At a Japanese diet meeting over the weekend, Japanese foreign minister Taro Aso said Japan's emperor should worship at the Yasukuni Shrine. He said also that Korea and China should "keep their mouths shut" about prime minister Junichiro Koizumi's worshiping there. That is disgraceful and dangerous.
Aso is the most ultranationalist of Japanese foreign ministers ever. The Aso Mining company, built with the sweat and blood of conscripted Korean laborers, is a family business. He does not mind fabricating history, having once saying that Koreans assumed Japanese names because they desired to do so. When Korea issued a stamp with Dokdo on it, it was he who called for a Japanese stamp in response. He has not changed since assuming his current post three months ago, and even goes so far as to say it is his "basic understanding" that "it will be difficult to have good relations with neighboring countries." It is hard to believe such talk can come from the cabinet minister responsible for foreign relations. His latest comments, as well, can only be interpreted as a deliberate provocation.
At the center of the Yasukuni problem stands prime minister Junichiro Koizumi. The PM made worshiping at the shrine that among others hosts memorial tablets of Class A war criminals one of his main campaign promises, and he has continued to visit there since assuming office in 2001. With the PM going there, his cabinet has been busy outdoing him. He is making a big mistake if he thinks Asian countries are going to get worn out and start tolerating it. As long as Japan has elements that feel nostalgia for militarism, the wound it left cannot heal. Korean-Japanese and Chinese-Japanese relations have been frozen over for some time now. It is surprising that someone could be so reckless as to suggest the emperor should worship at Yasukuni in such a situation.
Last year Japan tried to join the United Nations Security Council as permanent member but saw that fall through. That is only natural given it has a prime minister and cabinet ministers obsessed with worshiping at Yasukuni Shrine. The Japanese people need to realize that the behavior of their imperious right-wing politicians is harmful to the whole country.
The Hankyoreh, 31 January 2006.
[Translations by Seoul Selection]
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