Yasukuni Shrine Essay

JJapanese Prime Minister Junichi Koizumi brought relations between China and Japan to a standstill with his annual visits to Yasukuni Shrine. Koizumi’s campaign pledge to visit Yasukuni on the 15th of August 2001 was intended to garner political support from prominent Japanese rightists, had the added effect of internationalising the issue. Within China and Korea, Yasukuni is considered to be a symbol of Japanese imperialism and expansionist militarism. Further, the enshrinement of Japan's 14 Class A war criminals in 1977 has been a source of contention within both Japan, and mainland Asia. Scholars generally agree that the Japanese Prime Minister, in visiting Yasukuni shrine, is venerating the criminals perceived to be responsible for Japan’s war of aggression is the main point of controversy; however, other issues, such as the enshrinement of Korean and Okinawan people against the wishes of bereaved family members further complicate the issue. John Breen’s edited volume Yasukuni, the War …show more content…
Kevin Doak, a practising Catholic, supports Prime Ministerial Yasukuni visits. He argues that Yasukuni represents an important part of Japanese spirituality, providing a space for the living to interact with the dead. His argument is echoed by Nitta Hitoshi, who wished to “express [his] respect and gratitude to [Japan’s] ancestors.” From Yasukuni, the voices of Yasukuni supporters argue on the premise that Yasukuni is an inherently religious site and thus a non-political issue. Seki Hei argues it is the CCP’s inability to comprehend the spiritual causes the CCP to incorrectly view all actions of Japanese officials towards Yasukuni as being political in nature. By encouraging debate Yasukuni highlights how the perspectives of Yasukuni supports fundamentally misunderstand the arguments of their