Japanese scholar reveals how Japan claimed the Diaoyu Islands
- By Zhang Lulu
0 Comment(s)
Print
E-mail China.org.cn, November 15, 2013
1895: Diaoyu Islands ceded to Japan in the First Sino-Japanese War
China was defeated in the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895) and was forced to sign the Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895, which stipulated the cession of Taiwan and its affiliated islands to Japan. The Diaoyu Islands, considered as appertaining to or belonging to the island of Taiwan, were then occupied by Japan, but were not directly referred to in the Treaty.
After Japan's defeat in the second World War, the Potsdam Declaration signed in 1945 stated that "Japanese sovereignty shall be limited to the islands of Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, Shikoku and such minor islands as we determine", here "we" referring to the victors in the WWII. Therefore China's sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands was confirmed.
The United States occupied Okinawa prefecture after 1945, and used the Diaoyu Islands as target practice for trainee bomber crews. "China should have protested to the United States then," Murata said.
As to the Treaty of San Francisco signed in 1951 between Japan and some of the Allied Powers, Professor Murata pointed out that China did not sign the treaty. The treaty put the Ryukyu Islands under the administration of the United States, and this has since been used by Japan as evidence that the Diaoyu Islands were part of the Ryukyu Islands.
Bring the real history to light
Murata's book, though fairly well received by ordinary readers, has not been seriously reviewed in Japan so far. Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to Murata, "completely ignored the book."
When asked what he thought about most when writing this book, Murata said, "To bring the real history to light. Many documents have been misused to serve national or individual interests."
Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)