"Ignorance of historical atrocities is a crime": Japanese citizens preserve forced labor truth

The Sagami Reservoir is Japan's first multi-purpose artificial lake constructed between 1940 and 1947. To build the reservoir, Japan requisitioned about 3.6 million laborers, including nearly 300 Chinese forcibly taken to Japan by the invading Japanese military.

TOKYO, July 29 (Xinhua) -- At the scenic Sagami Lake in Kanagawa Prefecture, a popular summer getaway in Japan, lies a hidden and painful history -- one of forced labor, suffering, and death involving multinational laborers during the construction of the Sagami Lake reservoir.

On Sunday, more than 350 people, including local residents, students, and representatives from China, Japan, South Korea, and North Korea, gathered at the Sagami Lake Exchange Center to mourn the laborers who died during the dam's construction.

The Sagami Reservoir is Japan's first multi-purpose artificial lake constructed between 1940 and 1947. To build the reservoir, Japan requisitioned about 3.6 million laborers, including nearly 300 Chinese forcibly taken to Japan by the invading Japanese military.

Due to harsh working conditions and treatment, 28 Chinese laborers died among other recorded victims.

Mayor Kentaro Motomura of Sagamihara City said at the ceremony that many workers, including Chinese and Korean laborers, paid with their lives under extremely harsh conditions. "We must remember the history, forged by so many precious lives, and pass it down to future generations," he said.

In 1976, concerned Japanese citizens formed a committee to uncover and preserve the historical truth. Since 1979, they have held annual memorial services.

Toshiko Hashimoto, now in her 70s and one of the founding members of the committee, shared historical records showing the cruelty faced by Chinese forced laborers: long hours from dawn to dusk, poor nutrition and rampant disease due to malnourishment and abuse.

To honor the victims, a memorial stone was erected near Sagami Lake, inscribed with the names of the deceased laborers. In 2020, an information panel next to the monument was maliciously vandalized, with phrases such as "forced labor" deliberately defaced.

Despite external pressure, Hashimoto and her colleagues have never given up their efforts to preserve the truth. With support from various parties, the panel was restored, and the memorial ceremony continues to be held annually as scheduled.

"Because it's a dark part of history, we must not hide it," Hashimoto said. "Society should confront and speak about it openly."

Hashimoto recalled a moment in the 1970s during a visit to rural China when a blind elderly man shouted at them in anger. She didn't understand his words but felt his pain. "Even though we were born after the war, by remaining silent, we become complicit," she reflected. "Ignorance of historical atrocities is also a crime."

At the ceremony, Kang Xiaolei, a counselor from the Chinese Embassy in Japan, emphasized that forced labor was a grave crime committed by Japanese militarism. He expressed appreciation to the organizers for their long-standing efforts and stressed that remembering history is key to preserving peace.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the World Anti-Fascist War. As many original members of the committee age, incoming chairperson Mei Furusawa vowed to continue the mission: "If we don't speak, the history will be forgotten. It is our responsibility to tell the children what happened here."■