March 19, 2016
The Education Ministry on March 18 announced the screening results of high school textbooks which are scheduled to be used from April 2017. The authorized textbooks directly reflect the view of the Abe government with its aim to turn Japan into a war-fighting nation.
In January 2014, in line with Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s position, the ministry revised the screening standards for textbooks used in junior high and high schools. This is the first screening result of high school textbooks since the revision.
All the 12 approved textbooks on “contemporary society” and “political economy” describe the Abe Cabinet’s reinterpretation of the pacifist Constitution to enable Japan to exercise the right to collective self-defense.
At first, one of the 12 schoolbooks stated that as a result of the constitutional reinterpretation, “Japan may become a country that can wage wars anywhere in the world.” In the screening process, the education authorities told the publishing company that this description would “mislead students”. The publisher eventually accepted the “request” to reword. The revised one only states, “Japan’s pacifism is now facing a major turning point.”
A Japanese history textbook submitted to the authorities had referred to the estimated numbers of victims of the 1937 Nanjing Massacre as well as of Koreans and Chinese who were slaughtered in the aftermath of the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake. The examining board “advised” the publisher to add a supplementary explanation that these figures are “not commonly accepted”. The publishing firm ended up complying with the demand.
On the same day, Tawara Yoshifumi, representing the Children and Textbooks Japan Network 21, issued a statement on the screening results. It condemns the Abe administration and the Education Ministry for utilizing the textbook authorization system in order to create youth who will willingly fight in wars for “national interests” and will work to help large corporations maximize their profits.
The Japan Federation of Publishing Workers’ Unions (Shuppan-roren) also published a comment on the screening outcome. With regard to Japan’s territorial disputes over the Takeshima and Senkaku islands, the comment points out that the authorized textbooks just present the government views and fail to prompt students to think about how to resolve the disputes. It goes on to stress, “Not a government-controlled screening system but a more democratic, open-to-the-public system should be established.”
Past related article:
> JCP issues statement on school textbook screening results [April 7, 2015]
In January 2014, in line with Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s position, the ministry revised the screening standards for textbooks used in junior high and high schools. This is the first screening result of high school textbooks since the revision.
All the 12 approved textbooks on “contemporary society” and “political economy” describe the Abe Cabinet’s reinterpretation of the pacifist Constitution to enable Japan to exercise the right to collective self-defense.
At first, one of the 12 schoolbooks stated that as a result of the constitutional reinterpretation, “Japan may become a country that can wage wars anywhere in the world.” In the screening process, the education authorities told the publishing company that this description would “mislead students”. The publisher eventually accepted the “request” to reword. The revised one only states, “Japan’s pacifism is now facing a major turning point.”
A Japanese history textbook submitted to the authorities had referred to the estimated numbers of victims of the 1937 Nanjing Massacre as well as of Koreans and Chinese who were slaughtered in the aftermath of the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake. The examining board “advised” the publisher to add a supplementary explanation that these figures are “not commonly accepted”. The publishing firm ended up complying with the demand.
On the same day, Tawara Yoshifumi, representing the Children and Textbooks Japan Network 21, issued a statement on the screening results. It condemns the Abe administration and the Education Ministry for utilizing the textbook authorization system in order to create youth who will willingly fight in wars for “national interests” and will work to help large corporations maximize their profits.
The Japan Federation of Publishing Workers’ Unions (Shuppan-roren) also published a comment on the screening outcome. With regard to Japan’s territorial disputes over the Takeshima and Senkaku islands, the comment points out that the authorized textbooks just present the government views and fail to prompt students to think about how to resolve the disputes. It goes on to stress, “Not a government-controlled screening system but a more democratic, open-to-the-public system should be established.”
Past related article:
> JCP issues statement on school textbook screening results [April 7, 2015]
