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The Fugu Plan: The Untold Story Of The Japanese And The Jews During World War II
If someone who is rich and powerful comes to you for a favor, you don’t persecute him – you help him. Having such a person indebted to you is a great insurance policy.
There was one nation that did treat the Jews as if they were powerful and rich. The Japanese never had much exposure to Jews, and knew very little about them. In 1919 Japan fought alongside the anti-Semitic White Russians against the Communists. At that time the White Russians introduced the Japanese to the book, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
The Japanese studied the book and, according to all accounts, naively believed its propaganda. Their reaction was immediate and forceful – they formulated a plan to encourage Jewish settlement and investment into Manchuria. People with such wealth and power as the Jews possess, the Japanese determined, are exactly the type of people with whom we want to do business!
There was one nation that did treat the Jews as if they were powerful and rich. The Japanese never had much exposure to Jews, and knew very little about them. In 1919 Japan fought alongside the anti-Semitic White Russians against the Communists. At that time the White Russians introduced the Japanese to the book, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
The Japanese studied the book and, according to all accounts, naively believed its propaganda. Their reaction was immediate and forceful – they formulated a plan to encourage Jewish settlement and investment into Manchuria. People with such wealth and power as the Jews possess, the Japanese determined, are exactly the type of people with whom we want to do business!
440 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 1, 1979
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 14, 2008
A fascinating story that needs to be taught in our schools. You've also got to see the related PBS documentary called Sugihara: Conpiracy of Kindness.
January 12, 2020
Very interesting part of history though not an incredibly interesting retelling of them. I picked this up because I had never heard of the Fugu plan, so this satisfied my thirst for knowledge of the subject. Not a particularly entertaining take, but satisfies curiosity.
May 9, 2010
My aunt Anita urged me to read this book. There are endless historical episodes that we learn about over time. This story is especially fascinating due to the complex, convoluted, unusual nature of the people, countries, and belief systems involved.
Chiune Sugihara was the Japanese consul in Kovno, Lithuania in 1939/1940. Referred to as “the Japanese angel” he saved the lives of thousands of Jews. When asked why he risked his career to save these refugees, he said:
I just did what we as human beings should do. One of my best teachers, in Harbin, once told me: You do the right thing because it is the right thing. Not for gain. Not for recognition. Just because it is the right thing. The refugees were people who needed my help. I could give help to them. It was the right thing to do. That’s all. (p. xvi)
Chiune Sugihara was the Japanese consul in Kovno, Lithuania in 1939/1940. Referred to as “the Japanese angel” he saved the lives of thousands of Jews. When asked why he risked his career to save these refugees, he said:
I just did what we as human beings should do. One of my best teachers, in Harbin, once told me: You do the right thing because it is the right thing. Not for gain. Not for recognition. Just because it is the right thing. The refugees were people who needed my help. I could give help to them. It was the right thing to do. That’s all. (p. xvi)
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August 2, 2026The Fugu Plan is a book written by Rabbi Marvin Tokayer in 1979.
(Rabbi Tokayer was mentioned in Joseph Telushkin’s Rebbe, pages 199-201.)
In 1968, Rabbi Tokayer moved with his family to Tokyo to become the Rabbi of the the Jewish Community of Japan.
Mary Swartz was a member of the Tokyo Jewish community and a professional writer. She returned to America at the same time as Rabbi Tokayer and they collaborated on the book. (12).
The book revolves around the stories of nine composite characters-fictionalized out of hundreds of anecdotes Rabbi Tokayer heard in his research about the time period. The dates and historical figures are accurate.
The book covers Japanese exposure to Jews via its proximity to Russia, Japan’s unlikely idea of treating Jews well to gain American Jewish support that they erroneously thought could affect American war aims. It goes through the story of the Japanese consul in Kovno, Lithuania in 1940- Sempo Sugihara, who issued transit visas from Japan en route to the Dutch colonial island of Curaçao in the Caribbean Sea.
(I learned about Curaçao as a tax haven in my last class in law school-summer 2002- Transnational Litigation and Dispute Resolution.)
It then follows the path of the Jews lucky enough to get passage from Vilna, Lithuania, to Moscow via train and then on the Trans Siberian Railroad to Vladivostok station and then from the harbor to the Japanese freighter to the Japanese port of Tsuruga on to Kobe, Japan, and then later, onto Shanghai.
The book is light reading and the main themes are familiar to someone familiar with the main avenues of escape from the Holocaust.
It is an in-depth look into the amazing life-saving work of Sugihara, life in Japan for the Jews, and the hardships of being in Shanghai during the war.
I read it because of my current interest in Japan, Russia, and the Jews-the Russo Japanese War, 1904-1905, and WWII.
(Rabbi Tokayer was mentioned in Joseph Telushkin’s Rebbe, pages 199-201.)
In 1968, Rabbi Tokayer moved with his family to Tokyo to become the Rabbi of the the Jewish Community of Japan.
Mary Swartz was a member of the Tokyo Jewish community and a professional writer. She returned to America at the same time as Rabbi Tokayer and they collaborated on the book. (12).
The book revolves around the stories of nine composite characters-fictionalized out of hundreds of anecdotes Rabbi Tokayer heard in his research about the time period. The dates and historical figures are accurate.
The book covers Japanese exposure to Jews via its proximity to Russia, Japan’s unlikely idea of treating Jews well to gain American Jewish support that they erroneously thought could affect American war aims. It goes through the story of the Japanese consul in Kovno, Lithuania in 1940- Sempo Sugihara, who issued transit visas from Japan en route to the Dutch colonial island of Curaçao in the Caribbean Sea.
(I learned about Curaçao as a tax haven in my last class in law school-summer 2002- Transnational Litigation and Dispute Resolution.)
It then follows the path of the Jews lucky enough to get passage from Vilna, Lithuania, to Moscow via train and then on the Trans Siberian Railroad to Vladivostok station and then from the harbor to the Japanese freighter to the Japanese port of Tsuruga on to Kobe, Japan, and then later, onto Shanghai.
The book is light reading and the main themes are familiar to someone familiar with the main avenues of escape from the Holocaust.
It is an in-depth look into the amazing life-saving work of Sugihara, life in Japan for the Jews, and the hardships of being in Shanghai during the war.
I read it because of my current interest in Japan, Russia, and the Jews-the Russo Japanese War, 1904-1905, and WWII.
May 23, 2021
This book chronicling WWII relations between Jews and the Japanese, is interesting and info-packed. However, it did take me nearly a year to finally get around to finishing. I found the Fugu Plan itself to be quite complex and confusing, but appreciated the concentrated focus on specific illustrative personalities like Senpo Sugihara, the Japanese diplomat based in Lithuania (subject of a 2004 BBC documentary entitled Conspiracy of Kindness) and Gestapo Josef Meisinger aka the Butcher of Warsaw, the Amshenover Rebbe, etc. Reading this in 2021, it is interesting to note how far-reaching and insidious anti-semitic propaganda made up in 1919 proved to be even decades later; making me all the more hysterical about QANON and Trump's Big Lie.
As a Jubu myself (aka Buju), a child of a Japanese dad and a Germanic-Jewish mom, I have a particular interest in the history of the Jews and the Japanese. And having lived in the US and also Germany and Japan, I agree wholeheartedly with the comparatively positive depiction of Japanese military to that of the Germans. I will definitely be looking for more books on the subject of the ten lost tribes of Israel wandering through Asia and intermarrying in Japan.
As a Jubu myself (aka Buju), a child of a Japanese dad and a Germanic-Jewish mom, I have a particular interest in the history of the Jews and the Japanese. And having lived in the US and also Germany and Japan, I agree wholeheartedly with the comparatively positive depiction of Japanese military to that of the Germans. I will definitely be looking for more books on the subject of the ten lost tribes of Israel wandering through Asia and intermarrying in Japan.
February 21, 2024
Amazing history of Jews managing to get travel/transfer visas out of Russia through Japan. They eventually were relocated to Shanghai for the duration of WWIi. As bad as the conditions were, it was better than what they left behind in Europe and Russia. What a dark period of history- may we never again fall so l of w in our humanity.
September 2, 2017
Fascinating story, but poorly written and edited. It's obvious the author is not a writer. But what a story nevertheless! Saving one person is saving a world.
March 17, 2013
Fascinating story and unexpected story about Japan and the Jews during World War II.
January 14, 2015
A compelling story but a poorly written and edited book.
January 22, 2014
enlightening and well told. good book to accompany a visit to Manchuria and Shanghai
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews