By Hannah Hindel
Memorial to the Nanjing Massacre in Nanjing, China. A recent UNESCO decision generated renewed friction in China-Japan relations. Source: Kevin Dooley’s flickr photostream, used under a creative commons license.
On October 9, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) listed 11 sets of files on the Nanjing Massacre in its Memory of the World (MOW) Register, a program devoted to preserving documentary heritage. The listed files cover atrocities during Japan’s occupation of Nanjing from December 1937 to January 1938 as well as the post-war investigation and trials of war criminals in the late 1940s. Beijing welcomed UNESCO’s decision with exuberance. A feature in the state-run newspaper Xinhua called October 9, “an important day for the Chinese, and, to some extent, all honest and peace-loving people across the word.” The Japanese government was less upbeat, initially stating the inscription was “extremely regrettable” and that the documents were based on Beijing’s “unilateral assertions.” This quickly snowballed as Tokyo threatened to halt funding for UNESCO. The issue was even raised during a meeting between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese state councilor Yang Jiechi in Tokyo on October 14.
Though the Nanjing Massacre occurred almost 80 years ago, it remains a contentious issue. The UNESCO listing is far from the first revival of memory of the Nanjing Massacre by Chinese president Xi Jinping’s administration. From holding China’s first state commemoration of the massacre in December 2014 to comparing Japan’s actions to those of World War II-era Germany, the Xi administration has put the Nanjing Massacre front and center. The international recognition of and attention to the Nanjing Massacre undermine ongoing efforts to improve Sino-Japanese relations, prolonging a regional environment afflicted by tension and discord.
Though the Nanjing Massacre occurred within China’s borders, the Xi administration has sought to place this event in a global context by invoking comparisons to other well-known historical atrocities. Now that documents related to the Nanjing Massacre have been included alongside documentation of other war crimes in the MOW Register, China has a foundation upon which to link its own “national humiliation” to the plight of others. Recalling the Nanjing Massacre is a useful tool for China’s leadership, fostering nationalism and support for Chinese Communist Party rule. By internationalizing the Nanjing Massacre, the UNESCO inclusion serves Chinese interests by ensuring that the world will not forget China’s “century of humiliation,” one of the ideas underpinning Xi’s “Chinese dream.”
Following UNESCO’s announcement of its decision, Japan reacted quickly and negatively. Japanese chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga reprimanded UNESCO for its lack of transparency, saying that Japan is “considering all measures, including suspension of our funding contributions.” This would be a major blow to UNESCO, which received about $31 million from Japan in 2014 (11 percent of UNESCO’s budget). Japan’s main critique was that UNESCO’s decision was not neutral, but amounted to taking sides on the highly politicized issue. A Japan Times article exploring Japan’s rationale for its opposition notes, “Japanese officials argued that the historical materials being presented are not verified as authentic by third-party historians or other countries involved in political rows over the materials.” The main dispute is the number of casualties, a figure arousing significant dissension between the two countries. While China claims more than 300,000 people died, Japanese historians estimate between 20,000-200,000 victims. UNESCO’s decision therefore worries Japan. AFP writes that Japanese officials may believe it “could give Beijing ammunition against Tokyo in promoting its campaign to highlight what it calls ‘the crimes of Japanese militarism,’ including the massacre, in which it claims more than 300,000 people were killed.”
The UNESCO issue gained greater prominence when Prime Minister Abe expressed his regret during the mid-October meeting with Chinese state councilor Yang Jiechi. This high-level visibility detracts from fledgling bilateral cooperation between the Chinese and Japanese. The 11th China-Japan Public Opinion poll released on October 22 showed a substantial decrease in perceived tensions in the overall bilateral relationship.
This incident was not the first time a UNESCO designation has triggered controversy; earlier this year, Japan and Korea clashed over Japan’s request to have 23 locations in Japan declared as “world heritage sites” that South Korea claimed included sites that used forced labor. However, the two countries engaged in intense negotiations, with Japan ultimately acceding to South Korea’s demand to acknowledge the role of forced labor at these sites and winning UNESCO listing in June. South Korea’s foreign ministry applauded the result, stating, “Given that this matter was resolved smoothly through dialogue, the government hopes it will help the further development of South Korea and Japan relations.”
China, Japan and South Korea hosted their first trilateral leader’s summit since 2012 on November 2, and in a positive move, stated that the meeting will take place on an annual basis from now on. All nations should keep their national security objectives in mind, understanding that peace in the international environment begins with their immediate neighbors. All three gain more from cooperation on initiatives such as the China-Japan-Korea Free Trade Agreement and the environment than they do from confrontation over historical and other issues.
UNESCO’s listing of China’s submission is a windfall for China, putting Japan in a tough spot. At a time when restraint may have been wise, Japan’s official reaction to UNESCO’s decision could instead play into Beijing’s depiction of Japan as unwilling to “face up to its wartime history” as well as derail fledgling Sino-Japanese and trilateral China-Japan-Korea cooperation. The fact that Abe and Premier Li Keqiang held a meeting at all is a welcome development. Both nations should focus on their larger strategic interests in improving Sino-Japanese relations, including a potential Abe-Xi summit and trilateral cooperation with South Korea to address pressing questions such as North Korea. Historical issues, including Nanjing Massacre denials by the mayor of Nagoya and Tokyo’s governor in February 2012, contributed to the cancellation of the trilateral leader’s summit in 2013. Though China and Japan have proven their willingness to continue holding high-level meetings despite this disagreement, the sting of Japan’s reaction will continue to be felt by Chinese policymakers and the public. The trauma of the Nanjing Massacre should not be forgotten – but reconciliation lays the groundwork for ensuring nothing like it ever happens again.
Ms. Hannah Hindel is a researcher with the China Power Project at CSIS.
