日本の学校で量産している「国歌を歌えない国民」は恥【ニッポンの新常識】
http://www.zakzak.co.jp/society/domestic/news/20150318/dms1503181140003-n1.htm
毎回のタイトルは編集部で付けてくれるのですが、今回は少し違うかな。国歌を歌えない国民がいる現状は日本国の恥。学校で教えてもらえなかったせいで国歌を歌えない日本国民は、偏向教育の被害者だと私は考えています。
Common Knowledge Revisited⑦
History of Kimigayo; the Emperor and the Constitution
At the start of Tokyo Marathon 2015 held on February 22nd, Roppongi Men’s Chorus Club, of which I am a member, sang the national anthem Kimigayo as we do each year.
Sometimes I am asked why I am able to sing Kimigayo despite the fact that I am an American, but I have lived in Japan for a total of 37 years, so it only seems natural that I could sing Kimigayo. It would be embarrassing to attend an event where the national anthem was played and I was the only one who couldn’t sing it.
Do you know the history of Kimigayo?
According to composer Shigeaki Saegusa, who is also the president of Roppongi Men’s Chorus Club, the first Kimigayo music was composed by an Englishman named Fenton in 1870. However, the music didn’t fit well with the Japanese lyrics and it was dropped after six years.
In 1880, the Imperial Household Agency Board of Ceremonies Gagaku (ancient Japanese court music) Section and the Navy Department composed the present Kimigayo, but there was in intruder.
Minister of Education Arinori Mori had a third version prepared by an American named Mason (with music by an Englishman named Webb) and promoted this version.
In 1889, this third version was performed at the ceremony marking the promulgation of the Imperial Japanese Constitution. However, after Mori was assassinated, this version lost its main sponsor, and the second version gained ascendance again.
In 1903, this second version was performed at the International National Anthem Contest held in Germany and took first place, indicating the high technical degree of musical perfection.
Roppongi Men’s Chorus Club sometimes sings all three versions in concerts, and of course I can sing all three.
Whereas I as an American can sing all three versions, there are a large number of Japanese who have lived their whole lives in Japan who cannot sing Kimigayo. To be frank, this is a national embarrassment.
I have a clear understanding of why this is the case. It is because there exists a group of educators in Japan who advance their selfish and childish claims that “this song should not be sung because it was the symbol of militarism during the war” or “we do not want to recognize this as the national anthem.”
Educators who receive wages as public servants are forcing their warped and emotional philosophy of disdain for the nation upon their students. They tout the slogan “Don’t force the Hinomaru flag or Kimigayo on us!” as if they are some kind of victims, but they themselves are actually perpetrators who are forcing their own ideology on children and the community.
There is an argument that the “Kimi” in Kimigayo refers to the emperor and that the anthem is therefore not appropriate because it reveres the emperor. Incidentally, there are also various other theories about the meaning of “Kimi.”
However, the title of the British national anthem is “God Save the Queen.” It reveres and praises the queen and the royal family of Great Britain. That being the case, where is the problem even if the national anthem of Japan does include the idea of revering the emperor?
Everyone talks about Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, but Articles 1 through 8 concern the emperor. They appear first because of their importance. Whether the emperor is the head of state or only a symbol of the nation, it is and always has been impossible to have a meaningful constitutional discussion of Japan without considering the issue of the imperial system.
As a sidenote, among the political parties screaming “Save Article 9!” there are parties which state in their platform that they side with those advocating abolition of the emperor system. I am perplexed as to how voters could perceive those parties as being in favor of protecting the present Constitution (opposition to amendment).
From the perspective of international common sense, the fact that Japanese schools are intentionally producing a generation of “citizens who cannot sing the national anthem” is nothing short of scandalous. The central government and local governments should not leave this issue unattended.