Peace Memorial Complex in Hiroshima

The Peace Memorial Complex in Hiroshima memorialises the lives lost in the city’s 1945 atomic bombing and is a location to promote world peace. The site’s museum was established in 1955 and has undergone two major renovations. Yet, it continues to face criticism that it minimises Japan’s imperial past and homogenises non-Japanese victims of Hiroshima. Critics argue that the specific history of Koreans forced to work for the Japanese imperial army continues to be diminished. This case study demonstrates the ongoing popularity of apologists, revisionist reviews of Japanese wartime history, and the relationship between these views and socio-political trends. It details the continued marginalisation of non-Japanese experiences in a historical context.