Robert Cribb and Sandra Wilson, "Twelve Japanese War Criminals and One Who Got Away" (U Hawaiʻi Press, 2026)

In this episode of New Books in Southeast Asian Studies, host Patrick Jory interviews co-authors Professor Robert Cribb and Professor Sandra Wilson about their new book, 'Twelve Japanese War Criminals and One Who Got Away,' published by the University of Hawaiʻi Press in 2026. The book examines 13 case studies of Japanese war crimes committed during World War II in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, challenging the common cultural explanations—such as Japanese militarism or 'primitivism'—for these atrocities. Instead, Cribb and Wilson argue that war crimes were driven by the extreme pressures of war, military necessity, and the phenomenon of 'wartime license,' where individuals exploited the breakdown of normal social and legal constraints. The authors draw on extensive archival materials from over 2,400 trials conducted by Allied nations between 1945 and 1951, including trial transcripts, military records, and personal memoirs. They emphasize that most perpetrators were not ideologically driven by racism or genocide but were ordinary individuals making catastrophic decisions under duress, often misjudging military necessity or succumbing to opportunity. The book also explores complex moral questions, such as the fairness of the trials, the role of command responsibility, and the rare case of Tsuji Masanobu, a rogue colonel who evaded justice entirely. The episode delves into harrowing case studies, including the Bayoneting of Kalgon villagers in Burma, the forced labor and medical atrocities on the Thai-Burma Railway, the Bataan Death March, and the grim story of cannibalism by isolated Japanese soldiers in Mindanao. The authors also examine the roles of non-Japanese individuals—such as a Taiwanese interpreter and a Korean prison guard—who were tried for war crimes, illustrating how systemic pressures and personal choices intersected. The discussion raises profound questions about accountability, justice, and the long-term legacies of wartime violence. Ultimately, the book offers a nuanced, empirically grounded analysis that reframes Japanese war crimes not as products of inherent cultural pathology, but as outcomes of specific historical, military, and psychological conditions. The episode concludes with a reflective assessment of whether justice was truly served, acknowledging both the strengths and flaws of the postwar tribunals.