Japan and Reconciliation in Post-war Asia The Murayama Statement and Its Implications

Taking a comparative approach and bringing together perspectives from Japan, China, Korea, and Taiwan, this volume considers former Japanese prime minister Tomiichi Murayama's 1995 apology statement, the height of Japan's post-war apology, and examines its implications for memory, international relations, and reconciliation in Asia.

Kazuhiko Togo is a professor of International Politics and director of the Institute for World Affairs at Kyoto Sangyo University. He retired from the Japanese Foreign Ministry in 2002 as ambassador to the Netherlands. Since then, he has taught extensively at universities abroad. His recent publication include Japan's Foreign Policy 1945-2009 and East Asia's Haunted Present (co-edited with Tsuyoshi Hasegawa).

'Hopelessness about Japan's reconciliation over history with its neighbors is best addressed not by wishful thinking but by refocusing on the Murayama Statement of 1995. This important apology was underappreciated by China and South Korea and also denounced by many Japanese conservatives. Yet, this carefully presented book shows that it is a genuine apology, which could serve as a building block for greater trust. Kazuhiko Togo combines diplomatic insight and scholarly analysis in his clear overview and balanced coverage of the view from Japan. The other authors follow a similar model in detailing the reception the Murayama Statement received. With the right range of topics, this book points to the statement's possible future implications. To realize them requires taking seriously the search for common ground, something unlikely to occur if the Murayama Statement continues to be dismissed. This book not only fills a gap in coverage of the critical decade for historical memory of the 1990s, but also serves as a wake-up call for those interested in understanding and altering the course of international relations in East Asia.' - Gilbert Rozman, Musgrave Professor of Sociology, Princeton University, USA