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\nAccording to the BBC on November 29, the English Premier League club Brighton apologised on the same day for a controversial image on its social media, which showed the club, japanese international Kaoru Mizuka and a young player each hold a card with the Hiroo Onoda of a Japanese officer from World War II.<\/p>\n
The X account of Brighton’s Academy said in a congratulatory post on November 27 that its under-12 team had won the Premier League education programme and would travel to Belgium for the Christmas Truce Cup, it was accompanied by a picture of the young player and Kaoru San holding a card with a picture of the Hiroo Onoda in military uniform.<\/p>\n
The Hiroo Onoda was the last Japanese soldier to formally surrender in the Second World War, in 1974, almost 30 years after the defeat. The BBC says the Hiroo Onoda killed 30 civilians in Lubang Island, but the Philippine government still pardoned him at the time. The Hiroo Onoda was welcomed back.<\/p>\n
Kaoru Mizuka is a Japanese footballer who currently plays for Premier League team Blyton. The image of him holding the Hiroo Onoda quickly became a cause for controversy, with some fans expressing anger and disappointment on Chinese social media platforms. The club’s Academy issued a statement on social media platform x saying: \u201cThe club sincerely apologises for any offence to China caused by a recent post regarding the academy’s participation in the Premier League’s Christmas Truce Cup. We value the Chinese fans very much and have no intention to offend them.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to the BBC, the name comes from a historic event during the First World War, around Christmas 1914, when and German front-line soldiers held a spontaneous ceasefire and held a football match. The Premier League claims the match\u201cGives U12 youth players a chance to play alongside Europe’s top clubs and to learn about the historical events that have shaped the world today\u201d. Brighton Football Club said the photo was a\u201cMistake\u201d and neither the club nor the Premier League were aware of the incident.<\/p>\n
Chosun Ilbo, a South Korean newspaper, said on November 29th that Blyton had not apologised to his fans. Reported that the Japanese military during World War II crimes are not limited to China. They also colonized the Korean Peninsula and persecuted its people for decades. \u201cShouldn’t Blyton apologize to US Filipinos First?\u201d One Filipino Netizen wrote<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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