|
EDITORIAL: The
lessons Yoichi Hatta taught us
In a question-and-answer session on Taiwan-Japan relations at the legislature on
Thursday last week, a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmaker raised concerns
over escalating nationalism in Japan and expressed dismay at Taiwanese
pro-Japanese sentiment.
The lawmaker said he wondered why a dam built by the Japanese could be praised
as a legacy for decades, while Taiwanese turned a blind eye to many other
infrastructure projects completed by the Taiwanese government.
The dam the legislator referred to is the Wushantou Reservoir in Greater Tainan,
which was completed in 1930 during the Japanese colonial period by Yoichi Hatta,
a Japanese engineer dubbed by locals as the ˇ§Father of the Chianan Irrigation
Systemˇ¨ because of his design and supervision of the reservoir.
Annual production of rice, sugar cane and other crops in the 150,000 hectare
Chianan Plain increased dramatically after the completion of the project, which
improved the lives of tens of thousands of households in the region.
Hatta, who hailed from Kanazawa in Japan and worked under the Office of the
Governor-General, died on his way to the Philippines on May 8, 1942, when his
ship was sunk by Allied bombers.
Wednesday marked the 71st anniversary of Hattaˇ¦s death and farmers in the south
pay tribute to the pioneering engineer on this day every year in a ceremony to
commemorate his contribution to the region.
Like his predecessors, the KMT lawmaker pondered the intriguing sentiment about
the Japanese colonial period, which they assume is absurd because the colonial
regime oppressed and exploited its colonies, just like every other colonial
government in world history.
Some of them say Taiwanese were enslaved subconsciously and perhaps had a form
of Stockholm syndrome, making them express sympathy toward the captors.
While the reason why more Taiwanese reminisce about the colonial period and have
more empathy for the Japanese than people in other countries ruled by Japan in
the early 20th century has been heatedly debated, using Hattaˇ¦s case as an
example of this phenomenon is out of line.
As an official of the colonial government, the engineer showed humility and led
by example. Insisting on working and living with blue-collar Taiwanese workers,
Hatta treated everyone the same way, regardless of their ethnicity or social
class.
When he was forced to lay off workers due to a shortage of funding, Hatta
surprised people by laying off those who had more skills, saying that they would
find jobs more easily than the others.
The engineer also placed a priority on the working environment and workersˇ¦
welfare, building dormitories, hospitals, schools and entertainment facilities
at the construction site, which is now the Yoichi Hatta Memorial Park.
Taiwanese remember Hatta not only for his engineering achievements, but also his
role as a respected leader.
Hatta was not a politician, but a professional. It is true that the Japanese
colonial government oppressed Taiwanese, but it is also true that the regime was
able to recognize Hattaˇ¦s talent, put the man in the right place and empower him
with authority.
If there is anything the story of Yoichi Hatta teaches us, it is an everlasting
lesson for the government to have a vision for the future, the determination to
make the country a better place and to be able to spot talented people. It is a
lesson that civil servants should always put peopleˇ¦s welfare and livelihoods
above everything, and respect their jobs by bringing professionalism to the
table.
It is as simple as that.
|
