Looking forward to your coverage of this. It's talked about so much less than Nuremberg.
23 hours ago | 72
For anyone wanting to know more about it I would recommend Judgment at Tokyo by Gary J Bass. Great book!
22 hours ago | 29
I've knew this moment would come. Also the Tokyo Trial episode series are on. 11 judges, 8 Western and 3 Asian 10 found all the criminals guilty and only 1 found all of the accused not guilty In the end on the final judgment, one half of the majority favored the death penalty and the other half dissented their final opinions. Other notes: Only the American judge was replaced from John P. Higgins to Myron C. Cramer. The British India Flag would be changed into Ashoka Chakra Flag in 1947.
19 hours ago | 9
Considering the Soviets gave 7 year sentences for several members of Unit 731 that they managed to capture, I wonder what research they were given to give them such light sentences?
22 hours ago | 19
Sort of surprising who got away Scott free in the aftermath. At least the Germans had to build things for us after.
9 hours ago | 3
Ans yet japan still don't admit their war crimes but, in most cases, downplay it like the most recent one where forced labors during the korea occupation wasn't actualy forced labors but requisition of temporaly workers. Like....whot ?
23 hours ago | 28
One name was missing from the accused . The Emperor . This omission was a crime against humanity in itself .
15 hours ago | 16
Right, and dropping a bomb that killed 200,000 innocent people isn’t a crime against humanity. B
2 hours ago | 0
I always found it odd that the prime minister was somehow more responsible for Japan's war crimes than the emperor. After all, the kamikazes and the men in the banzai charges didn't die for the prime minister.
16 hours ago | 5
Normal countries: “Yeah, how dare they start wars!” Soviet diplomats: sweats nervously
22 hours ago | 5
The people who planned and carried out the Tokyo firebombing were first on the scaffold.
5 hours ago | 0
Imagine being such a childish person you believe only good guys have won wars like these. F***ing ridiculous.
22 hours ago | 3
Man, imagine if Americans or Israelis had to face the music today.
22 hours ago (edited) | 4
World War Two
On 29 April 1946, the International Military Tribunal for the Far East convenes in Tokyo for the first time, formally indicting 28 of Japan’s top wartime leaders on charges of crimes against peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.
Modelled after the Nuremberg Trials in Europe, the Tribunal was established by the proclamation of General Douglas MacArthur in January under the authority of the Allied Powers. The Charter of the Tribunal was issued on 19 January and outlined the legal framework for trying individuals rather than states, bringing Japanese leaders to account for aggressive war, atrocities, and the systematic abuse of civilians and prisoners. Investigators from eleven Allied nations have spent months compiling evidence to build cases against Japan’s wartime elite.
The indictments, handed down today, accuse the defendants of conspiring to wage wars of aggression across the Asia-Pacific region between 1928 and 1945, violating international law, and overseeing atrocities including the Nanjing Massacre, the abuse of Allied POWs, and the forced labour of civilians. The charges span three classes of crimes: Class A (crimes against peace), Class B (conventional war crimes), and Class C (crimes against humanity).
Among the most prominent figures in the dock are former Prime Minister Hideki Tojo, widely seen as the face of Japan’s militarist regime, and Foreign Minister Shigenori Tōgō, who signed the Tripartite Pact with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. Also indicted are General Iwane Matsui, accused of command responsibility in the Nanjing Massacre; Kōki Hirota; and Kenryō Satō.
The courtroom itself—set up in the former War Ministry building in Ichigaya, Tokyo—is heavily fortified, with proceedings broadcast and recorded under the watch of an international bench. Eleven judges from the Allied powers preside, including Sir William Webb of Australia, who serves as President.
On this first day, the court reads out the full 55-count indictment over several hours, naming the accused and outlining the scope of their alleged crimes.
Picture: International Military Tribunal in Tokyo, Japan in May 1946
Source: Getty Images
23 hours ago | [YT] | 2,125