Part One
Emperor Hirohito is one of the controversial rulers in the history of the 20th century. The video attempts to highlight some of the unprecedented happenings under Hirohito’s rule at the end of World War 2. Japan was under United States of America after World War 2 in 1945 until 1952. It was highly predicted that the Emperor would face trials for war crimes that would include serious crimes committed against humanity. However, it was explicit that no trials ever took place. The video clip provides reliable and powerful testimony about a country on the verge of war. The fierce and tragic battles fought by the people, the kind of atrocities committed during the war in the country and management of Japan after the war proves to be a big challenge for a country that wants to accomplish its set objectives and eventually catches up with the rest of the world.
There are series of events that unfold in the Part One of Emperor Hirohito. The officials under the Japanese military attack on Pearl Harbor were a less expected military strike in Hawaii conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the U.S. This was the base of America’s pacific fleet. All the battleships belonging to U.S on the Pearl Harbor were destroyed although six of them were repaired. His administration had reservations with America’s occupation of the Pearl Harbor. Hirohito’s administration made a desperate move of destroying the documents and holding some in the Imperial archives and Signing of the formal instrument of surrender on September 2 as well as quantifying defeat. It was therefore a deliberate attack to destroy United States’ Pacific fleet at the Pearl Harbor. The decision to attack the innocent United States navy officers was consented to by Emperor Hirohito himself. Consequently, the U.S declared war on Japan during the Second World War (1941-1945).
Japan suffered most during the war with over 2.7 million people killed, destruction of 66 major Japanese cities and leaving 9 million homeless. This became a major setback to Japanese government. He surrendered on Dec. 7, 1946. There were mixed reactions as a section of the population was opposed to such decisions while others agreed. Hirohito’s accountability debate took a new twist after his death, as a section of the Japanese citizens was for while others were clearly against prosecution. The fundamental question that remains unanswered is whether Hirohito was responsible for the atrocities or not. How he evaded courts and died a free man leaves more questions than answers in the lips of many Japanese. Even after surrender, only some 22 Germans and 28 Japanese arrested and taken to court awaiting prosecution. The Emperor defended his decision according to a publicized version of his speech in 1990. He believed that he had to take the unpopular action to protect Japanese mainland from invasion. Quite a number of Japanese citizens accepted his decision. Others believe that he should have been brought to book as he enjoyed all the powers and authority. Analysts argue that the autocratic kind of leadership has to squarely lie on the system of Government. In Japan, The Emperor is neither elected nor selected by legislature. In fact, during the reign of his grandfather, the emperor was regarded as small god within religious setting.
