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Defendants in the Tokyo war crimes tribunal stand in court on May 3, 1946. (Tokyo/Kyoto/Yonhap)

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August 15. The date celebrated in Korea as National Liberation Day also marks the day that Japan admitted its defeat in World War II. It’s important that Japanese people properly understand the fact that the day Japan was defeated is the day their neighbors were liberated. Based on this premise, I want to explore ways we can learn from war.

The biggest lesson one should take away from war is its tragedy. This point has been highlighted in postwar education and journalism. The fact that the Japanese manga series “Barefoot Gen” played a big role in conveying the devastation of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, is well known.

Another important lesson is scrutinizing the misguided national policy decisions as well as the political structures that implemented them. After the war ended, the Allied powers held Japanese military officers and politicians who had started the war accountable at the Tokyo war crimes trials. At the time, a majority of those on trial testified that they personally opposed the war or wanted it to end quickly, all the while making the excuse that they did not have the authority to determine policy or could not go against the mood within a government that was reluctant to admit defeat.

Having noticed this, Masao Maruyama (1914-1996), a postwar pioneer of political science in Japan, coined the term “system of irresponsibility.” Japanese leaders looked away when faced with realities unfavorable to them, avoided responsibility regarding policy decisions that brought about great friction, feigning a lack of authority, and acted based on optimistic predictions while deceiving themselves as if they had solved problems. This kind of attitude accumulated, prompting irresponsible leaders to do nothing even when situations worsened. The Germany of Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) started a war, driven by its leader’s ambition for world domination. On the other hand, in Japan’s war, irresponsible leaders dragged the situation on instead of resolving it, reaching a catastrophic conclusion.

Now, 75 years have passed since Maruyama presented his analysis and argued that Japan’s political structure should be changed. Japan did not repeat a war, but nor did it overturn its system of irresponsibility. With the end of the postwar “bubble economy” in 1990, Japan went through a period of decline known as the “lost decades.” Japan has experienced defeat after defeat regarding topics like the economy and social sustainability. This is all a product of the system of irresponsibility.

Let me offer a recent example: the extensive easy monetary policy that was implemented during the administration of Shinzo Abe (1954-2022). Haruhiko Kuroda, who was appointed governor of the Bank of Japan by Abe, purchased large amounts of government bonds with the express aim of achieving an inflation rate of 2%. During his 10-year tenure, Kuroda failed to meet his inflation target. Recent price hikes in Japan are the result of international price increases of resources and grains.

Kazuo Momma, a former assistant governor of the Bank of Japan who served under Kuroda, made the following reflection regarding financial policy decisions made during his tenure during a recent interview: “I believed achieving an inflation rate of 2% through Bank of Japan policies was not possible, and that Japan’s economy wouldn’t get better. But in order to put to rest criticism that the economy wasn’t getting better because of how passive the Bank of Japan was, I supported Kuroda’s extensive easy-money policy.”

Reading this interview made me think of the start of the Pacific War. Though the leader of Japan’s naval forces didn’t think Japan would win against the US in a war, they started a war with the US nevertheless, wanting to be bold in their first battle if the Japanese government was going to start a war regardless. Similarly, Japan’s financial policy hit a dead end, consuming time and energy for a goal that was not feasible.

In order to overthrow the system of irresponsibility, politicians, bureaucrats and scholars must carry out discussions based on facts, and decision-making processes should be made transparent to the public. Even 80 years after its defeat in war, Japan does not possess the courage or conscientiousness to face its failures.

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]