"The Name Engraved on the Sword, No Way"… Chinese Netizens Shocked by Japanese Idol Teaser Video

New Album Teaser Video Features Name of Japanese War Criminal
Commanded 'Samgwang Operation' Massacre of 2.7 Million Chinese Civilians

A controversy has arisen over the appearance of characters presumed to be the name of a Japanese war criminal from World War II in the teaser video for an album by a Japanese idol group. In particular, this figure was responsible for leading civilian massacres in China during the Second Sino-Japanese War, which led to strong protests from Chinese fans, and the agency bowed its head in apology.

On the 21st, foreign media such as Taiwan's ETtoday and Japan's J-CAST reported that Snow Man, a nine-member group under Japan's Stardust Entertainment, featured a Japanese sword engraved with kanji presumed to read "Showa 15 (昭和十五年·1940), Okamura Yasujir? (岡村 寧次)" in the teaser video for their new album "RAYS," released on the 16th. The video also included a scene where the blade is stained with blood, sparking controversy.

On the 21st, foreign media such as Taiwan's ETToday and Japan's J-CAST reported that the nine-member group Snow Man, belonging to Japan's Stardust Entertainment, featured a Japanese sword engraved with kanji presumed to be "Showa 15 (昭和十五年·1940), Okamura Yasuji (岡村 寧次)" in the teaser video for their new album "RAYS," released on the 16th. The video also included a scene where the blade is stained with blood, sparking controversy.
[Photo by Yahoo Japan]

Regarding this scene, Snow Man's fans strongly protested to the agency, which promptly deleted the video. After the teaser was released, Chinese fans reacted with comments such as, "If no one had noticed, they probably would have used it as is," "Is it really a coincidence that they used an image of a sword engraved with a war criminal's name?" and "What kind of thoughts go through the minds of people who include such images?"

As the backlash grew, the agency deleted the teaser video the next day and announced via official SNS, "There was an inappropriate image. We will provide further guidance later." The agency and label issued an apology in both Japanese and Chinese, stating, "The video contained parts lacking consideration of history," and "We sincerely apologize to those who were inconvenienced due to insufficient verification." They also added that they had terminated the contract with the production company that made the video. However, J-CAST reported that the agency did not disclose how the image came to be used in the video.

Okamura Yasujir? Engraved on the Blade... Considered One of the Worst War Criminals

The video first sparked controversy on social media platforms such as China's Weibo. In particular, the name "Okamura Yasujir? (岡村 寧次)" engraved on the blade in the video refers to a commander of the Japanese army dispatched to China in the 1930s and 1940s and is considered one of the worst war criminals among the Japanese military. He is known as the commander of the "Three Alls Policy" (Sank? Sakusen), which carried out mass massacres of innocent Chinese civilians during the Second Sino-Japanese War.

From 1937 for about two years, the Japanese army ruthlessly massacred civilians suspected of cooperating with the Chinese Communist Party and the Kuomintang and devastated villages. This campaign was called the "Three Alls Policy" (Sank? Sakusen), meaning "kill all (殺光, sakk?), burn all (燒光, sh?k?), and loot all (??光, ch?k?)." According to Japanese historian Himeta Mitsuyoshi, the Japanese army massacred 2.7 million Chinese civilians through this policy. However, Okamura Yasujir?, who led the Three Alls Policy, was not punished as a war criminal because he surrendered and cooperated with the Chinese Kuomintang during the Chinese Civil War, and he died at the age of 82 after returning to Japan. He is also known as the person who proposed the "Japanese military comfort women" system, in which the Japanese army abducted young women from Korea and other regions to serve as sex slaves.