A clipping from my travel guidebook is shown in the 1st picture. It tells that American soldiers had treated the body of a Kamikaze pilot respectfully. The contents were often seen in several other pamphlets and fliers. Most Japanese who saw the contents would be happy with their heart warming act. However, I took it as a simple lame excuse for their numerous war crimes. If you learn the historical facts, you'll reach the same conclusion. I've heard an episode like that from Australia, but do you know another heroic or humanitarian act on the U.S. side? As I wrote in the last entry, a young Kamikaze in the 2nd picture crashed his bomb-bearing fighter into the Missouri. The captain of the Missouri restrained his men from throwing his torn body away and ordered some of his men to make Japan's national flag in a night. Then the young Kamikaze was wrapped with their makeshift Japan's national flag and was buried at sea courteously. Seeing the third picture, it seemed that the chaplain gave some prayer for him. I was surprised to know that the chaplain was on board. The 4th shows their captain. I'm grateful for his decision, but it cannot say that this episode indicated the existence of humanity in battlefields. Several hundreds of indiscriminate bombings across Japan, two atomic bombs, the farcical Tokyo Tribunal of War Criminals, the illegal trials which were actually revenge and were performed in various places after the war, the forced Constitution to Japan, and so on; taking these into consideration, I wasn't able to believe that there was humanity in the battlefields.
A novel, "Eternal Zero", featured a Kamikaze fighter and became a bestseller a few years ago in Japan. This real story which happened on the Battleship Missouri is remarkably similar to the last scene of the novel, so the author must have drawn inspiration from this episode. The used-to-be dining room for the ranks was used as a museum for Kamikaze, but it was so-so. Now, my mission was complete! I just wanted to pray for a Kamikaze pilot at his death point after 73 years later. I got off from the abhorrent ship and headed for the Pacific Aviation Museum.
Lastly, for your information, I'd like to tell you about a historical fact which has been known as one of the Japanese humanitarian acts. See the links below.
(Vocabulary)
humanitarian 人道的な, 人道支援の
farcical (けなして) 茶番じみた
http://www.bbc.co.uk/somerset/content/articles/2008/12/17/japanese_war_ambassador_feature.shtml
https://ameblo.jp/workingkent/entry-11873896366.html
１枚目の写真は使っていた旅行ガイドブックの切り抜き。同じ内容が いろいろなパンフレットに掲載されていた。もちろん全て日本語。おそらくは、日本人はこれを見てアメリカに好感を持つのだろうが、僕はこれを彼らの苦しい言い訳とみた。歴史を学べばそういう結論にならざるを得ない。同様の美談はオーストラリアにもあるが、アメリカ軍の人道的行為は他にあるのか？無数の戦争犯罪を重ねた米軍にも人道はあったという言い訳だと思う。前の記事に書いたように、２枚目の写真の若者が体当たり攻撃をしてきた。艦長は、胴体半分だけになってしまったパイロットをゴミとして捨てようとしていた部下を制止し、一晩掛けて日の丸を縫わせ、その日の丸で遺体を包んで正式な水葬を行ったとある。３枚目の写真を見ると、チャプレンに冥福を祈ってもらったようだ。アメリカの軍艦にチャプレンが同乗していたことに驚いた。４枚目が当時の艦長の写真。正式な水葬は有り難いし、立派な行動だと思う。ただ、これだけをもって戦場にも人道はあったというのは、、、言い過ぎだ。日本各地への数百回に及ぶ無差別爆撃、２個の原子爆弾、東京裁判という茶番、戦後各地で行われた裁判という名の復讐劇、国際法違反の日本国憲法、、、、に対する言い訳のような気がしてならない。
日本で数年前にベストセラーとなった小説『永遠のゼロ』のラストシーンと酷似しているので作者はきっとここからヒントを得たに違いない。メインデッキ下の食堂は神風特攻に関する資料が展示されていた。あまりたいしたことは無かったが、展示されているのは神風特攻の跡が残る船だからだろうか。さて、命日に現場で手を合わせるという目的が達せられたのでこんな忌まわしい船からはさっさと下船して次の目的地、航空博物館へ向かった。
最後に参考までに日本の人道的行為として最近、知られるようになったものを紹介しておく。
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