Before you read the news release, however, about the planned upcoming rally in response, please read John "End War" Walsh's insightful background exposing "US Goading Japan into Confrontation With China: Will Japan Take the Bait?" published a few days ago at Anti-war.com, Counterpunch, Information Clearing House and several other anti-war sites. With all the imperial wars that have been launched and are being launched by the US in the Mid-east, we often forget about the US-announced "China Pivot" occurring on the other side of the world. Please help spread the information of the underlying issues as well as notice about this upcoming rally in NYC on Feb 19th, a real chance to demonstrate against the emerging militarism of Japan's Prime Minister Abe. If your peace group wants to join the rally and/or endorse their effort, please contact Dr. Chang directly whose contact info is at the bottom of the news release.
News Release (February 14, 2013, Manhattan, NY)
for
Rally Against Resurgence of Japanese Militarism
A group of more than 60 different civil organizations united under the "Allianceagainst the Resurgence of Japanese Militarism" is organizing a rally to coincide with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to the U.S. to meet with President Obama. Abe is known as a right-wing extremist who has been trying to rewrite WWII history, advocate revising Japan's peace-abiding constitution, and revive once again an imperial, expansionistic Japan.
Sixty-seven years have elapsed since the end of WWII. Yet the Japanese government still has not officially acknowledged and apologized for the massive, inhumane atrocities they inflicted all over Asia. Instead they try to deny that these atrocities ever occurred. They have also rewritten their textbooks. Their leaders, including Abe, regularly pay tribute at the Yasukuni Shrine, where 14 convicted and executed WWII Class A War Criminals are enshrined. Their actions are completely opposite to what the German government has done post-WWII.
An example of Japan's expansionistic policy is its actions trying to steal China'sDiaoyu Islands (known as Senkaku Islands by Japan), contrary to the 1943 Cairo Declaration, the 1945 Potsdam Declaration, and the 1945 Japanese Instrument of Surrender. Recent events could very easily lead to an elevated war involving not only China and Japan, but also the U.S. Furthermore, the Diaoyu Islands dispute is just the tip of the iceberg revealing the Japanese militarism and expansionism that are damaging the welfare of all countries in Asia and the U.S. as well as threatening world peace.
The U.S.'s complicity in the Diaoyu Islands issue encourages Japan's militarism. In spite of ample historical, geographical, and legal evidence showing that the Diaoyu Islands have been part of China's Taiwan Province for several centuries, the U.S. in 1952-53 unilaterally and illegally included the Diaoyu Islands as part of the Ryukyu Islands under the administrative control of the UN (with the U.S. as the administrator); this administrative control was handed over to Japan in 1972. TheU.S. is also adopting an inconsistent and dangerous policy claiming the sovereignty of the Diaoyu Islands is unsettled, but yet they are under the protection of Japan-U.S. Security Treaty. As Americans, we don't want the U.S. to be dragged byJapan, a country that bombed Pearl Harbor, into a far-away war with no moral or legal justification to be involved, or even worse, to goad Japan into such a war
Event: Rally against Resurgence of Japanese MilitarismEvent Date: Tuesday, February 19, 2013, 11:00 AM -- 1:30 PM
Event Venue: Japanese Consulate, 299 Park Ave.(between 48th St. and 49th St.), NYC
Objectives:
1.Japan should acknowledge and apologize for its massive and inhumane WWII atrocities
2.Japan should stop its resurgence of Japanese militarism and its expansionistic policy
3. The U.S. should stop its complicity and adopt a truly neutral policy toward the Diaoyu Islands
All peace-loving people: Join us at this rally. Remember Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s words, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."
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