Many believe that the Chinese and Japanese hate each other, mainly due to the terrible events during World War II and even other historical events that caused hatred. It is not difficult to find Chinese who hate Japanese, just as it is not difficult to find Westerners who hate Easterners and vice versa. Unfortunately, hatred or racism is trapped in our world. Many end up generating hatred without any valid reason or due to social and media pressure.
I think most people know that there were various wars and invasions by Japan in countries like China and Korea, and during these events there were rapes, deaths, tortures, and other atrocities. During these wars, the Japanese ignored all international laws, sometimes even being worse than the Germans. What generates this rivalry with China even more is the fact that Japan somewhat hides these atrocities from its history books, as if it had not regretted its actions. The Chinese and Korean governments also end up increasing this hatred and tension through political events and shows that remind people of such events in the wars.
Are there reasons to hate the Japanese?
Among the nations of Asia, China is the one that views Japan the least favorably, followed by South Korea. The opposite is true; Japan is the country in Asia that views China the least favorably. This does not hinder relations between the countries, as over 5 million Chinese travel to Japan every year.
The Japanese have done many bad things, so it is understandable that some relatives or people harmed by the war harbor hatred towards the Japanese. Human ignorance begins when one wants to blame an entire nation of innocent people for something that happened many decades ago by a few monsters. And unfortunately, I see this happening not only among Asians but even Westerners wanting to join this wave of racism and hatred just because they end up reading a generalized news article about the killing of whales or dolphins.
People who allow hatred to grow often do not have their own opinions and are controlled by the media. Fortunately, most of the young nation today does not care about these past events and has overcome the hatred among themselves. Of course, there will always be rivalry between races, no matter the events. China encourages and uses propaganda that leads its people to hate Japan. This should not happen because China encourages hatred towards Japan’s far-right military system and not the country itself. China does not prohibit Japanese products nor cut international relations because of a feud in the past.
Do the Japanese hate Chinese and Koreans?
The hatred that some Japanese have for other people is not usually linked to nationality. Only old grumpy people tend to be nationalists and traditionalists who end up excluding themselves or grumbling against foreigners, whether they are Westerners, Chinese, or Koreans. Sometimes I even see Westerners complaining about Chinese in Japan, so it is indeed common for Japanese to complain about Chinese in their country. All of this is because the cultures of the Chinese and Japanese are quite different; the Chinese tend to have some bad habits and customs that differ from Japan. Another factor is that some Japanese still feel threatened by China.
Despite many studies stating that both China and Japan think they are bad influences, this does not prevent the large community of Chinese present in the country. Hatred does not need to transcend generations. There are ignorant and resentful people in any country. Hatred is seen because the more ignorant a person is, the more they seek to announce it! Most people just want to be friendly and live in peace. Unfortunately, it is because of politics, patriotism, and greed that our world ends up becoming a great disaster.
Leave a Reply