Japan apologizes to WWII POW group from U.S

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Lester Tenny, right, a former U.S. prisoner of war during World War II, gives a copy of his book to Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada in Tokyo. (Yoshikazu Tsuno / Associated Press / September 13, 2010)


The Associated Press



TOKYO — Japan's foreign minister apologized Monday for the suffering of a group of former World War II prisoners of war visiting from the United States and said they were treated inhumanely.

The six POWs, their relatives and the daughters of two men who died are the first group of U.S. POWs to visit Japan with government sponsorship, though groups from other countries have been invited previously.

"I offer my deep, heartfelt apology for the inhuman treatment you suffered," Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada told the group.


The POW group's leader, 90-year-old Lester Tenney of San Diego, who survived the Bataan Death March in 1942, said he welcomed the government's apology but still seeks recognition from the private companies that "used and abused" prisoners in their mines and factories, often under brutal conditions.

"At no time have we gotten from these private companies just a letter," Tenney said. "These private companies have kept quiet for 65 years. It is an insult, because by their keeping quiet they are hoping we will die off."


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http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fgw-us-japan-pow-20100913,0,7678158.story