On May 8th, Kyodo News published an article concerning former New York Times Tokyo bureau chief Henry S. Stokes and his recent best-seller 英国人記者が見た連合国戦勝史観の虚妄 (Falsehoods of the Allied Nations’ Victorious View of History, as Seen by a British Journalist). The Kyodo News article raised questions about the veracity of the book and whether it really represented Mr. Stokes’s views or the views of the two right wing individuals, Hiroyuki Fujita, who helped “translate” the book and Hideaki Kase aka Tony Kase.
I am a journalist who is just starting her career and I was asked to do the transcripts for an English version of the book. After some time, I realized that I felt that Mr. Stokes, who is a very nice elderly journalist who I respect, was having his words taken out of context. I resigned from the job and relinquished any further payments. Here are the resignation letters I sent to Mr. Fujita and my notice and apology to Mr. Stokes.
I did speak with Kyodo News about why I resigned. I have no further comments. If you would like to know more, please speak to the publisher or the individuals involved.
May 2nd, 2014
Dear Fujita-san,
I hope you are doing well. I apologize for not contacting you earlier. I’ve actually been extremely busy with my full-time job with Jake Adelstein and have had to work unexpectedly through the weekend and overtime this entire week to work on a new project with him. For the time being, I am turning down all side jobs from anyone.
I think that it would be best if you found someone else to finish the job, since I’ve become unable to focus on the transcripts, which take a lot of energy to accomplish. I’ve also become increasingly uncomfortable with the content of some of the recordings,which make it even more difficult. It seems that words are being put into Henry’s mouth and that the interviews don’t reflect his real opinions or thoughts–and that there are many leading questions (誘導尋問）.
Here are the recordings which I have finished so far. If they are included in the 50, 000 yen sum that you gave me, then that is fine. I don’t require any more payment.
Sincerely,
Angela Kubo
May 4th 2014
Dear Henry,
This is Angela Kubo, who had been working on the transcripts for the book.
I’m very sorry to let you down, but I’ve decided to resign from the job because I had a moral issue with compiling these transcripts. I felt that what you said in the transcripts was completely different on important points from what is written in your book. Below is my resignation letter, which I sent to Fujita-san.
Henry, I have a lot of respect for you, and I pulled out of this job because of this respect. I will be at the press club tomorrow and would like to speak to you about this transcripts. Perhaps you should consider speaking to someone about this issue, because I find it very serious that your book is very different from what you say in the audio.
Sincerely,
Angela Erika Kubo
A note from the editor-in-chief: The questions as to whether Henry Stokes, a long time acquaintance, was deceived and turned into a mouthpiece for the Japanese right wing is a very fascinating one. However, I’m friends with and work with Angela Kubo. I know the reporter at Kyodo News who wrote the story well and we have worked together and I know Henry. The foreign journalist community in Japan is very small. All that being said, therefore, I’m unable to objectively write about this story at this time and will recuse myself for the time being. –Jake Adelstein
For reference: Kyodo News conducted a long recorded interview with Mr. Stokes. The Japanese version of the story compares the statements in the book with the statements in the interview in detail. If you can read Japanese you may find it enlightening. It follows the english text from the Kyodo News article below:
From the Kyodo News article: Over the course of multiple interviews with Kyodo News beginning on April 5, Stokes repeatedly expressed a view on Nanjing that directly contradicts the remarks attributed to him in both his own book and the articles in WiLL and Yukan Fuji.
“I don’t come within ten-thousand miles of this stuff as a position,” he said, dismissing the view that Nanjing is a fabrication as “ludicrous,” “fatuous” and “utterly, utterly asinine.”
“The stance I take is that ghastly events occurred in Nanjing,” Stokes said, adding that he does, however, disagree with Chinese assessments that 300,000 people died during the six days when the Imperial Japanese Army overran China’s then capital. He also objects to the use of the term massacre, preferring the more anodyne “Nanjing Incident.”
ご参考まで共同通信のインタービューの一部を掲載しました。
著書 南京が陥落してから人口が増え始め、翌１月には、２５万人に膨れ上がった。戦闘が終わって治安が回復されて、人々が南京へと戻ってきたのだ。このことからも「南京大虐殺」などなかったことは、明白だ。歴史の事実として「南京大虐殺」は、なかった。それは、中華民国政府が 捏造 （ねつぞう） した、プロパガンダだった。
ストークス氏 そうは言えない。（この文章は）私のものではない。後から付け加えられた。修正する必要がある。私は「ＭＡＳＳＡＣＲＥ（大虐殺）」という言葉は好まない。その表現は日本語では使えるが英語だとぞっとするほど恐ろしい。大虐殺と呼べないにせよ、南京で何か非常に恐ろしい事件が起きたかと問われれば、答えはイエスだ。中華民国政府のプロパガンダは（南京大虐殺が史実とされる）理由の一つだが唯一の理由ではない。
The interview conducted with VOICE magazine’s March issue by Mr. Stokes also has the following seeming affirmation of the Nanjing Incident and affirms the credibility of the book China’s War With Japan by Rana Mitter.
「もちろん、日本の一部の右派がいうような「南京ではレイプも殺人も何も起きなかった。証拠がないという論調にも与することもできません。現実的ではありませんし、国際社会を納得させることもできないでしょう」
[…] In regards to "Questions surround reporter’s revisionist take on Japan’s history&qu… […]
VOICEという雑誌の記事でストークスさんの発言を読めば、いかに当該本が右翼の主張に化かされたのがよくわかります。
Henryは共同通信の記事が嘘だと言ってるだろ。
いい加減に売国奴は何でもねつ造できるわけじゃないと知れ。
共同通信の相違点をよく読んでください。共同通信がインタビューを録音していると書いています。ストークス氏の発言はねつ造だと思ったら、共同通信に聞いてみてください。また、「売国奴」という言葉は罵り言葉であり、もっと紳士的に論じる方法はあるのではないでしょうか。
http://www.47news.jp/47topics/e/253295.php
著書 南京が陥落してから人口が増え始め、翌１月には、２５万人に膨れ上がった。戦闘が終わって治安が回復されて、人々が南京へと戻ってきたのだ。このことからも「南京大虐殺」などなかったことは、明白だ。歴史の事実として「南京大虐殺」は、なかった。それは、中華民国政府が 捏造 （ねつぞう） した、プロパガンダだった。
ストークス氏 そうは言えない。（この文章は）私のものではない。後から付け加えられた。修正する必要がある。私は「ＭＡＳＳＡＣＲＥ（大虐殺）」という言葉は好まない。その表現は日本語では使えるが英語だとぞっとするほど恐ろしい。大虐殺と呼べないにせよ、南京で何か非常に恐ろしい事件が起きたかと問われれば、答えはイエスだ。中華民国政府のプロパガンダは（南京大虐殺が史実とされる）理由の一つだが唯一の理由ではない。
５月１７日の弁護士インタビューによるストークス氏の釈明会見です。
共同通信の報道を自ら否定しています。
【GoHooインタビュー】「南京大虐殺」否定説の真相 … – YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSkj18t__zE
またストーク氏の以下の講演内容とストーク氏の著書の内容は一貫した整合性があります。
①日米開戦70周年記念講演会 ヘンリー・ストークス1 – YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVwuHylK4TE
②日米開戦70周年記念講演会 ヘンリー・ストークス2 – YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AP7LgRpnrHM
③大東亜会議70周年記念大会 ⑦ ヘンリー・ストークス … – YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyAAvIzsyV0s …
④”the Light of Hope in Asia” By Henry S. Stokes – YouTube
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKHKYaJba6g
VOICEのインタビューを読んでください。矛盾だらけの発言です。共同通信とのインタビュー後の発言は修正でしょう。印税が惜しい？
[…] その経緯と、藤田氏、ストークス氏に送ったメールも公表しているよ。 http://www.japansubculture.com/in-regards-to-questions-surround-reporters-revisionist-take-on-japans… […]
[…] on important points from what is written in your book,” transcriber Angela Erika Kubo wrote in a May 4 email to […]
[…] on important points from what is written in your book,” transcriber Angela Erika Kubo wrote in a May 4 email to […]
[…] on important points from what is written in your book,” transcriber Angela Erika Kubo wrote in a May 4 email to […]
Consistently until now from the Tokyo Trial, the Japanese government has denied the massacre or holocaust, illegal under the international law in Nanjing. On the other hand, admits incidents that was shooting a convenient clothes soldiers in which civilians became the sacrifice (legal on international law ). Mr Henry Stoke is also a similar position. Both are not in the history revisionism But Japanese government has responsibility for the war itself. Mr. Stokes issued a statement that Kyodo News article has been a mistake. Ms Angela Erika Kubo also says to the translater Mr FUJITA 「Henry’s mouth and that the interviews don’t reflect his real opinions or thoughts–and that there are many leading questions （誘導尋問）
What do you say to this interview with Mr. Stokes, Ms. Kubo?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSkj18t__zE
What do you say to the interview he did with VOICE? Before the Kyodo interview. In which he affirms the Nanjing Incident as a massacre?
You deny his OWN words? You don’t admit that you are wrong at least about him and you claim he did that for money? I find you a propagandist and hell of a journalist.
I totally believe that Nanjing was the worst atrocity of the war. And Hiroshima never happened. It was just Japanese propaganda. There was no atomic bomb dropped on Japan.
As a schoolboy growing up in America (1980’s) we were taught that TWO atomic bombs were dropped. One on Hiroshima and one on Nagasaki, and that extraordinary suffering and damage was done by these two bombs. We were also taught about the firebombing of Tokyo and Dresden (Germany) which had similar effects to a nuclear bomb. We were shown many images and a documentary on the effects of the nuclear bombs and the long term consequences. While we were given an American spin on history, there was no contention about the underlying facts. That’s the point. Having met and known many Japanese people, my view of the Japanese is not conditioned on the actions of the imperial army or that of a nation in a brief portion of it’s thousand plus year history. Neither should the view of America be conditioned upon the era of slavery or the indian wars, which we were also taught about in detail. When as a boy i realized that the man my grandmother talked about as a good person (her grand father) was also a cavalry soldier involved in the massacre of Indian Americans, I realized that we are all capable of these things and so it takes vigilance and effort by society to prevent it happening again. The point being a real assessment of history is essential to prevention.
[…] Erika Kubo氏の記事を載せたサイト運営者です。 ＞http://www.japansubculture.com/in-regards-to-questions-surround-reporters-revisionist-take-on-japans… ＞Angela Erika Kubo氏と一緒に記事を書いてもいます。 […]