The Nanjing War Crimes Tribunal was established in 1946 by the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

Chiang Kai-shek Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...

to judge

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...

officers accused of crimes committed during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

. It was one of ten tribunals established by the Nationalist government. The accused included Lieutenant General Hisao Tani, the general

Rensuke Isogai was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and Governor of Hong Kong under Japanese occupation from February 20, 1942 to December 24, 1944. Biography Early career A native of Hyōgo Prefecture, Isogai graduated from the 16th class of the Impe ...

, company commander Captain Gunkichi Tanaka and Second Lieutenants

Toshiaki Mukai Toshiaki is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Toshiaki can be written using many different combinations of kanji characters. Some examples: *敏明, "agile, bright" *敏朗, "agile, clear" *敏晃, "agile, clear" *敏章, "agil ...

and

Tsuyoshi Noda Tsuyoshi is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Tsuyoshi can be written using different kanji characters. Here are some examples: *剛, "sturdy" *剛史, "sturdy, history" *剛志, "sturdy, will" *剛士, "sturdy, gentleman/samura ...

, made famous by the contest to kill 100 people using a sword. General Yasuji Okamura was convicted of war crimes in July 1948 by the Tribunal, but was immediately protected by the personal order of Nationalist leader

, who retained him as a military adviser for the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...

(KMT). While he was questioned by the investigators, he however testified about the

Nanking massacre The Nanjing Massacre (, ja, 南京大虐殺, Nankin Daigyakusatsu) or the Rape of Nanjing (formerly romanized as ''Nanking'') was the mass murder of Chinese civilians in Nanjing, the capital of the Republic of China, immediately after the Ba ...

I surmised the following based on what I heard from Staff Officer Miyazaki, CCAA Special Service Department Chief Harada and Hangzhou Special Service Department Chief Hagiwara a day or two after I arrived in Shanghai. First, it is true that tens of thousands of acts of violence, such as looting and rape, took place against civilians during the assault on Nanking. Second, front-line troops indulged in the evil practice of executing POWs on the pretext of (lacking) rations.

Iwane Matsui was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and the commander of the expeditionary force sent to China in 1937. He was convicted of war crimes and executed by the Allies for his involvement in the Nanjing Massacre. Born in Nagoya, Matsui chose ...

had been judged by the Tokyo tribunal; Prince Kan'in Kotohito, Kesago Nakajima and

Heisuke Yanagawa was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II. Japanese forces under Yanagawa's command committed the 1937 Nanking Massacre. Biography Born in what is now part of Nagasaki city, Nagasaki prefecture, Yanagawa was raised in Ōita Pr ...

had been dead since 1945;

Isamu Cho is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Isamu can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *勇, "courage" or "bravery" *勲, "merit" *敢, "gallantry" *武, "war" The name can also be written in hiragana or katak ...

had committed suicide; and

Prince Yasuhiko Asaka General was the founder of a collateral branch of the Japanese imperial family and a general in the Imperial Japanese Army during the Japanese invasion of China and the Second World War. Son-in-law of Emperor Meiji and uncle by marriage of Em ...

had been granted immunity by General

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was C ...

as a member of the imperial family. Hisao Tani was therefore the only other general prosecuted for the

Nanjing Massacre The Nanjing Massacre (, ja, 南京大虐殺, Nankin Daigyakusatsu) or the Rape of Nanjing (formerly romanized as ''Nanking'') was the mass murder of Chinese civilians in Nanjing, the capital of the Republic of China, immediately after the Ba ...

. He was found guilty on 6 February 1947 and executed by a firing squad on 26 April. All the accused were sentenced to death in 1947. The death toll of 300,000 is the official estimate engraved on the stone wall at the entrance of the Memorial Hall for Compatriot Victims of the Japanese Military's Nanjing Massacre in Nanjing.

Notable defendants

: Former governor of Hong Kong and

Chief of Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

of the Kwantung Army. Sentenced to life imprisonment. Released in 1952 and allowed to return to Japan. Died in 1967. * Takashi Sakai: Former governor of Hong Kong and commander of various Japanese armies in China. Sentenced to death and executed in 1946. *

Hisakazu Tanaka was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army, and governor of Japanese-occupied Hong Kong in World War II. His name is occasionally transliterated "Tanaka Hisaichi". Biography Early career Tanaka was born in Hyōgo Prefecture to the K ...

: Former governor of Hong Kong and commander of the 23rd Army. Sentenced to death and executed in 1947. * Hisao Tani: A commander of Japanese units that committed the

. Sentenced to death and executed in 1947. * Lieutenants

and

: The two main participants in the " Contest to kill 100 people using a sword": Both sentenced to death and executed in 1948. * Captain Gunkichi Tanaka: Personally killed over 300 Chinese POWs and civilians with his sword during the Nanjing Massacre. Sentenced to death and executed in 1948.

References

Citations

Sources

; Book * Philip R. Piccigallo, ''The Japanese on Trial : Allied War Crimes Operations in the East'', 1945–1951, University of Texas press, 33, 73 {{Authority control Crime of aggression Crimes against humanity Japanese war crimes World War II war crimes trials

Notable defendants

See also

References

Citations

Sources