Victor’s Justice, Victim’s Justice: The Role of ‘Class A’ War Crimes in Shaping the Legacy of the Tokyo Tribunal
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Authors
Dyer, Laura
Date
Type
thesis
Language
eng
Keyword
Japanese War Crimes , International Military Tribunal for the Far East , War Crimes Trials
Alternative Title
Abstract
The Class A component of the International Military Proceedings for the Far East (IMTFE), also known as the Tokyo Trial, has had a central—and at times overbearing—presence within the legacy of the tribunal. Documents from the very beginning of the legal proceedings have established a clear prioritization by the Allied forces to target the ‘arch criminals’ accused of committing the newly coined charges of ‘crimes against peace’. Important historical figures involved in the trial, as well as subsequent historians and legal scholars, have continued to problematize and attack the trials for this focus. This criticism, while at times legitimate, has helped solidify the legacy of the Tokyo Trial as ‘victor’s justice’. Due to this focus, usually at best the Tokyo Trial is dismissed or devalued; at worst it has become a tool of Japanese war crimes apologists and deniers. The legal emphasis on Class A war crimes did have significant flaws and weaknesses which are important to highlight. However, historical analysis has become stuck in a ‘victor’s justice’ time loop, limiting the historical scope of the Tokyo Trials for too long. There is an urgent need to move beyond this concept within the scholarship of the IMTFE, while also understand the impact of this focus. The fixation with ‘victor’s justice’ has been seared into specific national narratives of remembrance, victimhood and trauma. While it will also touch upon the transnational factors that contributed to Japan’s process of silencing and remembering, this paper will explore the ways in which Class A war crimes have come to define and construct the legacy of the Tokyo Trial and its place in Japan’s national wartime narrative. Though there is a place within the historical discussion of the IMTFE for concepts such as ‘victor’s justice’ and criticism of crimes against peace, this paper will conclude with a discussion on how scholars can move beyond this limiting perspective and reach a more complex understanding of the Tokyo Trial and its legacy.
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Queen's University's Thesis/Dissertation Non-Exclusive License for Deposit to QSpace and Library and Archives Canada
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Copying and Preserving Your Thesis
This publication is made available by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws without written authority from the copyright owner.
Queen's University's Thesis/Dissertation Non-Exclusive License for Deposit to QSpace and Library and Archives Canada
ProQuest PhD and Master's Theses International Dissemination Agreement
Intellectual Property Guidelines at Queen's University
Copying and Preserving Your Thesis
This publication is made available by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws without written authority from the copyright owner.