Illustration: Chen Xia/GT

Recently, a Japanese man posted on X about an "emergency family meeting." The meeting was triggered by his daughter, a student at an international school, who said, "I feel ashamed to be Japanese" after learning about the Nanjing Massacre in her history class. 

His wife insisted that "Japan did not commit such acts," while the father himself dug up a wartime Western media report that distorted the facts, blaming Chinese soldiers for atrocities committed by Japanese troops. The daughter pushed back, arguing that other countries did not share this view. The post quickly went viral, drawing sharply divided reactions.

This international debate, sparked by a simple "family meeting," reveals a harsh reality - the right-wing historical revisionism has long permeated Japanese society, and Japan's understanding of history remains seriously out of step with the international community.

Behind the split in historical perception: the danger of Japan's deliberately engineered right-wing shift

A poll released by NHK shows that Japanese under 30 have a significantly vaguer understanding of World War II history, a direct result of long-term exposure to distorted historical views promoted by right-wing forces.

As a prominent right-wing figure, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has repeatedly denied historical facts. Under the long-term influence of right-wing forces, history textbooks in Japan have been systematically altered: aggression is whitewashed as "entering into China;" the Nanjing Massacre, documented by irrefutable evidence, is downplayed as the "Nanjing Incident," with perpetrators' identities covered up and the number of victims dismissed as "uncertain;" and the "comfort women" scheme is falsely described as "voluntary" and "commercial." 

At the same time, Japan has peddled a "victim narrative" about the Tokyo air raids and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, in an attempt to minimize Japan's guilt as an aggressor. 

Such despicable tactics, ignoring historical truth and reversing black and white, continue to poison Japan's younger generation and have planted the seed for the right wing to repeat the mistakes of the past.

From Japan to the world: global resistance to historical revisionism

Notably, most comments on the post were critical. 

A Singaporean netizen wrote bluntly: "As a Singaporean, it feels frankly rude that they don't even bother denying the Sook Ching (massacre of anti-Japanese elements in Singapore during Japan's occupation) as well. Are we not famous enough?" 

A Thai netizen sighed: "Do the Japanese really choose to cover their eyes and ears?" 

A South Korean netizen posted a photo of a Japanese media report on the "100 man killing contest" and asked: "Are the Japanese ashamed of their ancestors?" 

European and American netizens pointed to Germany as an example: "Germans aren't demeaned by learning about their history and rising above it." 

The international community's vigilance against Japanese historical revisionism is further enhanced by the stark contrast with Germany. The German government has fully atoned for Nazi crimes and criminalized the public denial of Nazi massacres. 

In contrast, the Japanese government still enshrines Class-A war criminals in its so-called shrine, and Japanese politicians continue to pay homage there. If Germany can face its past, why can't Japan?

History must not be tampered with; lessons must not be forgotten

From misleading children with out-of-context "historical materials" at the family level, to immersing its people in distorted historical views at the societal level, and to blatantly denying war crimes and paying tribute to war criminals at the political level, Japan's right-wing drift has infiltrated politics, public opinion and education. 

There is a real risk that this will create a cycle of misinformation passed down from generation to generation, driven by the right-wing ambition to whitewash Japan's history of aggression and revive militarism.

However, historical truth will never disappear due to deliberate cover-ups, and the international community's consensus will never waver because of a few quibblers. 

The historical lies fabricated by Japanese right-wingers will eventually crumble in the face of universally recognized facts and will be condemned by neighboring Asian countries and people around the world. 

The author is an international affairs observer. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn