Why should we name our gallery Syonan?

If the gallery at the war museum was created by the Japanese for the people in their own country, then I would have nothing to say ("Revamped war museum's name sparks questions"; Feb 10).

But in this instance, this is our gallery to show Singaporeans the atrocities and humiliation that our people, especially the Chinese, suffered during the Japanese Occupation.

What was light to the Japanese was calamity to the people of Singapore.

I suggest that the name be changed to the hanyu pinyin shounan and zainan, meaning "calamity" in English; or simply "The Japanese Occupation Gallery".

Gan Kok Tiong

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on February 11, 2017, with the headline Why should we name our gallery Syonan?. Subscribe