This article examines the relationship between Japan’s textbook authorization system and the teaching of a self-denigrating view of Japanese history, addressing GHQ’s postwar education policy, the formation of the Japan Teachers’ Union, the Neighboring Countries Clause introduced following the 1982 textbook controversy, and textbook descriptions concerning the comfort women issue.

2020-08-29
The following is a continuation of the preceding chapter.
■ The Implantation of a Self-Denigrating View of History Through Education—A Textbook Authorization System Leading the Nation to Ruin
Under the banner of the “democratization of education,” GHQ brought communists and socialists into the process and sought to shift education to the left.
The Civil Information and Education Section（CIE）held repeated consultations with the Marxist Goro Hani and others, and encouraged the formation of the Japan Teachers’ Union（hereinafter referred to simply as Nikkyoso）.
In Showa 57（1982）, a false report claiming that the word “invasion” in textbooks had been rewritten as “advance” prompted Chief Cabinet Secretary Kiichi Miyazawa to issue a statement declaring, “From now on, consideration will be given to friendship and goodwill with neighboring countries.”
On that basis, the Ministry of Education at the time established the so-called “Neighboring Countries Clause” as part of its textbook authorization standards.
From that time onward, Japanese education used self-denigrating textbooks and diligently produced self-denigrating Japanese people.
After the Kono Statement was issued in Heisei 5（1993）, an erroneous description stating that comfort women had been “forcibly taken away by the military” appeared in textbooks.（Heisei 8）
Justice Pal visited Japan in Showa 27（1952）and delivered a lecture at the Hiroshima High Court, warning Japanese people against a self-denigrating view of their own history.
The Japan Teachers’ Union
In 1945, as part of the democratization of education, GHQ instructed teachers and other educational personnel to establish a labor union.
It was once a powerful industrial union within the Socialist Party–Sohyo bloc, but today it is one of the principal supporting organizations of the Democratic Party.
Its unionization rate was once nearly 90 percent, but as of 2013 it was 25.3 percent.
There is strong criticism that it made leftism, anti-Japanese thinking, and a self-denigrating view of history the ideological pillars of its activities, and brought about the collapse of Japanese education through such measures as promoting relaxed education and abnormal sex education.
The Neighboring Countries Clause: A guideline was established within the textbook authorization standards to the effect that “necessary consideration must be given from the standpoint of international understanding and international cooperation.” The authorized-textbook controversy that arose in 1996 was not caused by protests from overseas; rather, South Korea’s accusations against Japan were reproduced directly in the textbooks.
The comfort women issue was included in “all” seven types of textbooks.
Nikkyoso argues that “it is important even for children to face the ‘truth’ squarely.”
Then is it unnecessary to face the “truth” that the South Korean military in Vietnam, the United States military in occupied Japan, and the armed forces of many countries throughout the world repeatedly caused incidents involving violence against women?
There are countless historical events that could be taught to children.
Because the historical value of each varies enormously, choices must be made, but the standard for making those choices should be a comprehensive judgment of value based on the educational purpose served for children.
No matter how important it may be to face the truth, teaching children—who have not yet developed sufficient powers of judgment—about brutal incidents whose truth or falsity has not even been clearly established is an entirely mistaken policy, unless the intention is deliberately to raise a self-denigrating people incapable of taking pride in their homeland.
The fact that as many as 1,878 incidents of sexual violence against women by United States military personnel occurred in Japan during the eight months after independence is, of course, not recorded in textbooks.
But that is as it should be.
To be continued.