China and Japan look to younger generation as bridge over troubled waters
A recent visit to Beijing by a party of Japanese high schoolers highlights the efforts on both sides to improve mutual understanding
In December last year, the two countries’ foreign ministers agreed to promote youth exchanges as a way of improving relations between their respective populations, including a five-year plan for educational exchanges between high schools and universities.
As part of these efforts, 40 Japanese high school pupils visited Beijing last week under the Japan-China Teenage Ambassador programme. They were joined by 40 of their Chinese counterparts for meetings with Japanese diplomats and Chinese officials.
“Personally, I would say I like China, but I’ve heard many negative biases about China,” Mahiro Imai, 16, from Tokyo, said during an event at the Japanese embassy on Tuesday.
She said World War II ended 80 years ago but she had been worried to see “the news of China … releasing so many movies about the war”.
Mahiro added that people were saying “there were really strong opinions” against Japan in China, but her family had agreed she should still go ahead with the visit.
She said she had already seen a different side to China, adding: “When I watched the news about China, they were talking about air pollution or like rubbish on the street.