Review:
This exemplary work of collaborative scholarship represents a genuine breakthrough in our understanding of the processes behind, and consequences of, Allied efforts to prosecute Japanese war crimes in the aftermath of the Second World War. Drawing on archival sources gathered from all corners of the globe, it not only provides an impressive overview of the thousands of individual trials conducted by the Allies across the Asia-Pacific region, but also details the complex tangle of considerations that resulted in the release of all remaining prisoners by the end of 1958. Rejecting the simple opposition between politics and justice that has so often been used to frame discussions of the trials, it instead offers a deeply compelling account of the moral, legal and practical dilemmas that haunt every episode in this profoundly important history.--Daniel Botsman, Yale University
I cannot think of a similar work with such a broad scope...This book is a product of an enormous, novel, research effort and it shows. The authors illustrate the development of an Inter-Allied system of legal assistance for purposes ranging from the transfer of evidence to suspects and prisoners developed from 1946 and which worked until 1959. It makes for a fascinating account of international cooperation.--Neil Boister, University of Waikato
The Allied authorities meted out retributive justice to thousands of Japanese war criminals in the immediate aftermath of World War II. However, "the sentences were only the start of a new phase in applying justice to war criminals," so this book warns us, and compels us to consider the implications of the complex interplay of domestic politics and diplomacy that led to the eventual release of all convicted war criminals--Yuma Totani, University of Hawaii
Anyone interested in the continuing ramifications of the way in which Japanese war guilt was (or was not) addressed following the Second World War would do well to read this book.--Australian Outlook
Explores with exemplary nuance and clarity how the Allies handled difficult issues--Foreign Affairs
This book constitutes valuable collaborative research featuring a well-rounded examination of the transnational efforts that resulted in the prosecution, punishment, and--perhaps surprising to some readers--release of high- and low-level Japanese war criminals after the Second World War. Writing in accessible, plain English and basing their conclusions on materials written in multiple languages, including Dutch, French, and Japanese, the authors of Japanese War Criminals: The Politics of Justice after the Second World War cogently synthesize diverse national and historical perspectives on the ins and outs, pros and cons, and winners and losers of Allied investigations into the wartime misconduct of Japanese military personnel and political figures. . . . Readers of all sorts will benefit from engaging with this well-articulated work of joint scholarship.--Lee K. Pennington "The American Historical Review "
Named a Best Book of 2018 by Foreign Affairs--Foreign Affairs
A groundbreaking work that makes a significant contribution to current WW II scholarship.--Choice
About the Author:
Sandra Wilson is professor of history in the School of Arts and a fellow of the Asia Research Centre at Murdoch University. She is the author of The Manchurian Crisis and Japanese Society, 1931-33 (2002). Robert Cribb is professor of Asian history at the Australian National University. He is author (with Li Narangoa) of the Historical Atlas of Northeast Asia: Korea, Manchuria, Mongolia, Eastern Siberia (Columbia, 2014). Beatrice Trefalt is senior lecturer in Japanese studies at Monash University. She is the author of Japanese Army Stragglers and Memories of the War in Japan, 1950-1975 (2003), and coeditor, with Chris Dixon and Sean Brawley, of Competing Voices from the Pacific War (2009). Dean Aszkielowicz teaches at Murdoch University and is the author of The Australian Pursuit of Japanese War Criminals, 1943-1958: From Foe to Friend (forthcoming).
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