|
February
2002
Pulitzer
Prize winner Bix weighs in on Hirohito
By Anita Knopp
Doll
The conscious decision by both American and Japanese policymakers
to ignore Emperor Hirohito’s role in Japan’s aggression during
World War II continues to have an effect today, Binghamton Professor
Herbert P. Bix told the Harpur Forum during a recent meeting
of the group.
The issue of sovereign immunity for heads of state will continue
to be an issue into the 21st century, Bix told the gathering
of campus and community members. His presentation was titled
“The Impunity Question: From Hirohito to Milosevic.”
Bix, who won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize in non-fiction for his
book, Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan, contends
that Hirohito was personally and actively involved in
Japan’s aggressive war policies during World War II. After the
war, with complicity of the Truman administration and the Japanese
ruling elites, Hirohito avoided prosecution or investigation
and continued to hold a position of honor.
Bix, professor of history and sociology, said American policymakers
gave Hirohito “a virtual political pardon” in the pragmatic
belief that he could be helpful in the effort. A consensus developed
that placed the blame for Japan’s aggression on the military
and minimized the emperor’s role. “I’m not saying that
he was absolved, but his role was never adjudicated,” Bix said.
“He refused to abdicate or apologize. This decision to grant
impunity to a head of state created more problems than it solved.”
In Japan, Bix said the decision promoted a history of deceit and distortion for
the Japanese public about his role in the war and prevented a full normalization
between Japan and its neighbors.
In the world community, Hirohito’s ability to walk away from responsibility raises questions about the role of other leaders from Pinochet in Chile, who was
able to do the same, to the decision to prosecute Slobodan Milosevic for war crimes
in Bosnia.
Developed in 1977, the Harpur Forum is an organization devoted to
strengthening the bonds between Binghamton University and the Southern Tier
community. The group has more than 325 members and serves business,
professional and community leaders in surrounding areas through its Community Forum Breakfast Speaker's Program, which features nationally known authorities speaking on timely topics throughout the academic year.
|
