and TOSHI MAEDA Staff writers One might wonder why Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is so bent on visiting Yasukuni Shrine on Aug. 15, the anniversary of Japan's World War II surrender, amid a steady outcry from Seoul and Beijing and opposition from inside his ruling camp.
"It is natural as a Japanese citizen and as the prime minister to pray for the souls of the war dead," Koizumi said, stressing his intention is not to justify or glorify the war.
Critics say Koizumi's personal belief is one thing and it is quite another for the nation's leader to visit the Shinto shrine dedicated to the nation's 2.4 million war dead since the mid-19th century, including Class A war criminals executed after World War II.