Reconfirmed whether the remains of the war dead collected in the south are also Japanese. Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare October 5, 5:08

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In response to the issue of the remains of war dead, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has pointed out the possibility of mistakes not only in Siberia but also in the southern battlefield. I decided to check the Japanese policy again and check if it was Japanese.

There is a possibility that the remains of the 597 Siberian detainees may not be Japanese, but the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare established an expert team on the 4th to see the shape of the bones. We are going to verify that there are no problems with the appraisal methods we have determined so far.

In the remains collection project, experts who analyzed DNA of some remains collected not only in Siberia but also in the Philippines pointed out that they were not "Japanese", and also about remains collected in Bougainville Island in eastern Papua New Guinea. Several experts who saw the appraisal testify to NHK's interviews that "it is highly likely that the bones of the child are mixed."

For this reason, the expert team decided to conduct a DNA test on the remains of 995 people that have been collected in the southern battlefield and have extracted DNA so far to confirm whether they are Japanese or not. It was.

As for the remains collected in the south, there are few cases where the remains that lead to identification are found, most of the remains have been burned locally without DNA analysis and returned to Japan as unknown. The results of future appraisal will be noted.

Also pointed out "child's bone"

NHK obtains an appraisal report in March last year by appraising the remains collected in the Tarokina area of ​​Bougainville Island, eastern Papua New Guinea, where the most remains were collected in the southern battlefield over the past three years. Did.

The appraisal report includes the photos of the collected remains and the reason why the appraiser determined the remains were Japanese.

However, several experts who looked at this appraisal pointed out that even though there were only Japanese soldiers in the battlefield in the Tarokina area, “the bones of the feet considered to be children's are mixed” .

According to the procedure manual compiled by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, it is desirable that a Japanese appraiser should be present at the site where the remains are excavated. The Japanese and local appraisers appraise the bones brought in.

When NHK interviewed a local appraiser's man, he said, “Assessment of remains is not professional,” and “The remains of the Japanese are shining. Explained.

After that, he told me that the bones of the child may have been mixed in the remains of the appraisal, “I ca n’t tell if it ’s a Japanese bone or not. I was not convinced. ”

In addition, local residents who have brought their remains are paid about 1,200 yen per day as “labor wages” by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, and some residents say that they are collecting bones for the purpose of money. did.

To date, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare explained to NHK's interviews that, “From 2018, Japanese appraisers have been accompanied at all collection sites, and appraisals are being conducted appropriately.” .