The Hanaoka Incident and Practices of Local History and Memory Making in Northern Japan

Abstract

This chapter discusses how local students and educators have framed and engaged with the history of the Hanaoka Incident in Akita Prefecture, northern Japan. Although the Allies chose to prosecute a select group of Japanese perpetrators for the Incident at the Yokohama War Crimes Tribunal, my focus on local memory cultures provides a counterbalance to national narratives which often privilege legal mechanisms to frame and respond to this and other Japanese war crimes. By turning to the local level, we are able to clearly see the contested nature of the war crimes trial and verdict which were meant to conclusively punish the guilty Japanese, and instead reveal alternative narratives and meanings which are important and visible to those who live in and around the community where these events took place. Rather than viewing and measuring these community-driven efforts against the truth claims championed by official narratives and state-actors, I focus on local pedagogical practices in schools and community organizations. In doing so we are able to see the collaborative and community-driven processes of history and memory making across several decades in northern Japan.