The Government of Japan will now act as intermediary in case you wish to return war relics to families

[Nick Komiya]

Here is an announcement to collectors from the government of Japan. For those who wish to return Yosegaki flags and Senninbari to the families of the fallen, the government is now volunteering to locate the family for you and will return it on your behalf.

The only comment from me on this is that the items really dear to the bereaved families are those items collected from the dead on the battlefield by US soldiers, as most such cases have left the families believing that the souls of the loved ones are still wandering, unable to return to their families. For such families, who only received news of death of their fathers or brothers without anything tangible returning to them, there has been no closure yet, and thus flags and dog tags, etc returned to them are, so to speak, highly spirit-charged.

In contrast, the same items from those who made it home alive, carry no spirit trying to find their way home, and some would have gladly disposed of such items as mementos of a past they wanted to put behind and be ridden of. So if your item came from post war Japan, there is less likelihood that the families would be overjoyed to have it back, as they likely sold it in the first place.


I quote below their message. Note that there is a downloadable application form.

For those of you, who have memorabilia of Japanese war dead, such as Nisshoki with messages or Senninbari

Selling wartime relics, such as Nisshoki ( the national flag of Japan) with the personal name of the war dead attached , on online Internet auctions for sale may hurt the feelings of bereaved families.

If you have such a wartime relic and do not know what to do with it, please send us information as we may be able to identify the bereaved family from our data.

Specifically, we will try to identify the original owner of the wartime relic or their bereaved family by collating evidence from the relic, such as name or name of the military unit to which the owner belonged, with the date at the ministry, working in cooperation with prefectural and municipal governments in Japan.

Once the original owner's or the bereaved family's intention to accept the return of the relic is confirmed,we will collect the relic from you and return it to the original owner or the bereaved family.

Nisshoki with messages from loved ones and Senninbari (a cloth with one thousand stitches) were given by families and loved ones to Japanese soldiers as they departed for war, and the soldiers kept such relics close to them during the war. For some bereaved families who have no memorabilia or remains of their loved ones, the lost Nisshoki and other artifacts may be the only memento that they will have of their loved ones .

Please know that it is of considerable heartache and sadness for the bereaved families, who are waiting to have the remains or other memorabilia of their loved ones returned to them, to see such memorabilia traded on online auctions.

○ Inquiries to:
Investigation group #2, Planning Division of Recovery of the Remains of War Dead ,Social Welfare and War Victims’ Relief Bureau, Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare of Japan
Telephone: 03-5253-111 (extension: 3476)
E-mail:suisin@mhlw.go.jp

○ Application for Research on Lost Artifacts
（Click to download the Application for Reserch on Lost Artifacts.

In requesting research on wartime relics, please fill the application form and return it to the Planning Division of Recovery of the Remains of War Dead, Social Welfare and War Victims' Relief Bureau, Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare of Japan.

Please attach photographs of the relic (including the full shots, shots of the top, bottom, right, left, and reverse side of the relic, and any evidence that could be used as a lead for the research, such as any names,etc. on the relic). If you are submitting your application by e-mail, please enter“Research on Wartime Relics”in the subject line）.

[Nick Komiya]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1eSpSh28SA
just saw another flag being returned on NHK news. Found the same news in English

Another story here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6j1XjFaAZQ

[Nick Komiya]

Just found this film showing the exchange that took place in the parliament of Japan about Yosegaki flags which is behind the government's active stance in the matter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wktZ-4VASTc

[MichaelB]

I watched with interest today the video supplied by Nick in Post #3, and have some, for the most part, general comments: While scripted, I think the video conveys the current intentions of the Japanese Government class with regard to good luck flags, senninbari and other personal artifacts that belonged to Japanese soldiers during the war. What I find sad, but not unexpected is the purposeful manicuring of the cultural and historical information with regard to these items in order to fit a pre-determined end goal. The portrayal of Americans and others who collect these items is not particularly flattering. I know that truth these days has many masters, but people could honestly try and represent it just a little bit better than what was done here. One "grassroots" organization in particular is doing a remarkable job to drive this movement both in the U.S. and in Japan. It should be remembered (but quite often is not) that there are many sides to a story. What makes any story important and of real value is the complete telling of it, not just those parts that people on one side or the other want to promote or hear. For example, mis-attributing quotes or leaving out sentences from a quote that would change the meaning of that quote I think are significant omissions. Emotion often now rules the day, however, and whether an organization has been completely truthful or not does not always seem to matter. As a collector, and researcher of historic artifacts of many types, I continue to support anyone who wishes to donate good luck flags or anything else back to any country. I am grateful that as of right now we continue to have freedoms that allow us to own or to give back items that were legally obtained such as good luck flags. If you watched this video, you know that the goal is to change that. There are some roadblocks, but some of those have been smoothed over already. Unfortunately, one organization in particular has made it their goal to make the buying-selling-and eventual ownership of good luck flags, senninbari and the like illegal- they have some key support, especially with the media. This has been promoted in an incremental fashion and has garnered enough attention now that it reaches to heights within the Japanese Government. History, anthropology and the study of material culture (the stuff produced by people) are wonderful topics of study. They enable us to get close to people unlike us and to understand each other better wherever our mutual histories and interests might cross. What makes the story honestly valuable, however, is when the entire story is told, and not just parts of it.

MichaelB

[Rod]

I'm glad the Japanese Government is making an effort to ease the reunification of deceased soldier and sailor personal effects with their families. I hope it brings comfort and closure to those lucky enough to be the recipient of a caring American vet or his family. Unfortunately these cases will be few in number and the publicity surrounding them may raise unrealistic expectations for others.

It's a sad fact of war that soldiers and sailors on all sides disappear without a trace. I found the hectoring (in video #3) of Americans who have preserved and value these items a bit much. It could be said that once souvenired a thing becomes the story of two men.

Did she say they should include canteens and uniforms in this discussion? Look out!

[avenger]

Watching the governmental meeting makes me crave going out and buying a 1000 stitch belt. I don't mean that as an offense or jab at them, but an honest expression of the heart of a collector who desires and appreciates what they are and what we can learn from them. It's what drives us all to want to be closer to these items out of respect for their history and in honor of their importance, not in spite of it. I would fully support returning items to the family members of those did not want them to leave their care. However, as others expressed, it should be noted many items are in collector hands because the families did not want them anymore.

If a family does not want to have the items, a collector is the next best set of hands for them to be in IMO, to ensure they survive to educate another generation vs being tossed in the trash. I wish the efforts success for those families that truly desire the relics of their fallen kin. And, I'm encouraged to see an emphasis on preserving these relics for the families of the soldiers. But there also needs to be an understanding of the important role collectors play in preserving these items as well. They're not just souvenirs to us either.

[tomp]

I thought the budget committee video was quite interesting and wonder how it fits into the larger narrative of Abe's Government. It seems like for the most part, the Japanese government has always had an entity to focus on the repatriation of remains to Japan. From the video, it seems like that focus has moved up the ladder. Why now and not 20 or 30 years ago when more relatives/friends who knew those soldiers were alive? Playing devil's advocate, would it be too far afield to think that possibly this is one small part of a greater pivot toward moving away from the JSDF and toward something offensive? I watch way too much TV; probably a topic for another forum.

Tom

[MichaelB]

Tom-
Bingo!!! And you didn't come up with that by watching too much T.V. Your observation is part of a much larger scheme that has as many heads as Medusa. Unfortunately, well meaning people will be caught in the middle, and everyone else (collectors especially), in between will have the opportunity to participate in this puppet show whether they like it or not. "A topic for another forum"..... where politics is left out, would be a nice thing. Not sure that genie is going back into the bottle, however.

MichaelB

[ghp95134]

...Did she say they should include canteens and uniforms in this discussion? Look out!

As far as I remember, she said words to the effect, "...unlike canteens and uniforms, Yosegaki hinomaru and Senninbari have a spirit and should be returned to next-of-kin..." So she was excluding field gear, uniforms, etc.


--Guy

[Rod]

"Yosegaki hinomaru and Senninbari have a spirit"

Yikes!

Thanks Guy, I'm sure you're right.

Rod