By the Most Reverend Desmond M. Tutu
Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town
1984 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

There seems to be no end to the depths to which our inhumanity towards other human beings will sink. I don't believe history repeats itself, as some would say. But I do believe there is a flaw in human nature that, if allowed full rein, leads to suspicion, alienation, victimization, and finally even genocide -- the "final solution."

The basis of this human flaw is an inordinate concentration on those biological, physical, and cultural differences which make us who we are, the subverting of the very personhood of others into something worthless and alien, and therefore to be feared. Fear of the other is at the root of ethnic conflict. All too frequently this weakness of human nature surfaces and wreaks havoc on the perpetrators of such inhumanity as it does on their victims.

In South Africa under apartheid we knew the humiliation of being thought of as less than fully human, second-class citizens without rights who could be uprooted from our homes in the name of ethnic order and purity. We endured a regime of injustice and oppression which mercifully fell short of the "final solution."

To sweep under the carpet the atrocities which occurred in Nanking in 1937-38 and turn a blind eye to the truth is at best a gross disservice to future generations and at worst to be criminally negligent and irresponsible. A record such as this book is an essential part of our history. However terrible, we must not be sheltered from the evils of our past. If we attempt to forget and try to believe that human nature is good all of the time we will bitterly regret our amnesia, for our past will come to haunt us. We know that while created inherently good, any one of us can fall to depths of evil we might never believe possible. It is part of the way we are and why it is so necessary to constantly be alert to our failings.

It is necessary to know the truth of what happened in Nanking in order that the perpetrators might accept their wrongdoing and seek reconciliation. We can only forgive what we know and reconciliation is impossible without forgiveness. We are discovering this in South Africa. President Mandela has set up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission whose purpose is to promote national unity and reconciliation. It is required to investigate past violations against human rights, irrespective of who in our society may have committed wrongdoing. The Commission has the power to grant amnesty to those who are guilty and to provide a means of symbolic restitution to the victims. It will seek the truth and in doing so hopes to bring about authentic reconciliation and peace in our country.

I am pleased to be associated with this book, however graphic of the horrors of that dreadful time, as I believe it to be an instrument of reconciliation. It is a step on the road to a better world.