Japan Forward
Date: December 12, 2019
By: Russell Hsiao
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is waging a battle to influence and control the narrative over history in Asia through propaganda and “thought management” (sixiang guanli). The primary objective is to shape how history is understood in the current geopolitical dynamics and political context.
To be sure, history in the region — especially related to the numerous wars fought in the 20th and 21st centuries — is fraught with political fault lines. Yet, this battle is less about the past and more about the future.
History is a critical front in shaping people’s thoughts through influencing their perceptions and beliefs about their national history and identity. It has been an emerging theater in the CCP’s United Front (tongyi zhanxian) efforts to co-opt its former nemesis, the Nationalist Party (Kuomintang, KMT), and promote a common narrative against one of its principal external targets: Japan. [FULL STORY]