アジアの国境―繁栄わかちあう知恵を

--The Asahi Shimbun, Jan. 6
EDITORIAL: East Asian countries must overcome hardships to share peace, prosperity
アジアの国境―繁栄わかちあう知恵を

Nearly 100 years ago, the saga of a territorial dispute began over the Aland Islands in the northern part of the Baltic Sea.
　今から１００年近く前、北欧を舞台に始まった話である。
　バルト海の北方に浮かぶオーランド諸島。

The combined land area of the small islands is slightly larger than that of the main island of Okinawa Prefecture.
小さな島を全部あわせれば、沖縄本島をひとまわり大きくした広さになる。

Finland based its sovereignty claim over the Aland Islands on the historical fact that they had been under its control for long periods, while neighboring Sweden pointed to the sentiment among residents of the islands, who spoke Swedish in their daily lives. The sovereignty dispute was submitted to the League of Nations.
　この島々の領有権をめぐってフィンランドと隣国スウェーデンとの間で争いがおきた。フィンランドは古くからの統治の実績を言い、スウェーデンは自国語を日常生活で使う住民の思いを理由にあげた。両国の対立は国際連盟に持ち込まれた。

‘DEMILITARIZED ISLANDS’ IN NORTH EUROPE
■北欧の「非武の島」

In June 1921, the League of Nations decided that Finland should retain sovereignty over the islands but they should be made an autonomous, demilitarized and politically neutral region.
　１９２１年６月、連盟の裁定が下った。フィンランドへの帰属を認めるかわりに、島を非武装中立とし、住民の自治を認めるべし――。

Both countries accepted the ruling and concluded an international treaty to make Aland “demilitarized islands.”
　両国はこれを受け入れ、オーランドを「非武の島」とする国際協定が結ばれた。

Inazo Nitobe (1862-1933), a Japanese educator who was an undersecretary general of the league at that time, said the settlement over the Aland Islands will establish a precedent for dealing with future territorial problems that may disturb amicable relations of countries, whether large or small. But the significance of the ruling goes beyond that.
　当時の国際連盟事務次長、新渡戸（にとべ）稲造は「将来、諸国間の友好関係を妨げる類似の問題が生じた場合、大小にかかわらずその処置の先例を確立することになる」と語った。だが裁定の意義はそれにとどまらない。

National borders, by nature, separate nations from nations, people from people.
For the 28,000 residents of the Aland Islands, however, the national border now exists only by name, and it works to link countries and people.
　国境はもともと、国と国、人と人を隔てる。しかし２万８千人の島民にとって、いまや国境はあってなきがごとき存在だ。
　むしろ国と国、人と人とをつなぐものにさえなっている。

The passengers of ferries traveling between the islands and Sweden are not required to carry passports. Seventy percent of young people who have graduated from high school on the islands go on to universities in Sweden. Camilla Gunell, current premier of the autonomous government of Aland, says the economy of the islands benefits from an increase in people who cross the border. The decision by the League of Nations that settled the dispute has helped make the islanders richer, Gunell says.
　海を渡るフェリーの乗客にパスポートは必要ない。島の高校を出た若者の７割が隣国スウェーデンの大学に進む。自治政府のカミラ・グネル首相は「国境を越える人が増えれば島の経済も潤う。あの裁定が私たちを豊かにしてくれた」と話す。

An important undertaking to change the meaning of a national border has been also made in Germany, which faces the southern part of the Baltic Sea.
　バルト海南方にあるドイツでも国境の持つ意味を変えようとする努力が払われてきた。

Frankfurt (Oder) is a town located on the German-Polish border, a one-hour train ride from Berlin. Before World War II, the whole region around the town was part of Germany. Following Germany’s defeat in the war, however, the area on the opposite side of the Oder River became Polish territory. Many Germans, driven out of the area that had become part of the Soviet bloc, crossed the Oder River into Germany.
　首都ベルリンから電車で１時間の国境の街フランクフルト・オーデル。第２次世界大戦前、一帯はドイツ領だった。しかし敗戦によってオーデル川の対岸はポーランド領となった。多くのドイツ人が旧ソ連陣営となった地域から追われ、オーデル川を越えてきた。

SETTLING HISTORY ISSUES
■歴史問題の清算

An attempt to make the border less of a barrier to exchanges between people of the two countries started in 1970.
　国境の壁に穴をあけようという試みは１９７０年に始まる。

In that year, Willy Brandt (1913-1992), chancellor of West Germany, visited Poland and other countries in the Soviet bloc and announced his country’s acceptance of the borderline drawn after the war. There was opposition to Brandt’s decision within West Germany, but he made the move to ensure the coexistence and the stability of Western and Eastern Europe.
　旧西ドイツのブラント首相がポーランドなど旧ソ連陣営を訪問し、敗戦後に引かれた国境線を受け入れた。国内には不満があったが、東西欧州の共存と安定を手にするためだ。

Viadrina European University, on the German side of the Oder River, was established in 1991, after the Cold War ended. The university has started a program to help people visit their hometowns in the former German territory. The project is part of the university’s efforts to accomplish its mission of serving as a bridge between the East and the West in Europe. Under the program, students at the university make necessary arrangements for people’s trips to their hometowns in the Polish side of the Oder River, including finding interpreters. It is an attempt to build links between people living on both sides of the border.
　オーデル川沿いのドイツ領にあるヨーロッパ大学を訪ねた。冷戦が終わった後の９１年に創設された。「東西のかけ橋」になるとの校是の下に取り組んでいるのが、故郷訪問プロジェクトだ。旧ドイツ領へ帰郷する人々の旅行や通訳の手配を学生たちが引き受ける。国境を超えて人と人とをつなぐ取り組みだ。

These developments in Europe are different from the path that has led to the current situation in East Asia.
　欧州がたどってきた歩みと、東アジアの現状は異なる。

Last year, tensions flared between Japan and its two neighbors--China and South Korea--over islands. The differences between the governments’ sovereignty claims seem unbridgeable. The conditions are not right for the kind of settlement worked out through diplomatic efforts in which Nitobe was involved.
　日本は昨年、領土問題で中国や韓国との対立を深めた。政府間の主張はすれ違ったままだ。新渡戸が関わった裁定をあてはめる条件は整っていない。

Despite increased interdependence among countries due to economic globalization, territorial disputes in areas around Japan continue to generate acute international tension because of history issues related to World War II.
　経済グローバル化による相互依存の深まりにもかかわらず、日本の近隣で領土をめぐる緊張が高まる背景には、先の戦争をめぐる歴史問題がある。

After the end of the war, Germany totally admitted to the war crimes committed by the Nazis. This made it possible for Germany to cooperate with neighboring countries in leading Europe toward regional integration.
　ドイツはナチスの戦争犯罪を全面的に認め、周辺国とともに欧州の統合を引っ張ってきた。

On various occasions, Japan has also expressed its regret and apologies for its past invasion of neighboring countries. As a result, Japan has managed to obtain an understanding from Southeast Asian nations.
　日本も、過去の侵略に対する反省と謝罪の意をさまざまな機会に表し、東南アジアでは日本への理解が広がった。

But mutual trust between Japan and its close neighbors has been eroded repeatedly by some Japanese politicians’ indiscreet remarks and actions related to history issues.
　ところが肝心の近隣国との信頼関係は、歴史認識をめぐる一部政治家の浅慮な言動によって何度も揺るがされた。

The shift in the balance of power between Japan and China, caused by China’s rise, has also widened the gaps in perceptions of people in both countries.
　中国の台頭による日中の力関係の変化も、双方の人々の意識の溝を広げている。

TACKLING STRUCTURAL PROBLEMS BEHIND DISTRUST
■不信の構造を断つ

How should we solve the structural problems behind such mutual distrust?
　こうした不信の構造をどうすれば崩せるのか。

There have been a variety of steady, low-profile efforts to tackle this challenge.
　地道な試みは続いている。

For example, a discussion forum called “Jing Forum” was created for regular debates between students of the University of Tokyo and Peking University. Every year, around two dozen students from both universities lodge together to discuss a wide range of issues in English. The forum’s seventh debate camp took place last autumn at the height of tensions between Japan and China over the Senkaku Islands, a group of islets in the East China Sea.
　東京大と北京大の学生による「京論壇」というフォーラムがある。双方二十数人の学生が毎年合宿し、英語で討論する。７回目の開催にあたる昨年秋、日中関係は緊張の極にあった。

Still, the participating students chose the Senkaku Islands dispute as a topic for discussions in one of the subcommittees. In Beijing, where anti-Japanese protests were raging, and in Tokyo, the students of the two universities spent two weeks or so examining the claims of both governments and engaged in heated debates. They also listened to the opinions of academics and visited companies.
　それでも学生たちは分科会の一つで、あえて尖閣問題を取り上げた。反日デモが繰り広げられた北京、そして東京と２週間余り、両政府の主張を吟味し、議論をぶつけた。学者の意見を聞き、企業も訪ねた。

In the end, none of the students totally accepted the arguments of the other side. As they discussed factors related to the educational and media environments where the claims of both countries have been generated, however, some students said they were not convinced of their governments’ arguments in the dispute. In a debriefing session, students stated their own opinions, instead of those of their governments.
　最終的に、相手国の言い分をそのまま認める学生はいなかった。ただ、それぞれの考えが生まれた教育やメディア環境を話すうち、「政府の意見に確信が持てない」という声も出た。報告会では、政府ではなく、学生それぞれの意見を述べた。

“Although we didn’t reach an agreement, we understood each other and created a sense of trust between the two sides through discussions,” says Daiki Komatsu, a 21-year-old student at the University of Tokyo who heads the forum. “In order to improve relations between Japan and China, I believe it is important for us to develop stronger links between us.”
　「折り合いは見つからなかったけれど、議論を続けることで相手を理解し、信頼感が生まれた。日中関係を良くするには僕たちがつながっていくことが大事だと思う」。代表の幸松大喜さん（２１）はこう振り返る。

The 21st century is an age of Asia, where countries like China, India and Indonesia will expand their power and influence. We should never allow the region to return to an era of military confrontation. The countries in the region need to overcome the challenges facing them to share peace and prosperity.
　中国やインド、インドネシアなどが台頭する２１世紀はアジアの時代だ。軍事対立の道に舞い戻ってはならない。平和と繁栄を分かちあうため、困難を乗り越えていこう。