Japanese Emperor Visits Philippines to Mourn WWII Dead
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MANILA, Philippines — Japan’s emperor said Tuesday that his nation must remember the tremendous loss of life in the Philippines in World War II, as he and his wife began their first visit to the Southeast Asian country, which suffered under Japanese wartime occupation.

“Many Filipinos, Americans and Japanese lost their lives in the Philippines during the war,” Emperor Akihito said in a statement he read before departing from Tokyo. “Especially in the battle in Manila, a tremendously large number of innocent Filipino civilians were victims. Upon making this visit, we need to bear this in mind at all times.”

The 1945 battle for Manila between Japan and allied U.S. and Philippine forces leveled the capital city and left more than 100,000 dead, according to Philippine historians.

Relations between Japan and the Philippines have improved dramatically in the seven decades since the war, with Japan becoming a major trading partner and aid donor for the Philippines. Akihito’s visit is seen as a strong sign of a further deepening of ties as the two countries, which are both close American allies, confront China over long-contested maritime territories.

Japan’s Self Defense forces have staged joint search and rescue exercises with the Philippine navy near the disputed South China Sea and are providing the Philippines with coast guard patrol boats.

Akihito, who is a revered symbol of Japanese unity but plays no political role in his country, has no plans to discuss security issues such as the territorial disputes or demands for an apology by Filipino women who have accused Japanese forces of forcing them into wartime sex slavery, according to Hatsuhisa Takashima, the emperor’s press secretary.

Akihito and Empress Michiko were met at Manila’s airport by President Benigno Aquino III, his top Cabinet members and his sister. Aquino is to formally welcome Akihito at the presidential palace on Wednesday and then have a brief private meeting. The president will hold a state banquet for Akihito and Michiko later Wednesday.

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, among the Philippine officials who welcomed Akihito at the airport, said the first visit by a Japanese emperor to the country following the last world war is a milestone.

Gazmin said the Filipino generation that saw the horrors of the Japanese occupation in the 1940s still remembers that period, but that it is time to move on as the two nations, now strategic allies, face common security concerns in the region.

“It’s really more painful for us because my father was a veteran soldier who was forced into the ‘death march,’” Gazmin told The Associated Press, referring to the Bataan death march, when Japanese soldiers forced tens of thousands of Filipino and American troops to march 100 kilometers (65 miles) from the Bataan Peninsula to prison camps under intense heat and harsh conditions. Thousands died, but Gazmin’s father survived.

“We should move forward and forget and work for a better relation,” Gazmin said. “It’s a necessity, we need allies for our current needs.”

Akihito, 82, is to pay his respects at memorials for both Philippine and Japanese war dead.

He is the son of former Emperor Hirohito, under whose name Japan waged World War II. Akihito was 11 years old at the end of the war.

The emperor’s trip follows his visits to the World War II battle sites of Palau last year and Saipan in 2005. He also prayed for Japanese and U.S. war dead on Iwo Jima in 1994.

日皇夫婦首度訪菲 慰安婦要討公道

日皇明仁夫婦廿六日抵達菲律賓訪問，慶祝兩國建交六十周年。這不僅是明仁登基後首度訪問菲國，他也是史上第一位訪菲的日皇。菲律賓的慰安婦阿嬤準備在日皇訪問期間向日本討公道。

日皇明仁行前發表聲明表示：「太平洋戰爭期間，許多菲律賓人、美國人和日本人在菲律賓失去生命，特別是馬尼拉戰役，不計其數無辜的菲律賓老百姓犧牲。這次訪問，我們必須時時將此銘記於心。」日皇夫婦訪問期間將祭奠菲律賓和日本戰歿者。

日本在二戰期間占領菲律賓。一九四五年日軍與美國和菲律賓的盟軍在馬尼拉激戰，將首都夷為平地，超過十萬人喪生。

菲國總統艾奎諾與內閣閣員在機場迎接日皇夫婦，一九六二年明仁還是皇太子時，曾和夫人美智子訪菲。

戰後日菲關係大幅改善，日本成為菲國的最大貿易夥伴和援助國。在中國大陸軍事崛起後，兩國更加強軍事合作。

也在機場歡迎日皇的菲國國防部長蓋茲敏說，日皇首度來訪是里程碑。他告訴美聯社：「我的父親是二戰老兵，被迫參加巴丹死亡行軍。但我們應該向前看，忘掉過去，改善關係，我們現在需要盟友。」

巴丹死亡行軍指的是日軍強迫成千上萬的菲律賓軍人和美軍從巴丹半島行軍一百公里到俘虜營，一路天氣酷熱且遭到日軍虐待，有上萬人死亡，但蓋茲敏的父親活了下來。

菲律賓慰安婦組織「菲律賓祖母聯盟」要求艾奎諾向日皇當面提出慰安婦議題，為受害人討公道。但菲律賓外交部表示，在日皇訪問期間，不會提出慰安婦議題。

只有七十位菲律賓慰安婦仍在世，其中年紀最大的九十歲阿嬤布斯塔曼特含淚看著牆上已去世的慰安婦照片，誓言在日皇訪問期間討回公道。她說，她會參加街頭抗議活動，繼續七十多年來未成功的抗爭。

她告訴法新社：「我們之中很多人沒看到正義伸張就死了，我們要奮戰到最後一口氣。我們要告訴日皇明仁：還你的債。我們要你為戰時慰安婦的苦難負責。」

日本領袖曾向菲國慰安婦道歉，但政府從未提出賠償，僅由民間基金賠償，菲國慰安婦認為沒有誠意。日本與南韓去年底達成協議，由日本政府拿出十億日圓賠償南韓的慰安婦。

艾奎諾上任以來兩度訪日，但未公開提出慰安婦議題。他曾表示，菲國須考慮到日本是菲國最大援助及海外投資來源的事實。

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/07/world/europe/frances-far-right-national-front-gains-in-regional-elections.html

2016-01-27．聯合報．A13．國際．編譯田思怡