In response to the mandatory adoption of national security bills in September 2015 and their enforcement in March 2016, this paper aims to present an alternative concept of security based on the “hope” according to the Preamble and Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution. In doing so, it expects to provide new perspectives regarding “what is to be desired” and “what can be done,” in particular concerning students campaigning against national security bills.

Therefore, avoiding any criticism of the “unconstitutionality of the right to collective self-defense” and the “destruction of constitutionalism,” the principal arguments in the current Diet debate, this paper focuses on and analyzes East Asia. In particular, possible alternatives to counter “war legislation” will be examined. For, although we insist on being pro-Constitution, we have never experienced the necessity of embodying the common security and human security prescribed in the Preamble of the Constitution as importantly as we do today. The current paper employs this perspective to critically analyze the “three briefs” that the Abe administration relies on and further examine the viability of alternative security policy by evaluating the approaches toward “common security” or “win-win security” and against “antagonism and intimidation” or “zero-sum theory of national defense.”

In Europe, a Common Foreign and Security Policy model has been developed in accordance with the European Union. In Southeast Asia as well, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, albeit still developing, is moving in the same direction. Considering these, this paper will propose an “East Asian Community” as a second track apart from the alliance, deterrence, and subordination of the examined nations.

When conducting historical research on East Asia, the concept of kyousei with memories can readily connect the pre- and post-war periods along a single timeline. The history of the Japanese empire did not end just because of its defeat in the war. In fact, it should be acknowledged that the basic structure of post-war East Asia was determined by Japanese colonial rule before the war. It is necessary, simultaneously, to recognize the post-war period in East Asia as arising from a shared understanding that involved fierce war in China, Taiwan, Korea, and Okinawa and was linked to the occupation of the USA. In other words, East Asia transitioned from being under Japanese colonialism before the war to being under the hegemony of the USA after it, which maintained a structural continuity between the Japanese Empire and the escalation of the Cold War. In other words, any attempt to foresee the future of Asia from the time of the Japanese colonial rule to the post-war period, including the civil wars and dictatorships, implies efforts to transcend the USA. An intellectual act is required to obtain the right to live in peace in the historical context.

Considering the perspective of Nishikawa Nagaoʼs postcolonial critique, my political analysis of colonialismʼs cultural history investigates its contemporary effects in connecting the past and the politics of the present. The catchphrase employed here is East Asia as an intellectual experiment. It is an attempt to drastically alter the archipelagic view that plots time and space on a Cartesian coordinate system, with the traditional and the modern as the vertical axis and the East and the West as the horizontal axis.

This article explores the importance of war memory in contemporary Okinawa from the perspective of global economic change and power shifts in 21st century Asia. On the one hand, U. S. Forces in Japan are excessively concentrated in contemporary Okinanwa; however, these are also accompanied by growing demands for reducing military bases and cancelling the construction of a new military base at Henoko, Oura Bay. On the other hand, Okinawaʼs economic growth has become dependent on the global Asian market, especially on tourism, the custom clearance and distribution sectors, and the local manufacturing industry. In such circumstances,more Asian tourists are visiting Okinawa; nevertheless, we have as yet been unable to find fully effective ways to mutually understand the deep wounds created by our past in history and memory. In this paper, first, the author illustrates how the recent economic globalization has altered Okinawaʼs “encounter” with other Asians through tourism and examines the gaps in Okinawaʼs war memory narratives, focusing on the narratives of Okinawa’s “Japan Army soldiers.” Second, it examines how Okinawan? Asian relations have been emphasized and described in contemporary Okinawan literature: Okamoto Keitokuʼs “The Guard”(1954) and Matayoshi Eikiʼs “Ginʼnemu Yashiki”(1980). Finally, the author indicates that the “wars in Asia” cannot yet be considered “bygones,” referring to the origins of the nuclear crisis in the Korean Peninsula and how the U.S. bases in Okinawa have been linked with it.

The year 2015 marked the seventieth anniversary of the end of World War II. However, the East Asian region still struggles in its interrelations; in fact, current relations have worsened as compared with those of one or two decades ago. The primary causes of these conflicts are the deteriorating relations and increasing distrust between the regionʼs member states and governments. Furthermore, respective national media coverage has led to increased antagonism and nationalism among neighbouring countries within the region.

Why does East Asia lack a peace-building platform? How can this region overcome its past and cooperate for a peaceful future? Who will take the initiative to develop regional peace? And how? To answer these questions, substantial efforts to overcome the nation-state systemʼs limitations will be required. As far as we know, two approaches can be considered to realise this: one is a supranational system such as the European Union and the other is a transnational approach driven by a global civil society. Both are functional and effective approaches; however, as East Asian nations experience strong tensions amongst themselves, this article examines the experiences of a transnational NGO in the East Asian region. In particular, Peace Boat, a leading Japanese transnational NGO, has been chosen and examined as it involves new challenges from the peace education perspective.

In recent years, through case analysis, we have found that civil society may play a pivotal role in the peace education field, along with schools and other conventional educational institutes. Although the experience related to this field is new and limited, civil society―whether an NGO or a peace movement―can certainly offer a positive model when seeking alternatives to state-oriented limitations. In this particular aspect, the case of the Peace Boat Special Global University hints at a new type of peace education.

In response to the mandatory adoption of national security bills in September 2015 and their enforcement in March 2016, this paper aims to present an alternative concept of security based on the “hope” according to the Preamble and Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution. In doing so, it expects to provide new perspectives regarding “what is to be desired” and “what can be done,” in particular concerning students campaigning against national security bills.

Therefore, avoiding any criticism of the “unconstitutionality of the right to collective self-defense” and the “destruction of constitutionalism,” the principal arguments in the current Diet debate, this paper focuses on and analyzes East Asia. In particular, possible alternatives to counter “war legislation” will be examined. For, although we insist on being pro-Constitution, we have never experienced the necessity of embodying the common security and human security prescribed in the Preamble of the Constitution as importantly as we do today. The current paper employs this perspective to critically analyze the “three briefs” that the Abe administration relies on and further examine the viability of alternative security policy by evaluating the approaches toward “common security” or “win-win security” and against “antagonism and intimidation” or “zero-sum theory of national defense.”

In Europe, a Common Foreign and Security Policy model has been developed in accordance with the European Union. In Southeast Asia as well, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, albeit still developing, is moving in the same direction. Considering these, this paper will propose an “East Asian Community” as a second track apart from the alliance, deterrence, and subordination of the examined nations.

When conducting historical research on East Asia, the concept of kyousei with memories can readily connect the pre- and post-war periods along a single timeline. The history of the Japanese empire did not end just because of its defeat in the war. In fact, it should be acknowledged that the basic structure of post-war East Asia was determined by Japanese colonial rule before the war. It is necessary, simultaneously, to recognize the post-war period in East Asia as arising from a shared understanding that involved fierce war in China, Taiwan, Korea, and Okinawa and was linked to the occupation of the USA. In other words, East Asia transitioned from being under Japanese colonialism before the war to being under the hegemony of the USA after it, which maintained a structural continuity between the Japanese Empire and the escalation of the Cold War. In other words, any attempt to foresee the future of Asia from the time of the Japanese colonial rule to the post-war period, including the civil wars and dictatorships, implies efforts to transcend the USA. An intellectual act is required to obtain the right to live in peace in the historical context.

Considering the perspective of Nishikawa Nagao’s postcolonial critique, my political analysis of colonialismʼs cultural history investigates its contemporary effects in connecting the past and the politics of the present. The catchphrase employed here is East Asia as an intellectual experiment. It is an attempt to drastically alter the archipelagic view that plots time and space on a Cartesian coordinate system, with the traditional and the modern as the vertical axis and the East and the West as the horizontal axis.

This article explores the importance of war memory in contemporary Okinawa from the perspective of global economic change and power shifts in 21st century Asia. On the one hand, U. S. Forces in Japan are excessively concentrated in contemporary Okinanwa; however, these are also accompanied by growing demands for reducing military bases and cancelling the construction of a new military base at Henoko, Oura Bay. On the other hand, Okinawaʼs economic growth has become dependent on the global Asian market, especially on tourism, the custom clearance and distribution sectors, and the local manufacturing industry. In such circumstances,more Asian tourists are visiting Okinawa; nevertheless, we have as yet been unable to find fully effective ways to mutually understand the deep wounds created by our past in history and memory. In this paper, first, the author illustrates how the recent economic globalization has altered Okinawaʼs “encounter” with other Asians through tourism and examines the gaps in Okinawaʼs war memory narratives, focusing on the narratives of Okinawa’s “Japan Army soldiers.” Second, it examines how Okinawan? Asian relations have been emphasized and described in contemporary Okinawan literature: Okamoto Keitokuʼs “The Guard”(1954) and Matayoshi Eikiʼs “Ginʼnemu Yashiki”(1980). Finally, the author indicates that the “wars in Asia” cannot yet be considered “bygones,” referring to the origins of the nuclear crisis in the Korean Peninsula and how the U.S. bases in Okinawa have been linked with it.

The year 2015 marked the seventieth anniversary of the end of World War II. However, the East Asian region still struggles in its interrelations; in fact, current relations have worsened as compared with those of one or two decades ago. The primary causes of these conflicts are the deteriorating relations and increasing distrust between the regionʼs member states and governments. Furthermore, respective national media coverage has led to increased antagonism and nationalism among neighbouring countries within the region.

Why does East Asia lack a peace-building platform? How can this region overcome its past and cooperate for a peaceful future? Who will take the initiative to develop regional peace? And how? To answer these questions, substantial efforts to overcome the nation-state systemʼs limitations will be required. As far as we know, two approaches can be considered to realise this: one is a supranational system such as the European Union and the other is a transnational approach driven by a global civil society. Both are functional and effective approaches; however, as East Asian nations experience strong tensions amongst themselves, this article examines the experiences of a transnational NGO in the East Asian region. In particular, Peace Boat, a leading Japanese transnational NGO, has been chosen and examined as it involves new challenges from the peace education perspective.

In recent years, through case analysis, we have found that civil society may play a pivotal role in the peace education field, along with schools and other conventional educational institutes. Although the experience related to this field is new and limited, civil society―whether an NGO or a peace movement―can certainly offer a positive model when seeking alternatives to state-oriented limitations. In this particular aspect, the case of the Peace Boat Special Global University hints at a new type of peace education.