Japanese war memorial network unites to pass on memories to youth
At a news conference in Tokyo on Tuesday, the 13 national or municipal memorial halls across Japan announced future action plans designed to solve problems such as drawing visitors to their facilities and dealing with the declining number of people who experienced the war.
Specifically, they will work on strengthening their capabilities to disseminate information, provide content for schools that combine exhibits and testimony records from each facility and build a system of mutual cooperation among curators.
The news conference was attended by 13 representatives from member facilities of a Japanese war-related memorials network established in 2023, including the Maizuru Repatriation Memorial Museum in Kyoto Prefecture and the Chiran Peace Museum in Kagoshima Prefecture.
"There is a limit to the activities of a single museum, and it is difficult to rely on elderly storytellers," Hiroshi Masuda, head of the Memorial Museum for Soldiers, Detainees in Siberia, and Postwar Repatriates, said.
"By reciprocally introducing the strength of each memorial, we hope to establish an effective system for peace education," he added.
A free exhibition showcasing the activities of the 13 facilities is being held at the memorial museum in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward until July 13.
"Most visitors to war memorials are elderly people," an official of the museum said, adding that "we hope to have younger visitors to maintain our activities."
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