Visas for Life: Chiune & Yukiko Sugihara

[kurohinge1]

Being born on 1 January 1900 may have been a hint that Sugihara-sama was destined to be a remarkable man. Twenty years ago this month, former Consul-General Sempo Sugihara passed away leaving behind thousands of people (survivors and their descendants) who wouldn't be in this world if not for him and his wife.

In the course of human existence, many people are tested. Only a few soar as eagles and achieve greatness by simple acts of kindness, thoughtfulness and humanity. This is the story of a man and his wife who, when confronted with evil, obeyed the kindness of their hearts and conscience in defiance of the orders of an indifferent government. These people were Chiune and Yukiko Sugihara who, at the beginning of World War II, by an ultimate act of altruism and self-sacrifice, risked their careers, their livelihood and their future to save the lives of more than 6,000 Jews. This selfless act resulted in the second largest number of Jews rescued from the Nazis . . . more

See also: VISAS FOR LIFE: The Remarkable Story of Chiune and Yukiko Sugihara :bowdown::bowdown:

An interesting twist was that Zalke Jenkins (Solly Ganor) - the boy who invited the Sugiharas to attended an enchanting Jewish Chanukah celebration with his family - was later given a Sugihara visa but unable to use it as he was a Soviet citizen (citizens weren't allowed to flee) and after being sent to a concentration camp by the Germans and then forced into a death march in May 1945 (as the allies approached), he was actually liberated by Japanese Americans - soldiers of the 522nd Field Artillery Battalion (which supported the 442nd - also made up of Japanese Americans).

[kurohinge1]

[SIZE="4"]'Japanese Schindler' who saved Lithuanian Jews is honoured[/SIZE]

When Japan's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko visited the monument of Chiune Sugihara in Lithuania last weekend, many television programmes back in Japan had to run stories explaining who this obscure diplomat was.

It's obvious why the Emperor would be in London yesterday to dine with the Queen but who was Chiune Sugihara?

For years, few Japanese knew the incredible story of how the man dubbed "Japan's Schindler" saved about 6,000 Jews from the Nazis during the Second World War despite working for an ally of Germany. Unlike Oscar Schindler, the German industrialist who turned against the Nazis and rescued almost 1,100 Jews from the Holocaust, Sugihara had to wait until just seven years ago for his bravery to be officially recognised.

. . . Sugihara's reward for his heroism was dismissal from the Foreign Ministry immediately after the war. Disgraced in Japan, he was forced to eke out a living as a part-time translator and ended his life working for a trading company with connections to Russia. He died in 1986 and his family had to wait until 14 years later for the then Foreign Minister Yohei Kono to formally apologise.

A year before he passed away, he was honoured for his work in rescuing the Lithuanian refugees by the Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority in Israel. The award stunned those who heard about it in Japan, where Sugihara had lived in obscurity for years.

. . . The Emperor's seal of approval is for many of his family the highest honour that Japan can bestow for Sugihara's bravery. "The visit by the imperial couple makes me feel as though his actions have again been rewarded," one of his surviving family members told the Asahi newspaper . . . more

[Mulboyne]

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