The Tokyo War Crimes Trial, 1946-1948: The Case for the Defense
The Tokyo War Crimes Trial, 1946-1948: The Case for the Defense
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Date
1979
Authors
Ware, George W.
Advisor
Smith, Elbert B.
Citation
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Abstract
Between April 29, 1946 and November 12, 1948 the
International Military Tribunal for the Far East convened
in Tokyo to try twenty-eight Japanese prewar and wartime
leaders accused of war crimes. Eleven Allied countries
formed the Tribunal. The International Military Tribunal
for the Far East sentenced seven Japanese to death, sixteen
to life imprisonment terms and two to terms of seven and
sixteen years imprisonment.
The primary problem with the Tokyo War Crimes Trial
was the nature of the charges against the Japanese accused.
Some of the defendants were certainly guilty of the alleged
violations of the laws of war. The accused, however,
were tried not only on conventional war crimes charges,
as recognized by international law, but on ex post facto
counts which were unnecessary to attain convictions. The
charges of Crimes against Peace and Crimes against Humanity
had no basis in international law. The outcome and
historical judgment of the trial would appear far different
had the Japanese been tried only on conventional war crimes
charges.
Whether one believes the defendants innocent or
guilty of war crimes, the International Military Tribunal
for the Far East proceedings were hardly a model of
impartiality. The rules of trial procedure, the nature
of the evidence and the court's bias in favor of the
prosecution precluded a fair trial by American standards.
The Tokyo Tribunal, for example, admitted hearsay evidence,
permitted leading questions and required testimony by
affidavit which prevented cross-examination of the witnesses.
If defeated American war leaders had faced trial on the
Tokyo standard, the outcry would have been enormous.