Opposition Raps LDP Lawmaker's Remark on WWII Exhibits

   Tokyo, May 8 (Jiji Press)--Yoshihiko Noda, head of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, on Thursday criticized as "unbelievable" a recent remark by a lawmaker of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on exhibits about the Himeyuri nursing corps who died in the Battle of Okinawa during World War II.
   Speaking to reporters in Tokyo, Noda urged the LDP lawmaker, Shoji Nishida, to correct the remark, which he said hurt the feelings of people in Okinawa Prefecture.
   Nishida claimed during a symposium in Naha, the capital of Okinawa, on Saturday that the descriptions on a monument commemorating the Himeyuri corps of female students are intended to rewrite history.
   At a party meeting in Tokyo on Thursday, an official from the CDP's prefectural chapter in Okinawa called on the party to demand Nishida retract the remark and apologize, saying that the remark cannot be overlooked as it not just distorted the reality of the Battle of Okinawa but also attempted to rewrite history.
   Seiji Maehara, co-head of Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party), said at a press conference the same day that Nishida's remark showed a historical misconception and was a "serious mistake."

(2025/05/08-20:40)