Every family was required to belong to a tonarigumi, through which Japan’s military police monitored not only public obedience and resistance but also every individual’s private enthusiasm level or “treasonous” attitudes toward the war. Nagasaki alone had 273 tonarigumi, each with five to ten families. Those in the minority who expressed disbelief in the emperor’s divinity, the government’s political ambitions, or Japan’s military aggression were imprisoned, tortured, and often killed. Even at work, disobedience to one’s supervisor could result in extreme physical punishment.
