Japanese soldiers venture overseas

One of the first Asian politicians to realise the true motive of the Japanese troops at the time was the Burmese nationalist leader Aung San, father of the imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi. He welcomed the arrival of the Imperial Japanese Army to Burma, and like Subhash Bose, tried to turn England's peril into his country's opportunity, and make England's enemy his country's friend. But unlike Subhash Bose, the pragmatic nationalist leader of Burma soon realised how hollow the Japanese promise of liberation from the yoke of colonialism sounded, once the troops of the Imperial Japanese Army started to run the affairs of the state. Aung San, after all, had a much more stronger support base in his own country than what the exile Indians enjoyed. This allowed him to make a proper assessment of the situation from a different angle and he didn't hesitate to switch over side again to join the ranks of the advancing British army in driving the Japanese out of Burma.

This episode is now part of history of not only of Burma and Japan, but also of the whole Asia. Japan's neighbours had the unique opportunity to witness in first hand the real face of an army that once pledged to liberate them from Western domination. And as this happened a little over six decades ago, the memory still remains sharp not only to a whole generation who went through the experience, but also to their offspring who were repeatedly reminded of the fact and its outcome. Hence there is a suspicion surrounding anything of Japanese that has military touch. Branding the Japanese army with the innocent name of 'Self Defence Force' didn't come to any help to Japan. On the contrary, the name raises suspicion of the real motive as the self proclaimed 'self defenders' in subsequent years have turned into one of world's most heavily financially cushioned military forces with an annual budget many times higher than most other military forces of the world. As this army is now poised to get involved in direct confrontation in the muddy waters of Iraq, many in neighbouring countries as well as within Japan are questioning the real motive behind the declared 'humanitarian' mission involving armed military personnel.

Japan's defence agency chief Shigeru Ishiba gave the dispatch order last Friday for ground troops to Iraq. An advance unit of 30 Ground Self Defence Force (SDF) members has been ordered to fly to Kuwait by the end of this week to prepare for the eventual dispatch of a 500-member contingent. This is for the first time since early 1940s that Japan's military personnel are being dispatched to a nation that is in a virtual state of war.

The Japanese ground troops will operate mainly in Samawah, a southern Iraqi town with a Shiite majority and considered relatively safe. The advance team will carry out activities for about a week and study security conditions. Some members of the team will then return to Japan and submit a report to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and other government officials. The prime minister will then make the final decision about sending the core group.

Earlier, speaking at a press conference at Tokyo's Foreign Correspondents Club, Japan's defence chief said that the deployment of Japanese troops to Iraq on a humanitarian mission could serve as a model for future peaceful operations by the Japanese military on foreign soil. He told reporters that the results of the mission would have a strong impact on the question of whether to give the military wide freedom to participate in expeditions beyond country's borders.

One can easily conclude from the remarks of the defense chief that for Japan the military operation in Iraq is going to be a testing ground. If everything moves as smoothly as the ruling elites are expecting, this might lead to further military missions in near future, an option that Japan's neighbours are suspiciously looking at. China was the first country to demand an explanation of the planned Japanese troops deployment in Iraq. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged a senior Japanese foreign ministry official to give Asian countries a full explanation of the planned dispatch of troops to Iraq as the move without a UN resolution differs significantly from Japan's previous policy. North Korean criticism, as expected, was much harsher, while South Korea had to swallow the bitter pill keeping silent over the issue as its own troops are now in Iraq helping the United States to tightening its grip over the occupied land.

Japan's planned Iraq operation, despite winning support of the ruling coalition parties, is facing strong opposition within the country too. Criticising the recent dispatch order, Naoto Kan, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan said, sending the SDF to Iraq to cooperate with the occupation forces would not gain the understanding of many Iraqis. Officials of the Japanese Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party called the SDF dispatch a violation of the constitution.

Japanese public opinion is also predominantly against sending troops to Iraq. Not only grown ups and members of the older generation are opposing the idea, even among the young the move failed to win any support. A teacher of a junior high school near Tokyo recently asked third-year students whether they thought the SDF should be dispatched immediately or later, or even not at all. Out of 38 students, three said they supported sending troops without any delay, five voiced in favour of waiting, while the rest said they entirely opposed the plan.

The second Monday of January is observed in Japan as the Coming-of-Age Day, when young people who turn twenty in the past one year mark their transition to adulthood. This year a survey among those young adults were conducted in the northern town of Asahikawa on the dispatch of SDF unit to Iraq. In the survey conduced by a citizens group of the town, young adults were invited to place stickers on a board to show if they were in favour or against troops deployment. The result showed 16 supported the deployment, while 49 opposed it. Ironically, it is from the Asahikawa SDF base that Japanese soldiers are being sent to Iraq. But turning back once again to history what we can easily find is: when the excitement of adventurism runs high among decision makers, public opinion rarely makes any impact on them.