What is Koizumi trying to prove by going to Yasukuni shrine?

Question

What is Koizumi trying to prove by going to Yasukuni? Could it be a sign of the desire for the return of militarism? How do people of different countries (nationals from country occupied by Japs before, defeated Japs, allied with US and others unaffected by WWII) think of Koizumi's actions? Kindly state your nationality if possible.

i supposed no one who answered my Qn has lost a family member or hurt in any way by the Japanese occupation. Like the innocent Japanese who went to war for "something they believe in"(to build a global econ? How nice..) many innocent asians fought, tortured and killed in the war. Families were broken, sons died, daughters raped and killed by the innocent Japanese military men. Innocent asian civillians who tried hard to stay out of the liberating Japanese military men were not spared. My grand dad was a ordinary shop owner. He was tortured and killed during the occupation. My grand mum lost her husband but had no means to raise all her children, send her older children to her relatives in China. We have no right to feel angry over Koizumi going to the shrine to honour the "innocent" military men? He and the other Japanese who supported him should be more sensitive to the comparably more innocent asians who were harmed by the Japanese's greed.

And i do not mean anything by calling the Japanese "Japs". Been using this term for a long time. Even in front of ones from the country.

I have nothing against modern Japanese. But i feel that the Japanese government and those who supported Koizumi's action, even if not apologetic to what has happened, should not agonised and remind their neighbours of the pain and humiliation suffered during WWII. The Japanese emperor has been more sensitive. Maybe Koizumi can take a leaf from the emperor's book.

Answer 1

I am Japanese.

"What is Koizumi trying to prove by going to Yasukuni?" He's trying to show that he cares!

Honestly,is it THAT difficult for you to understand an action of a leader of a nation paying respect to it's war dead? Sure, 14 class-A war criminals are happen to be enshrined there, but it does not negate the fact that Yasukuni is a resting place of 2.5 MILLION nameless soldiers who sacrificed their lives for something they believed in, or something they were made to believe in. The worst crime those soldiers committed was not being brave enough to question their orders, and having yielded to the madness of war. They were ordinary people who were plucked away from their humble lives and had the ultimate test of their humanity thrust upon them, and sadly, they failed. I will never forget that they were people just like me, not monsters, and unless we keep reminding ourselves of this constantly and stay vigilant, we will repeat a mistake of allowing a rise of the militaristic government and letting them lead us into an unjust war.

But this is just my opinion. There are many people in Japan who believe Koizumi should not visit Yasukuni. We are not a bunch of mindless people who blindly follow our leaders, not any more.

Besides, how we mourn our war dead is none of your business.

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Well, we mourn our people, you mourn yours. It's that simple.

I didn't say the Japanese soldiers who are enshrined at Yasukuni were innocent. I don't understand the atrocities they committed during the war and I'm not in any way trying to justify it because there's simply no justifying it... with English being my second language, I am at a loss for adjectives to properly describe the horror of what they did. What I meant when I said "they were not monsters but people just like me" was that I'm in no position to condemn them. I live in a small but cozy house, have three meals a day, sleep in a warm futon, have just a little, but some money in my bank account, have a job, have a computer with high-speed internet access... so what do I know about war and what it does to a human psyche? If I were put into their position, would I be able to stick by my morals? The answer is no. I would probably become a monster just like them. That's why I'm just thankful that I was born in the 1970's instead of 1940's, because what separates me from those hideous monsters is only a fact that I was born a couple of decades later. I will always keep that in mind.

Answer 2

As an American, I am not distressed over Koizumi's visit to Yasukuni Shrine. Each and every Japanese PM has made this same visit, and it's purpose is not to offend anyone. The Chinese government has got to get off this tasteless dictate they have of trying to be the boss.

I am left with the impression that Japan has no desire to offend China and S.Korea, but at the same token they have no intention of being led by the nose just because China says so. Japanese people are very independent and not so tolerant of country's that meddle in their affairs.

So a word to the wise for meddling China. Stay out of Japan's business and they will stay out of yours. And please, please, no dumb @ss threats, veiled or otherwise about what you're going to do if Koizumi does visit Yasukuni shrine.

It seems to me, you people have stirred up enough unrest by unleashing your surrogate, Kim Jong Il, on the rest of the world.

Answer 3

Hi Maya I am JAP in your word.
I think it same as other country, Arlington National Cemetery for US.
Some Dead Jap's family want PM go for their Fathers or Mothers.
And I feel sorry our past and our PM's Shrine visit makes you so angry and make you feel nothing to use disparaging word even in front of ones from the country.

And also sorry it is not big issue for Japanese as you think. Militarism?
Maybe thanks to China or N Korea we feel needs to prepare something. We did not have army now.
Politician's Shrine visited was reported as problem by Chinese paper almost 20 years ago.
Now half of Japanese said PM should visit or ok with that (yes other half oppose visit)
Koizumi saying he pray for peace and promised Japan will not start war with soldiers.

I hope Jap governments make something like a Arlington or separate Rank A criminal.
But are you really ok with this? If Jap Government make national cemetery and this is place for pray peace. Can you believe Jap?

You really think you stop using Jap and call Japanese if Jap make national cemetery?

Answer 4

Oh wow, how nostalgic!

I haven't heard anyone use the derogatory label "Japs" in forty years!

And here I was, assuming that the world had given up on that particular slur...

Tsk.

Answer 5

certain, they could visit fairs, yet many times no longer take area, and at some rituals spectators aren't any further allowed contained in the compound and could word the ritual from a distance.