On Thursday, the Japanese ambassador to Myanmar Ichiro Maruyama stated that Japan believes that Myanmar did not commit any genocide on the Rohingya people.
The Japanese ambassador said, “I don’t think that the Myanmar Tatmadaw [military] committed genocide or [had the] intent of genocide. I also don’t think that they have the intention to kill all the Muslim residents in Rakhine.” as quoted in The Irrawaddy.
“If there were human rights violations, it is important [that Myanmar conduct prosecutions] itself. We will urge the Myanmar government and military to take action seriously,” Maruyama added.
According to Mr Furkaan, a Rohingya refugee,” We Rohingya think the Japanese did not forget the second world war and as most of the Rohingyas supported the British, we think until now Japan does not like us.”
Japan’s official support of Myanmar’s stand in the genocide case followed a visit to Myanmar by Natsuo Yamaguchi who a member of Japan’s Upper House from the country’s Komeito party, also a member of Japan’s coalition government. The top item on Yamaguchi’s agenda was to explain the Japanese government’s stand on the genocide allegation against Myanmar following the ICJ case.
During Yamaguchi’s stay in Myanmar from 21st December to 25th December, he met Aung San Suu Kyi and military chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing. He promised Japan would continue to help Myanmar solve the problems in Rakhine State, according to the Japanese ambassador.
The UN’s International Court of Justice (ICJ), in March 2014 ruled that the Japanese whaling program, known then as – “JARPA II”, in the Southern Ocean, including inside the Australian Whale Sanctuary, was not in accordance with the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, and was not for scientific purposes, as it had claimed.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Japan to cease operations.
