As the United States continues to investigate the reason a Navy submarine hit and sunk a Japanese fishing vessel off the coast of Hawaii Feb. 9, some University members remain shocked, and others discussed how the incident might affect this country’s relationship with Japan.
The news of the collision especially hit close to home for some international students and members of cultural student unions at the University.
For Shigeo Murao, a senior international studies major who moved from Japan to the U.S. about five years ago, the occurrence triggered a personal connection, not only because it involved Japanese residents, but also because his own family is in a fishery-related business.
“I think about what if my family had been involved and how that would affect me,” he said. “I put myself in the situation of the victim’s families … it must be devastating.”
Murao said that after hearing about the accident, his biggest question was how such a disaster could even occur in the first place.
“I want to know how this happened,” he said. “This is such tragic news to me, and I’d really like to know how it could have been avoided … This brings attention to Japanese people about America’s Navy.”
The Japanese ship belonged to a high school in Ehime Prefecture and sank about 18 kilometers south of Oahu Island Feb. 9 after being struck by the submarine. Twenty-six people, including nine students, were rescued, but the remaining nine — four 17-year-old students, two teachers and three crew members — are still missing.With the recent discovery that civilians were at the controls of the submarine when it smashed into the Japanese vessel, some students are questioning the Navy’s policies and procedures and what part they played in the accident.
Zafreen Ali, secretary of the Asian-Pacific American Student Union, said that if the civilians hadn’t been supervised as they should have been, then this incident will reflect badly on the Navy, especially in Japan.
Ali added that when more definite conclusions are made about the accident’s cause, it will be easier to determine how this will affect U.S. — Japanese relations.
“It depends on the outcome of why this happened,” she said.
University students and staff have also paid close attention to how the governments from the two countries have dealt with the catastrophe, and how these actions will affect the countries’ relationship.
William Baugh, a political science professor who teaches foreign policy, said that in the long run, this incident may not have a big impact on U.S. — Japanese relations, depending on how the situation is handled.
President George W. Bush, along with Navy officials, have made several public and private apologies and are working on Japan’s request to recover the ship, although no promises have been made. The U.S. also hasn’t stopped its efforts to find the missing boaters and develop a thorough explanation of what happened.
Baugh said that so far, the U.S. has dealt with the situation appropriately. He said U.S. apologies have been one of the most vital steps in keeping good relations, especially because Japanese culture places emphasis on admitting mistakes.
“In our society, we many times try to find scapegoats,” Baugh said. “In Japan, high-level apologies are huge.”
He added that if recovering the Japanese ship is technically feasible, he doesn’t think monetary costs would stop the U.S. from retrieving the ship, because of the chance of finding the bodies of the missing people.
“The recovering of bodies would help bring closure to families involved and governments involved for that matter,” he said.
In Japan, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori has been under fire for continuing a golf game more than two hours after hearing about the submarine accident. Mori’s reaction stirred surprise and dismay among students such as Murao.
“He neglected the criticalness of the incident,” Murao said. “It was a big disappointment.”
The submarine collision has also angered Japan’s Defense Agency Chief Toshitsugu Saito and the principal of the high school that owned the boat, Ietaka Horita, who were especially concerned about the civilians who were apparently at the controls of the sub.
Professor Baugh added that despite some angry responses from Japan, it’s still too early to tell how seriously the incident will affect foreign relations.
“The Japanese reaction will depend a lot on what the investigation actually shows,” he said.