In September 1922, when Turkish troops conquered and set fire to Smyrna, hundreds of thousands of Armenian and Greek refugees found themselves in the port, between fire and sea.
While a dozen or so warships from Western powers watched indifferently as people were drowned and massacred for political reasons, the captain of the Japanese merchant ship "Tokei Maru", T. Norito, performed a remarkable feat.
He ordered that the entire precious cargo of the ship (oil and porcelain) be thrown into the sea and rescued on the deck over 825 Armenian and Greek refugees.
When Turkish officers threatened to hand them over, the captain declared that the ship was owned by the Emperor of Japan and that any violation would be considered a declaration of war.
The Turks withdrew and the ship brought the survivors safely to Greece. This fact is confirmed by an article in the New York Times and eyewitness accounts.
Subsequently, the Japanese people also provided vital humanitarian aid to the survivors of the Armenian genocide.
Shushanna Hayasa
Note ......... It is worth noting that in 2018, during his official visit to Armenia, the Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono and the members of the delegation accompanying him visited the Tsitsernakaberd memorial complex and paid homage to the memory of the victims of the Armenian genocide.
This represents a great step forward.
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