians and citizens reacted with indignation. “Senseless and criminal observations” said the novelist and Nobel Laureate, Kenzaburo Oe, adding that an MP, whichever current he belongs to, should always be criticized for talking about atomic bombs and should be seriously committed to peace.

“The use of nuclear arms causes the indiscriminate massacre of ordinary citizens and cannot be justified for any reason whatever,” said the mayor of Nagasaki, Tomihisa Taue. Hirotami Yamada, secretary-general of the Association of Survivors of the Atomic Bomb, said: “The declaration (of Kyuma) is immoral. The prime minister should sack him immediately.”

Abe, however, defended him, saying: “To me it seems that (the minister) was presenting the mentality of the United States at the time.” But the opposition was quick to point out the superficiality of the premier’s words. “It is absolutely unacceptable that a minister should make such comments,” said Naoko Kan, vice-president of the Democractic Party of Japan. Kazuo Shii, secretary of the Communist Party, said: “(Kyuma) is not ideal as minister of a nation that has been struck by atomic bombs.”

The most insidious attack on Abe came from Ichiro Ozawa, president of the Democratic Party of Japan, held by many to be the most qualified politician. During a face-to-face debate organized by the “National Congress for Japan of the 21st Century”, he asked Abe whether he intended to ask for the official apologies of the United States for the atomic bombings. The premier tried to dodge the attack, saying: “We must do our best to abolish nuclear weapons instead of wasting energy asking the United States for apologies.” In reality, Japan cannot ask for the apologies of a nation that for decades has been protecting it with a nuclear umbrella.

At first, the massive criticisms appeared not to have shaken the imprudent minister. The following day, in a television programme, he maintained that he would not resign for a comment that he did not believe it was necessary to amend. But a few hours later, during a conference held in Shimabara, in Nagasaki, his electoral district, Kyuma changed his tune: “If my comment gave the impression that I do not take the suffering of victims of the atomic bombs seriously, then I must apologise.” Before the conference, the secretary of the LDP, Hidenao Nakagawa, had telephoned him, exhorting him to take back what he had said.

A survey in Kyodo in the lead-up to 29 July elections for the renewal of the Senate, may have contributed to the minister’s decision to quit. The survey revealed that only 32% of Japanese backed Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The government had lost 1.5% compared to the previous week.

• Japan
• usa
• ussr
• bomb
• atomic
• hiroshima
• nagasaki
• war
• resignation
• kyuma