Hashimoto appeals to British to accept PoW apology

The Japanese Prime Minister, Ryutaro Hashimoto, has appealed to the British people to forgive Japan for its treatment of British prisoners during the Second World War.

Mr Hashimoto spoke to the mass-circulation Sun newspaper -- a strident critic of Japan's treatment of British prisoners.

Mr Hashimoto said he hoped the British people would accept in a spirit of reconciliation a number of initiatives to help heal what he called the tremendous damage and suffering of that time.

These would include granting scholarships for the grandchildren of former prisoners-of-war.

The unprecedented newspaper apology follows a visit to Tokyo by the British prime minister, Tony Blair.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service