Yasukuni visit disrespects WWII anniversary

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Yasukuni visit disrespects WWII anniversary

By Yu Jincui (Global Times) 08:52, August 12, 2013

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As the 68th anniversary of Japan's defeat in WWII approaches, some Japanese high-level officials are mulling a visit to the Yasukuni Shrine on the commemoration day on August 15. Japanese media reported Saturday that Keiji Furuya, the minister in charge of the issue of abductions of Japanese by North Koreans, is considering visiting the Yasukuni Shrine, while some other cabinet members such as Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Yoshitaka Shindo and Administrative Reform Minister Tomomi Inada have also voiced their willingness to visit the shrine.

In recent years, unremorseful of Japan's atrocities during WWII, many Japanese right-wingers have been trying to whitewash, twist and deny what happened.

The Yasukuni Shrine is an emotional symbol to people from other Asian countries which were invaded by Japan during WWII. It glorifies 14 convicted or accused class-A war criminals.

Visits by Japanese high-level leaders and politicians to the shrine could easily touch a raw nerve in victim countries.

Although Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe recently stated he would not visit the shrine on August 15, he also said he would not prevent his cabinet ministers from visiting.

Abe told a news conference in Hiroshima that whether his cabinet ministers visit Yasukuni in a private capacity is an issue based on their beliefs and they are free to visit it. These remarks have been interpreted as tacit encouragement for Japanese politicians visiting the shrine.

Many politicians are considering visiting the shrine to score political points. However, they are in fact playing with fire and harming their nation. Yasukuni visits risk further antagonizing countries including China, South Korea and poisoning the sentiments among the public of these countries.

A recent poll by the Japanese think tank Genron NPO showed that 62.7 percent of Chinese interviewees strongly oppose Japanese politicians visiting Yasukuni, 20 percentage points higher than the previous year. Cho Tai-Young, South Korea's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, officially warned Japanese political leaders not to worship at the Yasukuni Shrine.

The US also issued a government report recently, warning that a Yasukuni visit by Abe or his cabinet members on the "sensitive" anniversary of Japan's surrender "could again spike tension in the region" based on references to strong reactions by China and South Korea to trips by influential politicians in the past.

Some Japanese politicians so far have maintained an ambiguous attitude, saying they are "considering" the trip.

But it's predicted by Japanese media that this August 15 may witness a record number of politician visitors.

If Japan continues to twist history and Japanese politicians play nationalistic tricks, Japan will risk further being isolated in Northeast Asia.