Editor's Note: This year marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, or the Tokyo Trials. In April, a comprehensive Chinese translation of the trial records was published, thanks to a collaboration between Zhejiang Yuexiu University and two institutions at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. ZYU President Yong Heming emphasized that this 22.3 million-character translation fills a significant gap in China's archives on the Tokyo Trials. It refutes the distorted historical narratives promoted by Japan's right-wing forces, and reaffirms the legitimacy of the trials and the legal foundation of the postwar international order. Ye Xinguo, former president of ZYU and head of the translation project, explained that the team focused on collaboration, technology-driven workflows, multilingual comparisons, and interdisciplinary cooperation. He emphasized that the team has conducted extensive cross-referencing and the translation remains true to the original texts and historical facts. Three experts shared their insights on the issue.

Tokyo Trials underscore China's major role in Anti-Fascist War

The Tokyo Trials, which prosecuted and sentenced Japanese Class-A war criminals after World War II, are one of the most important judicial proceedings in modern history. The publication of the 40-volume Chinese translation of the Tokyo Trials records is therefore of great significance.

Volumes 1 to 39 document key phases of the trials, including disputes over jurisdiction, the prosecution's case, the defense's rebuttal, and the final hearings. Volume 40 contains the complete text of the judgment delivered by the tribunal between Nov 4 and 12, 1948.

Some may ask, why publish a Chinese translation when the full records of the tribunal are already available in English?

The answer lies in China's role in the war. The Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-45) began earlier and lasted longer than any other major theater of the World Anti-Fascist War. China made enormous sacrifices and contributions to the global struggle against fascism. Chinese prosecutors and judicial teams also played crucial roles in the Tokyo Trials. Making the records available in Chinese enables the Chinese people to fully understand the trial process and appreciate China's contribution.

Among the 11 allied nations in the tribunal, China was the only independent sovereign state in Asia, the others were the Western powers and their colonies and dependencies. Its participation strongly reinforced the legitimacy of the Tokyo Trials.

Although China and Japan officially declared war after the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941, the tribunal traced Japanese aggression much further back. The assassination of Zhang Zuolin, then top administrative official of Northeast China, by Japanese militarists in June 1928 was recognized as an act of war.

Volume 1 of the Chinese translation records a dispute on May 14, 1946, when a defense lawyer for Japan argued that no state of war existed between China and Japan prior to the formal declaration. Had that argument prevailed, atrocities such as the September 18 Incident, the July 7 Incident, and the Nanjing Massacre might have escaped prosecution. Chinese prosecutor Xiang Zhejun countered that claim. Volume 2 includes the testimony of prosecution witness Ryukichi Tanaka, who detailed the purpose, date, location, military unit, and explosives used in Zhang's assassination, providing irrefutable evidence.

The translation begins with the indictment and concludes with the judgment, both highlighting China's significant role in the proceedings. Of the 55 counts in the overall indictment, most pertain to aggression against China. The judgment devotes an entire chapter to Japan's crimes of aggression against China, comprising over half of the findings on Japan's external aggression. The judgment recorded that in the first month after the Japanese occupation of Nanjing, around 20,000 rape cases occurred, and within six weeks, over 200,000 civilians and prisoners of war were massacred in and around Nanjing.

Among the seven Class-A war criminals sentenced to death, six were convicted for crimes against China, including fascist ringleader Hideki Tojo, warmonger Seishiro Itagaki, intelligence chief Kenji Doihara, and Iwane Matsui, the commander responsible for the Nanjing Massacre.

The translation demonstrates the tribunal's strict adherence to judicial statutes and procedures, debunking the right-wing narrative that it was merely a "victors' justice". Volume 25 records a heated debate on Oct 6, 1947, during Seishiro Itagaki's trial. The three prosecution speakers took the floor 122 times and the six defense speakers 123 times, reflecting a fierce legal battle in the courtroom.

The statements of Chinese prosecutors, including Xiang Zhejun, Ni Zhengyu and Gui Yu, filled hundreds of pages of the translated records. Only 17 Chinese personnel participated in the Tokyo Trials, compared to over 100 members of the United States delegation and more than 130 US and Japanese defense counsel. Despite their small numbers, they were wholeheartedly dedicated to their mission and fulfilled their responsibilities. Their tireless efforts left an indelible mark on the Tokyo Trials.

Xiang Longwan is son of the Chinese prosecutor Xiang Zhejun at the Tokyo Trials and an honorary director of the Research Institute of War Crimes Trials and World Peace at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Safeguarding results, legitimacy of Tokyo Trials necessary

The Tokyo Trials involved more nations and lasted longer than any other international tribunal, producing one of the most significant documentary records in modern history. The comprehensive Chinese translation is a significant contribution by China's academic and publishing communities to the pursuit of global peace and justice.

Never before in human history had there been a trial that prosecuted war leaders, underscoring the significance of their legacy. For centuries, the consequences of war and the burden of defeat were borne by ordinary people. However, as advances in technology amplified the destructive power of war in the 20th century, the international community began to recognize the need to hold military leaders accountable for initiating conflicts.

By the late 19th century, excessive violence in war was recognized as a breach of the law. Although many relevant rules were later established through conventions made in Geneva, there was still no broad legal consensus on holding war leaders accountable. After World War I, efforts were made to hold German Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm II responsible, but he escaped prosecution, and a historic opportunity was missed.

After the outbreak of World War II, the international community quickly recognized the need to put those who initiated wars on trial. The defense argued, at the Tokyo Trials, that this constituted applying ex post facto law to prior actions and violated the legal principle of "no crime and no punishment without a law".

Yet even without a formalized legal code, many Allied leaders had declared as early as 1941 that those responsible for starting the war would be brought to trial once it ended. Chief Prosecutor Joseph Keenan emphasized this in his opening statement, declaring that "this is no ordinary trial, for here we are waging a part of the determined battle of civilization to preserve the entire world from destruction".

Indeed, when humanity faces destruction, that imperative far outweighs any legal code. After WWII, the Japanese sought to conduct their own trials, questioning the fairness of an Allied tribunal. This proposal was firmly rejected by the Allied Commander Douglas MacArthur.

My recent archival research has shown that, although the Japanese government appeared to play a "supporting" role during the Tokyo Trials, it was deeply involved behind the scenes in shaping defense strategies, assembling the defense team and gathering evidence. As early as October 1945, the Japanese government had already formulated its defense policy. Till then, China had only completed translating the telegram from Washington about the forthcoming trials. Although China was one of the prosecuting nations, Japan had already started preparing its defense.

Research also reveals that Kaya Okinori, a Class-A war criminal sentenced to life imprisonment, was released early and later returned to politics to become Japan's minister of justice. Around 1969, he authorized Ichimata Masao, an international law expert at Waseda University, to challenge the legitimacy of the Tokyo Trials.

Since then, some Japanese political figures have repeatedly sought to undermine the legitimacy of the Tokyo Trials. In March 2013, then prime minister Shinzo Abe referred to them as "victors' justice" while speaking before the House of Representatives Budget Committee. In 2015, shortly after resigning as defense minister, Tomomi Inada announced the formation of a study group to examine the Tokyo Trials, claiming that there were "numerous problems" with them. However, Japan's mainstream academic community does not align with these right-wing views, and we should mobilize such forces in Japan's legal academic circles.

Why do Japanese right-wing forces want to deny the legitimacy of the Tokyo Trials?

They are doing so because China's victory was not just a military victory, but the victory of justice. Through due process and fair legal proceedings, the tribunal established that Japan had committed aggression and wartime atrocities.

Cheng Zhaoqi is director of the Center for the Tokyo Trial Studies of Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Chinese translation key to legal research on trials

Legal research should begin with original documents. It is not possible to study war trials without authentic tribunal records. The expansion of the Tokyo Trials records in Chinese translation from the original 10 volumes to a complete 40-volume edition provides Chinese scholars with a comprehensive foundation for studying the trials.

The translation is organized in three parts. The first part details the prosecution's submission of the indictment. The first volume of the second part covers 10 trial days focused on Japan's war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Asia-Pacific region, including the Bataan Death March, the Manila Massacre and atrocities on the Thailand-Burma Railway. These brutal acts are recorded in the trial records. The third part, beginning in October 1947, presents the individual defenses of the accused and the prosecution's rebuttals, culminating in the final, weighty judgment.

This Chinese version is invaluable, providing an irreplaceable foundation for legal research. The Tokyo Trials were groundbreaking international criminal trials. They not only affirmed the principle that aggressive war constitutes an international crime, but also laid the groundwork for international criminal law and justice. They reshaped the basic framework governing the law of war and profoundly influenced the development of international human rights and humanitarian laws. Notably, unlike the Nuremberg Trials, which involved four Allied powers, the Tokyo Trials were conducted by an 11-nation tribunal. Judges from diverse legal systems and cultural backgrounds collaborated, making the Tokyo Trials more comprehensive.

As a nation that suffered deeply during the war and whose modern legal system was still developing, China's participation in the tribunal marked its first major engagement in international criminal justice.

Up till now, the lack of Chinese-language materials limited scholars' ability to follow the daily proceedings of the trials and gain a concrete understanding of how latecomer countries and nations with established legal systems interacted and learned from each other. The new translation makes such research possible. It reveals how judges and prosecutors from diverse backgrounds sought consensus amid differences and built shared legal concepts out of diversity. These experiences also offer valuable reference for China's voice on the international legal stage today.

The translated edition is an indispensable Chinese voice on the Tokyo Trials. Historically, the narrative and legal discourse on the trials have been predominantly shaped by Western academia, while some factions in Japan have attempted to deny their legitimacy. This comprehensive Chinese edition offers irrefutable historical evidence and is a crucial academic foundation for China to participate in international rule-making, articulate its stance, and uphold the postwar international order.

Xu Chi is an associate research fellow at the Institute of Law, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

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