Photo/Illutration Toshihide Maskawa meets reporters after attending a ceremony to receive the Nobel Prize in Physics in Stockholm in December 2008. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Japanese physicist Toshihide Maskawa, who won the 2008 Nobel Prize in Physics for his theoretical research on elementary particles, decided to talk about his experiences of World War II in his speech at the Nobel Prize awards ceremony.

As he was drafting it, however, Maskawa came under fire from critics who said it would be imprudent of him to make remarks about war at such an academic occasion.

But he refused to change his plan. And in his Nobel speech, he spoke about how the “reckless and tragic war” Japan waged burned his father’s furniture factory to cinders.

His book titled “Kagakusha wa Senso de Nani wo Shitaka” (What did scientists do for war?) conveys his unwavering belief that scientists must keep thinking about war.

Historically, many great scientific minds have been mobilized to develop various weapons, including the atomic bomb.

“I don’t have the optimistic view that scientists can no longer be mobilized (for weapons programs) in this age,” Maskawa said in his book.

Faced with cuts in their research budgets, Japanese universities and research labs are gravitating toward government funds for military studies, according to researchers.

Maskawa remained dedicated to the peace movement while continuing his scientific research. He helped found Kyu-jo Kagakusha no Kai, a group of scientists supporting war-renouncing Article 9 of the Constitution.

He invited his colleagues to join him in anti-war demonstrations, telling them they should not stay locked up in their labs.

This scientist with backbone died on July 23. He was 81.

With regard to the relationship between scientists and military research, the Science Council of Japan is facing growing political pressure.

Politicians publicly criticize the council, which has been opposed to military research at universities. This is an issue that can no longer be left to either politicians or scientists to tackle on their own.

Maskawa said he remembered seeing a firebomb rolling before his eyes when he was a 5-year-old boy. He was not killed because the bomb failed to explode.

When he passed away, the diminishing band of Japanese who have been carrying memories of their first-hand experiences of the war throughout their working life lost another one of their number.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Aug. 1

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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