The end of the Second World War

Today, 15 August marks the 81st anniversary of the end of the Second World War. I often think about how suddenly it all seems to have happened; after years of slow and laborious fighting across the Pacific, the decision to end the war happened quite quickly, all within the space of just a few days. I also have to consider what today means to people outside of Japan, and especially those who lived in a place where 15 August marked the beginning of uncertainty, and not the end of it. Let's take a look at the events.

The beginning of the end was the atomic bombing and destruction of Hiroshima on 6 August. While it was not clear to the Japanese how many more such weapons existed, it was obvious that the Allied demand for unconditional surrender, announced at Potsdam one month prior, was meant to be taken seriously. Japanese-held territory in Manchuria was invaded by the Soviet Union just three days later. The Red Army quickly overran Japanese lines, brushed aside the Kwantung Army, and pushed south. A few hours after that, the city of Nagasaki was devastated by a second atomic bombing.

The effect of the atomic bombs, the collapse of Manchuria, and the general devastation on the Japanese mainland from constant Allied air raids all informed the decision to end the war. The following day, 10 August, the Konoe government informed the Allies that it would accept the terms of the Potsdam Declaration. This decision was not taken lightly, and several IJA Officers attempted to overthrow the government (and had plans to depose the Emperor) in order to continue the war and fight to the death.

This coup failed, and Emperor Hirohito's surrender broadcast went out at noon the following day, 15 August. The men, women and children of Japan listened in disbelief as a thin voice, pre-recorded the night prior, announced in classical Japanese that the war was unwinnable, and the Emperor had directed his ministers to accept the terms of the Potsdam Declaration. Although the Emperor's message was meant to be one of certainty, there was much doubt sown into the moment. Would the Emperor remain on the throne? Was Japan to be occupied? Was the fighting over? None of these questions were answered in the broadcast. This uncertainty in Japan, however, pales in comparison to the impact of the surrender around the world.

Imperial Rescript of Surrender

The scars of the Second World War are too many to name, and it would be a mistake to assume that war ended with the defeat of Japan, or indeed Germany. When the Emperor's broadcast went out on 15 August, the Cold War had already begun in Europe. A new front against communism seemed to open every day around the world, from China to Cuba. The signing of the surrender document on 2 September marked the end of one conflict and the beginning of several dozen others, many of which are still alive today, in various states of activity. Some of these are within the brief of this website and its blog.

Suddenly liberated from Japanese occupation on 15 August were tens of millions of people in China and Korea. Communists were the big winner here; having successfuly taken the momentum in the Second Sino-Japanese War, Mao Zedong wasted no time consolidating power in China. The collapse of the Nationalists under Chiang Kai-shek led to their exodus to Taiwan, itself a Japanese colony since 1895, where they promptly declared themselves the legitimate government of China. Josef Stalin, winner of a two-front world war, was all too eager to put a barrier between him and the Allies. He handed Manchura to Mao and created a puppet state in Korea under Kim Il-Sung. War followed, and the Korean Conflict (1950-53) ended only after the loss of some 800,000 men and 1.2 million non-combatants. The failed settlement of the former Japanese empire continues to affect us today throughout East Asia, most notably in the illegal occuptation of the Kurile Islands, the Taiwan Strait, and the Korean DMZ.

The vacuum left by the Japanse in the fomer Dutch, British, and French colonies of Southeast Asia was quickly filled by nationalist movements, and the Dutch East Indies, Malaya, and Indochina were quickly engulfed in their own struggle for legitimacy and sovereignty. The Indonesian National Revolution (4 years) Malayan Emergency (12 years) and First and Second Indochina Wars (46 years) saw the defeat of European power in the region and the rise of powerful independent states like Vietnam and Singapore. The Vietnam War (1955-1975) defined a generation of Americans and the country's military capability. These conflicts began almost immediately after the end of the Second World War; a testament to the destabilizing power of the Japanese invasions in 1941-42.

For the people of Japan's oceanic empire in Micronesia, the end of the war opened up new uncertainties. Places like Saipan, Kosrae, and Palau had been under occupation by one power or another for over 270 years. Smaller islands like Chuuk and Yap fell into this group as well. The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands was created under UN stewardship to help manage the various island groups; nearly all of them eventually gained independence. Only Guam, a U.S. territory briefly held by Japan during the war, was held outside of this new push for self-government. The people of the island remain in limbo, having no sovereignty of their own.

In the Philippines, where over 330 years of Spanish rule ended suddenly with the arrival of the Americans in 1898, and Japanese in 1941, sovereignty was bought dearly. The Filipino fought and lost two wars of independence against the Spanish and Americans before the Second World War, and they suffered greatly under Japanese occupation. The liberation of the Philippines was probably the greatest victory of the Pacific War, not least because of the media savvy of General Douglas MacArthur, the breadth of the landmass that needed to be conquered, and the dogged work of the Filipino troops. Freedom and independence, sovereignty and legitimacy went hand in hand with this effort, although the country has been wracked with internal conflicts with communist and later islamic insurgencies since the 1960's.

Officially in Japan today is the Memorial for the end of the war. It's considered a day to mark the end of a dark time in history that Japan decided to climb out of. In my opinion, this is a positive way to look at it, however we must also consider what 15 August means to people outside of the home islands. We needn't look very far; the people of Okinawa didn't know that the Americans, with the consent of the national government in Tokyo, would administer their islands post-occupation. They found out when the peace treaty was signed in San Francisco in 1951. This stab in the back was felt acutely throughout the Ryukyu's and is still an important part of local and regional politics today.

For the people of Okinawa, Micronesia, the Philippines, Southeast Asia, Korea, and China, 15 August is an important day. But it is by no means a day of finality. Today, we should spare a few minutes of our time to think of the people who suffered the most during and after the Second World War, particularly in places where the battles continue. For them, their descendents, and all the rest of us, let us do what we can to ensure such a tragedy never happens again.

Tony