The Remains of war : apology and forgiveness / Jintaro Ishida ; [translated from the Japanese by Makiko Okuyama-Ventura, Reynald Ventura, Satoshi Masutani].

The author did a daring interview with the veterans of the Japanese Imperial Army who was a part of the war in the Philippines. The questions were: "1) What is your unforgettable experience in the Philippines? 2) Did you conduct "guerrilla subjugation"? What can you say about the Filipino guerrillas who fought against your Army? 3) Your Army killed many innocent Filipinos. But you claim you only acted in the name of "guerrilla subjugation." How come such killings happened? 4) You visit the Philippines to commemorate the souls of your fallen comrades. Would you also commemorate the souls of those dead Filipinos? Your army turned their land into battlefield. 5) Do you intend to apologize to Filipino war victims and their country which ruined during the war?" Likewise, the author did an interview with those Filipinos who were victims of Philippine-Japanese war. The questions posed were: "1) Some Japanese veterans claim that the soldiers who did the massacre cannot be held responsible. They had to do so because of the order given them by their superiors. What do you think of their reasoning? 2) Some veterans said they conducted "guerrilla subjugation" because the guerrillas attacked them first. What do you think of their justification? 3) Some Japanese veterans claim they had done nothing wrong while they were stationed in the Philippines. They also claim that when they were charged as war criminals, the decision of the War Tribunal against them was totally wrong. What can you say about it? 4) Japanese veterans now come to the Philippines, which they once turned into a battlefield, to commemorate the souls of their fallen comrades, what can you say about their practice of commemorating only their fallen comrades? 5) Some Japanese soldiers who killed a lot of civilians during the war now wish to apologize to their Filipino war victims and their surviving relatives. Will you accept their apology?