Yuyuan Tantian, a social media account run by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, said on Saturday that Japan seized more than 370 stones from the countries it invaded during the second world war – mostly from China – and used them to build Hakko Ichiu Tower, which the account described as “a tower of sin” promoting militarist ideology.
“After its defeat, Japan not only failed to demolish this symbol of militarism or return the stones it had taken but instead cloaked the tower in the guise of ‘peace’,” the post said, referring to the Japanese monument’s official name, the Tower of Peace.
What is Hakko Ichiu Tower?
Hakko Ichiu Tower, situated in Heiwadai Park in the southwestern city of Miyazaki, was completed in 1940, when Japan celebrated the 2,600th anniversary of its imperial origins.
