| 逾十一萬沖繩人卅日在宜野灣示威，抗議日本政府試圖修編教科書，修改二戰歷史。
（美聯社） | 逾十一萬沖繩人廿九日集結示威，抗議日本政府打算修改教科書中有關二次大戰末，日軍強迫當地人集體自殺，以免必須向美軍投降的史實。這是一九七二年美國將沖繩交還日本以來，當地規模最大的群眾集會。 日本歷史教科書記載，二次大戰即將結束時，日軍要求沖繩人以手榴彈集體自殺，以免淪為美軍的俘虜。日本政府去年十二月要求教科書出版商竄改這段史實。沖繩 縣知事仲井真弘多在宜野灣一處公園向示威民眾表示：「日軍曾經向沖繩人分發手榴彈，要求他們集體自殺的史實，不容湮滅。」 參加遊行的人士包括當地民眾與政界人士，另有大約五千人在沖繩附近的宮古島與石垣島示威呼應。這是美國一九七二年將沖繩交還日本以來，當地規模最大的示威。一九九五年，三名駐沖繩美軍輪暴一名當地女童後，曾有八萬五千人上街示威。 日軍強迫沖繩人自殺的敘述獲有歷史研究與大戰生還者及死難者遺族的佐證。史學界指出，日本政府曾經透過宣傳使沖繩人誤以為美軍將對他們施暴，為免淪為俘虜，他們最好集體自殺。 沖繩島戰役發生於一九四五年三月至六月，是太平洋戰爭中死傷最慘烈一役，因而促使美軍使用原子彈結束戰爭；此役也造成約十萬沖繩居民死亡，其中包括五百人自殺。 日本官方的一個小組負責審查新版教科書，得要求出版商修改歷史教科書的內容。日本中學的七種教科書將於明年推出。部分日本保守派人士近年來一再質疑日軍戰時暴行的歷史記載。但一名官員表示，日本文部省並無有關這項修改的即時計畫。 【2007/10/01 聯合報】
100, 000 Protest Over Japan Textbook
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: September 29, 2007 Filed at 10:31 p.m. ET TOKYO (AP) -- More than 100,000 people protested Saturday in southern Japan against the central government's order to modify school textbooks which say the country's army forced civilians to commit mass suicide at the end of World War II. Publishers of history textbooks were ordered in December to modify sections that said the Japanese army -- faced with an impending U.S. invasion in 1945 -- handed out grenades to residents in Okinawa and ordered them to kill themselves rather than surrender to the Americans. The amendment order came amid moves by Tokyo to soften brutal accounts of Japanese wartime conduct, but triggered immediate condemnation from residents and academics. About 110,000 residents and politicians attended Saturday's rallies in the prefecture (state) of Okinawa, said Yoshino Uetsu, one of the organizers. ''We cannot bury the fact that the Japanese military was involved in the mass suicide, taking into account of the general background and testimonies that hand grenades were delivered,'' Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima told a crowd gathered at a park in Ginowan City. Accounts of forced group suicides on Okinawa are backed by historical research, as well as testimonies from victims' relatives. Historians also say civilians were induced by government propaganda to believe U.S. soldiers would commit horrible atrocities and therefore killed themselves and their families to avoid capture. About 500 people committed suicide, according to civic group and media reports. In recent years, some academics have questioned whether the suicides were forced -- part of a general push by Japanese conservatives to soften criticism of Tokyo's wartime conduct. The bloody battle in Okinawa raged from late March through June 1945, leaving more than 200,000 civilians and soldiers dead, and speeding the collapse of Japan's defenses. The U.S. occupied Okinawa from the end of World War II until 1972. New textbooks for use in Japanese schools must be screened and approved by a government-appointed panel, which can order corrections of perceived historical inaccuracies. The publishers of seven textbooks slated for use in high schools next year had been asked to make relevant changes and submit them for approval. An official of the Education Ministry said Saturday that the ministry has no immediate plans concerning the amendment. She spoke on condition of anonymity, citing policy. Saturday's rally was the largest in Okinawa since the island was returned to Japan by the United States in 1972, Kyodo News agency said. In 1995, 85,000 people took part in a rally following the 1995 rape of a schoolgirl there by three American servicemen, according to the agency.
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