Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Today in History

December 13, 1642
Abel Tasman, the Dutch navigator, and his crew were the first Europeans to arrive to New Zealand. Several of his men were killed in attempting to land when Maoris interpreted an exchange of trumpet fanfares as a prelude to battle. Maoris call New Zealand "Aotearoa" which means the "Land of the Long White Cloud."

Maoris first arrived to New Zealand about 10 centuries ago:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com.au/dest/aust/maori.htm


December 13, 1937
In one of the worst atrocities of World War II, Japanese troops invaded the Chinese city of Nanking (at the time China's capital) and over the following few months killed nearly 370,000 Chinese civilians. The violent episode has become known as the "Rape of Nanking" because about 80,000 women of all ages were raped by Japanese soldiers.

"The Rape of Nanking" by Shi Young and James Yin is a new book on the
subject:
http://www.tribo.org/nanking/background.html

Source: The LearningKingdom


On the local front, in The Star today:

Nude squat woman identified

PETALING JAYA: The woman featured in the video clip doing ear squats in the nude testified on Tuesday before the Commission of Inquiry probing the incident.

She is a 22-year old Malay, and is currently three-months pregnant.

Related Stories:
Nude woman in video clip may testify today
Azmi returns with China’s message for enforcers
OCPD: Squats are standard procedure
Panel takes a peek at room
Club patrons perform ear squats

6 comments:

  1. Thanks for following up on this hot news.. at least now I know she is a Malay women.. not what they say that she is a China women or whatever.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Not sure if one would consider the identification of the woman as a climax or an anti-climax. So much hullabaloo about it - govts getting involved and all that - and looking back, all that sour feeling between the two countries needn't have happened.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Whatever the nationality or race, such treatment of people should be unacceptable. I am ashamed to carry a US Passport at times because of what my homeland has been doing of late. No matter how big or small any abuse of power is, or who is involved, it is wrong and needs to be brought to light and corrected. To point fingers and argue who is worse is to fall into an endless trap.

    I live in Japan and the government here still denies responsibility for its aggression in world war two, still does not sincerely apologize, still refuses to compensate victims, such as the women forced into sex slavery for the Imperial Army.

    There is a difference between governments and people though. The people of Japan are much divided on such issues and perhaps half do recognize Japan's responsibilities. I am presently working on an artilcle on this subject. Very disturbing. Not only Japan's actions but also the USA coverup because of the cold war.

    That is interesting that the Dutch were the first Europeans to visit New Zealand. Maoris are fearce warriors. They are related to the Hawaiians and Tahitians. Masters of navigation of the Pacific.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ironically, the only place I've seen in Japan where they openly acknowledge the Rape of Nanking is the A-bomb museum in Hiroshima!

    ReplyDelete
  5. The sino-japanese hate has been going on ages and ages. Because of non-tolerance of both countries, such issues would not get resolved. Like panda said some people in Japan still deny everything, and do not face the history. Also, I would like to add, the Chinese part has done their part in instilling hate in their youths. The spirit of nationalism is so high - the youths are incited to hate Japanese unconditionallly, they just despise whatever Japanese thing - culture, product, people. I saw on chinese bbs forums all sorts of hate-driven posts, flashes, jokes, comics...

    It is very sad to see people of such similar background hating one another. As long as hate goes on, the issue will not end. So are many other issues around the world.

    Regarding the Malaysian news about the lockup video, although the report explained that nude squat is a procedure to 'uncover hidden things in private parts', I still feel there is certain level of the abuse of human rights in such actions. I am not a lawyer, and would like to ask whether anyone who knows law and rights can explain the boundaries of rights, and practice of police to further elaborate?

    Also, i think no matter what race that woman is, the more important issue that strikes me is again, human rights, but as moody said, it is a very relative term.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Pandabonium, yd, I totally agree that nationality nor race does not justify violation of human rights. I think in this ear-squatting case, the identification of race/nationality is crucial in that if it's a non-Chinese national, relations between the two nations will not be affected as if it were a Chinese national. I am sure bringing this problem to light has created awareness and will effect positive changes.

    Yes, the Dutch were rather influential at one time but they were not very good at leaving a legacy unlike the English.

    Thanks for the info on Hawaiians and Tahitians being related to Maoris. The Polynesians too I believe.

    MM, this is understandable considering that the Japanese were the perpetrators.

    yd, this is so sad if it's still happening in China. How will people live harmoniously together if there is so much anger and recollection of the bad past. Looks like 'forgive and forget' is easier said than done.

    ReplyDelete