The Forgotten History: Textbook Controversy and Sino-Japanese Relations

History plays an important role in shaping the relations between Japan and China. Because Japan’s military expansionism during 1931-1945 has left a deep scar in the memories of the Chinese population, the issue of history remains at the core of Sino-Japanese diplomacy. Since the 1980s, the Chinese government has consistently accused the Japanese government of revising and obscuring Japan’s wartime history, notably that of the Japanese military aggression in China during 1931-1945. China’s reaction against the Japanese government’s whitewashing of history demonstrates the fear that, by rendering Japanese youths oblivious of their nation’s militarist past, Japan may repeat its past. While diplomatic negotiations to improve SinoJapanese relations have taken place, disagreement over historical interpretation continues to fuel the discontent between the two countries.