Online lecture Dr Hitomi Koyama

We are delighted to invite you to a special online lecture by Dr. Hitomi Koyama. Dr. Koyama, affiliated with Leiden University, is an international relations theorist whose work explores the intersection of comparative political theory, global intellectual history, and discourses of Asianism in Japanese international political thought.

Did you know that after World War II, the U.S. often pointed to Japan as a success story—a country that turned from enemy into peaceful democracy? But what if the story isn’t so simple?

In this online lecture by Dr. Koyama, you’ll learn about a phrase that’s often used in Japan today: “heiwa boke” or “pacifically demented.” It means that people have become confused or naive because of too much peace. Some use this term to explain why people didn’t stop the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Others use it to criticize Japan’s younger generations or peaceful protesters. It even appears in comics, newspapers, and political speeches.

But what does it really mean when peace is called a kind of “dementia”? And how does this phrase affect the way Japanese people think about war, politics, and their own future?