The Evening Star (July 9, 1946)
Emperor knew of plan to occupy Manchuria, Tokyo court is told
TOKYO (AP) – Emperor Hirohito was in silent attendance at a 1931 Privy Council meeting during which it was decided to “pacify and occupy” Manchuria, the International Military Tribunal heard today.
The prosecution in the trial of former Premier Hideki Tojo and 26 other accused war plotters disclosed this in reading prison interrogations of former Gen. Sadao Araki, one-time war minister and now one of the defendants.
Emperor Hirohito knew about the occupation plan, Araki answered when asked if the monarch had approved the scheme. Araki said he himself decided soon after becoming war minister that the four North China provinces (Manchuria) should be occupied by Japanese troops.
Blamed Kwantung Army
Earlier the prosecution introduced three telegrams sent the morning after the “Mukden incident” by the Japanese consul at Mukden to the then foreign minister, Baron Kijuro Shidehara, at Tokyo, blaming the Kwantung Army for the affair and asking the government to halt the aggression.
The consul “presumed” the Kwantung Army was “planning to start positive operations” in Manchuria.
Former Maj. Gen. Ryukichi Tanaka, who was a Kwantung Army officer, concluded his testimony by saying anti-Communism was adopted as the slogan for advances of the Japanese armies into Manchuria.
He said the Japanese-Manchukuoan treaty for “inseparable relationship” was actually only “window dressing” for Nipponese control of that puppet state.
Under defense questioning Tanaka admitted he had lived for a time next door to Chief Prosecutor Joseph B. Keenan and that he had received some supplies and rations from the prosecution. There was no further questioning along this line, and Tanaka was dismissed.
Defense attorney rebuked
A defense attorney was sharply rebuked for “impertinence” by the president of the tribunal.
Sir William Webb, chief justice, declared that the “peace and tranquility” which Japanese defendants say followed their conquests could not be considered a defense for the 27 accused war plotters.
When Lt. Col. George Furness, an American defense attorney, asked if the statement was a decision on aggression and whether the tribunal held that previous treaties between nations made no difference, Sir William replied: “You completely missed the point I said the peace and tranquility brought about by Japanese forces. You are very impertinent. We will deal with you if necessary.”
The Pittsburgh Press (July 9, 1946)
Jap says Hirohito knew of invasion
TOKYO (UP) – The Jap expansion into Manchuria was ordered with the sanction of the Cabinet and the Privy Council at a meeting attended by Emperor Hirohito himself, former War Minister Sadao Araki testified today in the war crimes trial.
In an affidavit introduced by the prosecution, Araki said he had ordered the army to move into four provinces only after the government decided that the occupation was necessary to “pacify” those areas.
In February or March 1932, Araki said, the Cabinet met to form an administrative committee to set up the independent state of Manchukuo at the request of the Kwantung Army in Manchuria.
Wiener Kurier (July 10, 1946)
Tokio borgt sich Nürnbergs Methoden aus
Auch Japans Kriegsverbrecher handelten ‚auf Befehl‘
Tokio (INS) - Nach den bisher vorliegenden Berichten über den Kriegsverbrecherprozeß gegen die 27 Verantwortlichen der früheren japanischen Regierung und des japanischen Heeres ergibt sich ein ähnliches Bild wie in dem Prozeß gegen die deutschen Hauptkriegsverbrecher in Nürnberg.
Hier wie dort wird die Schuld auf bereits verstorbene Personen geschoben oder die eigene Verantwortung durch Hinweis auf erhaltene Befehle abzuleugnen versucht.
In Fortsetzung des Verhörs der von der Anklagevertretung namhaft gemachten Zeugen wurde in der gestrigen Sitzung der frühere japanische General Baron Ryukichi Tanaka vernommen. Er bezeichnet« die Stellung, die er im Jahre 1937 als Generalstabschef des ehemaligen japanischen Ministerpräsidenten und Hauptkriegsverbrechers Nr. 1, Tojo, eingenommen hatte, als unwesentlich und einflußlos.
Im Gleichklang zu den Nürnberger Kriegsverbrechern hatte auch Tanaka bereits im September 1940 angeblich dringend zur Aufgabe der japanischen Kriegspolitik gedrängt.
Die Verhandlung wird morgen fortgesetzt.
The Evening Star (July 10, 1946)
War crimes tribunal in Tokyo won’t bow to Nuernberg rules
TOKYO (AP) – The International War Crimes Tribunal has the “greatest respect” for decisions handed down in the trial of Nazi war criminals at Nuernberg, but it will not be bound by those decisions, Chief Justice Sir William Webb declared today.
Addressing his remarks to an American defense attorney, Sir William said: “You are wrong if you think we are slavishly going to follow” precedents set at Nuernberg. There were four nations prosecuting at Nuernberg, he added, while “those four and seven others are here.”
The defense attorney, William Logan of New York, had requested that when the prosecution reads excerpts from a defendant’s confession, the defense be allowed at that time to read any part that explains further the excerpts. Mr. Logan cited a Nuernberg precedent.
While he reacted sharply to the reference to the Nuernberg precedent, Sir William said it was the duty of the prosecution “to read the whole of an answer or it may otherwise mislead the court.”
The chief justice announced that the court would adjourn at noon until Monday morning to permit completion of an air-conditioning system in the sweltering courtroom.
“The heat is interfering with the proper discharge of our duties,” Sir William said, after another tiff with defense counsel.
Evidence was presented today that fully two years before Japan created the 1937 China incident the Kwantung Army prepared a plan of propaganda “to convince the whole world of our lawfulness.”
A secret army document introduced by the prosecution sought to show that some of the 27 alleged war plotters now on trial were deeply involved in plans for Japanese expansion of the Asiatic mainland.
Wiener Kurier (July 11, 1946)
Hirohito war an der Invasion in China mitschuldig
Tokio (INS) - Dem Internationalen Kriegsgerichtshof zur Aburteilung von 27 japanischen Kriegsverbrechern wurde eine schriftliche Aussage vorgelegt, in der es heißt, daß Kaiser Hirohito Mitwisser an der Planung der japanischen Invasion in China war, die vor 15 Jahren begann.
Diese Feststellung wurde in einem Verhör mit dem angeklagten früheren Kriegsminister Sadao Araki gemacht. Araki hatte ausgesagt, daß der Kaiser bei einer Sitzung des japanischen Kabinetts und des geheimen Rates Im Dezember 1931 anwesend war. In dieser Sitzung seien die Geldmittel zur Deckung der Besatzungskosten von vier nordchinesischen Provinzen bewilligt worden.