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For the sake of Japan’s future, stop glorifying past crimes at Yasukuni

Your Excellency Prime Minister Shinzo Abe,

It hurts the victims of the Imperial Japanese military’s war of terror that ministers of your government and members of parliament continue to visit Yasukuni Shrine, purportedly to honor Japan’s war dead. As you know, among the dead honored by the visits are 14 individuals convicted of war crimes for their actions during World War II.

[Unlike Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso, Keiji Furuya, state minister in charge of the abduction issue, and Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Yoshitaka Shindo, in April] you did not visit Yasukuni Shrine, but you paid for a Shinto ceremonial gift, bearing your name and title, to decorate the altar at the shrine. Thus, indirectly, you [indicated that you] approve of the Yasukuni visits by your party members.

What a contrast to the Dutch remembrance ceremony on May 4. The Dutch honored their war dead both in Europe and in Asia at the National Monument in Amsterdam’s Dam Square. Our new king and queen laid a wreath and paid their respects to those who died. Both were visibly moved. The former commander of all Dutch military forces, Gen. Peter van Uhm, reflected on war and the egocentric attitude of those who glorify conflict for their personal benefit. He strongly advised all to remember the consequences of war and its criminal aspects.

However, it appears that you and your party continue to glorify Japan’s military past. Changing the Constitution and marking the date the San Francisco Peace Treaty came into effect [marking the end of the Occupation, except in Okinawa] does not help Japan’s economy. It does not restore a sense of hope and determination for the future. In practice, it does the contrary: As long as Japan does not acknowledge moral responsibility to the victims of the war and their next of kin, Japan’s relations with the rest of the world will be strained and suspect.

You cannot pass this responsibility to yours and Japan’s children.

The leaders of Germany recognized immediately after the war that the German nation would never be trusted again as long as they refused to fully acknowledge their crimes during World War II. They paid their respects, and acknowledged and compensated for their wrongdoings.

Japan used the San Francisco Peace Treaty only for its own benefit, avoided its moral obligations and will remain haunted by them. In the meantime, Japan causes fresh pain to its victims with every ministerial visit to Yasukuni Shrine.

J.F. VAN WAGTENDONK
President
Foundation of Japanese Honorary Debts
The Hague

Send your submissions of 500-700 words to community@japantimes.co.jp

  • Hitokiri 1989

    Indeed, all sides commit atrocities. Its just that only Japan can avail of the moral equivalency excuse it seems. What about China and North Korea?

  • Jay Wilson

    What about the spitrits of those enshrined BEFORE the war? Are people not entitled to pray to them and to honour their spirits?

  • 牧野宏紀

    First off, anybody who’s never been to Yasukuni doesn’t have the right to say it’s wrong for Japanese people to pay respect to their fallen there. Second, the shrine isn’t just only for Japanese military personnel who were KIA/MIA in WW2. There are 2.5 million souls enshrined there and they include KIA/MIA in conflicts before WW2, civilians who participated in combat and died, civilians who died in Soviet labor camps after WW2, civilians who volunteered that died (factory workers, students, Japanese Red Cross nurses, etc.), crew who were killed in Merchant Navy ships and exchange ships, Okinawan school children evacuees that were killed, etc. So to say these people should be forgotten because of 14 people out of 2.5 million is utter ridiculous. Third, the shrine itself doesn’t glorify or celebrate Japans involvement and/or actions during WW2. The environment there is filled with sadness and sorrow where you’ll occasionally see a Japanese veteran or civilian crying. There’s also a museum next to the shrine which explains what this site is all about. There’s also separate memorials (statues) dedicated to mothers who lost their child, animals (horses, dogs, and birds) that were killed, and Kamikaze pilots (which is such a sad event itself). When you finally leave there you’re not going to be saying “Hail the Emperor!” or “Nippon Banzai!”. Instead you’ll probably be speechless (like I was) due to the very sad and dark atmosphere of the place. It’s definitely not a place where propaganda is promoted like many westerners believe. Fourth and last, you wrote “…Japan’s relations with the rest of the world will be strained and suspect.” Really? Where have you been sir? Japan and it’s people are the only few who ARE trusted in the world. Polite, hardworking, innovative, well educated, healthy, organized, and many more. So please, stop saying these things. If you lost a family member to the Japanese I’m very sorry. I really am. Although please remember that there are Japanese who lost family too.

  • Roan Suda

    I am no fan of Yasukuni, but I am sick of seeing its admittedly muddled significance being distorted by Japan bashers…Whenever nations commemorate those who have perished in war, they tend to rely on feel-good national myth rather than troubling historical reality…This article reeks of hypocrisy. The Dutch were brutal, racist colonialists, who even after the war killed many tens of thousands trying to regain Indonesia. During the war, many Dutch collaborated with the Nazis, and many more passively looked on as Dutch Jews, a majority of whom perished, were sent off to concentration camps.

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