Nanjing massacre and fall of Dhaka

China is demanding that Japan introspect over war crimes committed by Japanese forces in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, in 1937. Bangladesh, likewise, seeks an apology from Pakistan for "crimes committed" by Pakistani forces leading up to the fall of Dhaka in December 1971.

Coincidentally, both tragedies — Nanjing and Dhaka — occurred in the month of December.

According to Chinese accounts, Japanese troops invaded Nanjing and carried out horrific atrocities, killing an estimated 300,000 Chinese civilians during a six-week occupation.

Pakistani forces, according to Bengali counts and claims — largely advanced by nationalist Awami League-linked politicians and intellectuals — committed war crimes after Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared independence in March 1971. Pakistan's government responded with military force to suppress what it viewed as a rebellion. Notably, Pakistani forces were operating on their own territory, unlike the Japanese army, which carried out atrocities on foreign soil.

Japan's wartime actions eventually led to the Murayama Statement, issued in 1995 by then Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama on the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II.

Through this statement, Japan formally acknowledged for the first time that it had, "through its colonial rule and aggression, caused tremendous damage and suffering to the people of many countries", and expressed "deep remorse" and a "heartfelt apology". The Murayama Statement has since served as a benchmark for Japan's official stance on wartime responsibility.

Focused on economic development, China's communist leadership largely set aside the Nanjing issue until 2014, when the Standing Committee of the 12th National People's Congress designated December 13 as the National Memorial Day for Victims of the Nanjing Massacre. This step honoured the victims while reminding Japan of its historical responsibility.

This December 13 as well, Beijing marked the 88th anniversary of the massacre with a national memorial ceremony, in line with a decision of China's top legislature. Resonating Beijing's concern, Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Japan's "backtracking on past apologies" and "signs of historical revisionism in Japan" are alarming.

Guo reiterated China's opposition to any revival of militarism, to foreign interference in the Taiwan region, and to attempts to overturn settled historical judgments. While China had long accepted the Murayama Statement, recent signs of resurgent military sentiment in Japan — encouraged by the United States — have prompted Beijing to reaffirm its resolve to work with peace-loving nations to uphold the outcomes of World War II and resist any revival of militarism.

All China expects of Tokyo is to guard against militarism and to confront its past honestly rather than evade responsibility through contradictory explanations.

Turning to the fall of Dhaka, Bangladesh similarly insists on an apology for "war crimes committed by the Pakistan Army". Bengali politicians and intellectuals argue that normalisation of relations depends on a formal apology for what the Awami League describes as the "genocide" of three million Bengalis and the rape of 200,000 women in East Pakistan in 1971 — figures cited in a book by Ambassador Afrasiab Mehdi Hashmi Qureshi.

Closely linked to the apology demand is the insistence on war reparations. By international standards, compensation of US$5,000-10,000 per victim would translate into tens of billions of dollars. By this logic, Pakistan could be asked to pay around US$30 billion to Bangladesh.

While several impartial analysts — Bengali, Indian and Western — have seriously questioned the credibility of the figures of three million deaths and 200,000 rapes, challenging these numbers in Bangladesh today is widely regarded as tantamount to treason against the state and its founding narrative.

A third demand, alongside apology and reparations, concerns the division of assets. In a related international precedent, UN Security Council Resolution 687 held Iraq financially liable for damages caused to Kuwait during the Gulf War. Iraq ultimately accepted compensation claims totaling US$52.4 billion for about 1.5 million petitions, having paid US$49.5 billion by March 2021.

Ambassador Hashmi notes that these three demands were conveyed to him repeatedly by Bangladesh's foreign minister and other officials during his tenure as Pakistan's High Commissioner in Dhaka from 2011 to 2014.

Pakistani officials maintain that the Pakistan-Bangladesh-India Tripartite Agreement of 9 April 1974 constitutes a formal apology. Paragraph 13 states that Pakistan "condemned and deeply regretted any crimes that may have been committed" in 1971, while Paragraph 14 records Pakistan's prime minister appealing to the people of Bangladesh to "forgive and forget". It also quotes Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as saying, "Bengalis know how to forgive."

From General Musharraf to Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar in recent months, Pakistani leaders have publicly expressed regret, often stating, "Your heroes are our heroes."

The question remains: can Bengali politicians and intelligentsia show the same pragmatism as China, accept the apologies already offered, and move forward — just as Beijing accepted the Murayama Statement without demanding reparations or financial compensation from Tokyo?

"Apology and reparations" risk becoming a Pandora's Box — one with no clear end, especially given the present political and economic realities of both Pakistan and Bangladesh.