你也许听说过塞班岛的美名。这座点缀在太平洋上的小岛以其迷人的热带风光吸引着世界各地的游客。但是，你是否知道，这里曾经是二次世界大战的战场之一呢？一个关于战争和人性的悲剧就掩藏在环绕着这座热带天堂的一波汪洋之下。现在，就让我们打开尘封的记忆，走进塞班岛那段发人深省的历史之中。
By Art Schneider
南希 译
In the 1944, as the war in the Pacific unwinds, the US Navy is approaching the island of Saipan. The island was home to several thousands of Japanese people. What follows is a hypothetical account of what was going on in the mind of a typical Japanese:
1944年，随着太平洋战争的展开，美国海军正在迫近塞班岛。这座岛屿上居住着数千的日本人。以下这段虚构的文字记述了一个典型的日本人的所思所想。
“I know the Japanese army is ready to face the American troops as they approach, but my fear grows strong. They say to us, the American take no prisoners, that is why we must be steadfast and strong and keep to our defenses.
“我知道日本军队已经做好了准备来面对步步逼近的美国人，尽管如此，我还是越来越害怕。人们说，美国人不接纳战俘，因此我们必须做到坚定、勇敢，严防死守。
“But day after day, and night after night, the news continues to worsen. We hear news that the ships of the ‘sleeping giant’, that Admiral Yamamoto had warned us that we had awakened, still approach. I am afraid, I choose not to be tortured and killed by the Americans. I must do the honorable thing according to the legend of my samurai brethren.
“然而，日复一日，夜复一夜，传来的消息越来越糟。山本上将曾经警告说我们唤醒了‘正在沉睡的巨人’。我们听说这个巨人的舰队此刻依然在向我们逼近。我很害怕。我不愿被美国人折磨致死。我必须依照我的武士同胞的传奇，行光荣之事。
“We all know of a cliff by the north of our beloved island of Saipan. It is a beautiful white rock, but a steep drop into the ocean. We look out on the clear blue Pacific Ocean water, but the approaching armada of death betrays the calm pacific waters. We take to hills and one by one we fall to our deaths, the panic protects us from the threat of humiliation from our enemies. We are the residents of Saipan, we are gone.”
“我们都知道，在我们挚爱的塞班岛北边有一座悬崖。那是一块美丽的白色岩石，但是非常陡峭，几乎垂直坠入海洋。我们远眺太平洋，海水清澈蔚蓝，然而不断接近的死亡舰队却打破了水面的平静。我们爬上山，然后一个接着一个坠入死亡的怀抱。是恐慌保护我们免受来自敌人的羞辱。我们是塞班岛的居民，我们走了。”
This was over 65 years ago. The American navy did land, but the wholesale massacre of the Japanese people did not materialize. The American navy gained control of the Island continuing its “island-hopping ” strategy form Guam to Saipan to Iwo Jima to Guadalcanal to Okinawa and finally into to Tokyo.
这就是65年前发生的事。美国海军确实登陆了，但是针对日本人的灭绝性大屠杀并没有发生。美军取得了对该岛的控制，继续推行“跳岛战略”，从关岛到塞班，再到硫磺岛、瓜达尔卡纳尔岛和冲绳岛，一路推进，最终进入东京。
Because of the beauty of the islands, the magnificent beaches Saipan have become a popular resort. And because of its proximity to Japan, the island has become a favorite tourist and shopping destination for the Japanese themselves. Just a three-hour flight and they can be swimming, sunning and spending in this tropical paradise.
岛上的美景和壮丽的海滩使塞班成为了一处度假胜地。由于靠近日本，它也成为了日本人最喜爱的一处旅游和购物场所。只消乘坐三个小时飞机，他们就能来到这座热带天堂游泳、沐浴日光和消费。
Today, the Banzai cliffs, as they are known, have become a place of remembrance for of the countries of the world. At the fought of the cliff, there are monuments from Japan, Korea, the United States, China, and Germany. With the hope that tragedy’s of Saipan and all wars for that matter are never allowed to happen again.
今天，被称作万岁崖的那块峭壁已经成为了世界各国的纪念场所。山崖上摆放着来自日本、韩国、美国、中国和德国的纪念碑，寄寓着塞班岛乃至所有战争的悲剧永远不再上演的希望。
1. Admiral Yamamoto: 山本上将，即山本五十六（1884—1943），日本帝国海军军官，第26及27任日本联合舰队司令长官。他策划并指挥了日军偷袭珍珠港战役，这一事件拉开了太平洋战争的序幕。
2. island-hopping: 跳岛战术，也作蛙跳战术，是二次世界大战后期，美军收复东南亚日军占领的诸多太平洋岛屿时所贯彻的战术。即在拥有绝对海空权支配下，不采取逐一收复各岛的战法，可在收复一个岛屿后，跳过下一个岛屿，而攻占下下一个岛屿，特別是跳略过防守比较坚强顽抗的日军岛屿。通过跳岛占领，以海空封锁的方式来孤立日军占领的岛屿，迫使其最后不得不屈服（或宁死不从地饿死），从而大幅提升收复的进度与成效。