Regarding the June 7 editorial, ¡±¡°: As a student, I sang the national anthem ¡°Kimigayo¡± and felt that I was a Japanese. I cannot agree with former Tokyo-area high school teacher Yuji Saruya¡¯s opinion and I wonder if he has contemplated the importance of the national anthem.
The national anthem makes us conscious of being Japanese and it connects Japanese people to each other. According to a newspaper report, Saruya said his conscience wouldn¡¯t let him sing the national anthem in view of Korean and Chinese students who had studied the history of Japan¡¯s modern war.
Yet, Korean and Chinese people are actually subjected to anti-Japanese instruction straightaway because of education policies in their countries. I think we Japanese tend to be too softhearted, so we have to get correct information and approach the question (of whether to stand and sing ¡°Kimigayo¡± in front of the ¡°Hinomaru¡± national flag ) from various angles.
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer¡¯s own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.
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