"History textbook issue is not Japan's internal affairs": FM Spokesman

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in Beijing Thursday, "Japan's newly-approved middle school history textbooks try to exculpate Japan's militarism and severely hurts the feeling of its victims. It is not Japan's internal affairs."

He said the textbooks compiled by right-wing groups obscure Japan's militarism, justify and glorify Japan's militarist past and beautify its invasions.

"It is defiant of human justice and conscientiousness, and causes severe harm to people from Asian countries including China," Qin said.

The textbook issue affects the relations among Japan and its neighboring countries, including China. It will be vehemently condemned by people from all Asian countries that were victimized by Japan, including the Chinese.

"We seriously urge the Japanese government to honestly honor its commitment of expressing remorse for its militaristic history, and take effective measures to eliminate the odious impact of the issue, so as to win trust from Asian people," Qin said.

The Japanese government announced Tuesday that all the eight textbooks submitted for approval are qualified, yet among them are those compiled by right-wing groups which deny or beautify Japanese aggression during World War II.

"The textbook issue largely determines whether Japan can appropriately treat its militaristic history of aggression and instill in its young citizens a right perception of that history."Qin said.

It is because Japan continuously harms China's interests and hurts Chinese feelings on the these issues that Chinese are strongly dissatisfied with Japan. "We hope Japan can seriously treat the Chinese people's concern and properly settle the history issues that relate to the Chinese people's feelings," he said.

As for some Chinese people who expressed their strong dissatisfaction in different forms over Japan's wrong stance on history issues, the spokesman said, "We hope they can take rational ways to express their feelings," Qin said.