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Japanese Veteran Admits Germ Tests
A former Japanese officer has admitted that he and his unit dissected live Chinese people and produced deadly bacteria to harm enemies during the World War II.
Yoshio Shinozuka, 78, admitted that he raised fleas intended to spread deadly diseases and participated in the production of bacteria such as cholera, typhoid, dysentery and anthrax as well as dissecting dying Chinese people, whom they called "logs"..
He took part in five live human anatomies within two months during the war.
The veteran said Tuesday that he is anguished over the cruelty his division, Unit 731, perpetrated on Chinese victims in Pingfang, a city in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province during the period.
"It is our responsibility to make this hidden history known to the whole world," Shinozuka said.
Shinozuka is now a standing member of the Association of Japanese Veteran Returnees From China, which was founded by veterans in 1957. It has 270 members at present, whose average age is over 80.
The veteran regrets that the Japanese government now still wants to cover up the brutality, and he strongly opposes Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's plan to visit the Yasukuni Shrine next week.
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