There have been calls by some senior officials within the current Japanese government cabinet for the current Japanese Emperor to visit the war shrine Yasukuni Jinja in Tokyo that is famous for enshrining 14 A-class War Criminals including the infamous wartime Prime Minister of Japan Hideki Tojo. Below is an article from BBC
BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Japan emperor 'must visit shrine'
I am interested in seeing your views on whether or not you think the Japanese Emperor should visit the warshrine. The Foreign Minister of Japan says that "from the viewpoint of the spirits of the war dead, they (the Japanese soldiers) hailed 'Banzai' ['long life'] for the emperor. None of them said, 'Long live the prime minister'"
Many of us probably have heard that the Japanese Prime Minister J. Koizumi have chosen to visit the same shrine yearly, because of "personal" reasons. He has claimed in various reports that angers directed toward his visits in neighbouring countries such a Republic of Korea & PR China is due to "misunderstandings" of his true intentions, and that relations between the countries will improve once the "misunderstandings" cease. It has also been reported that he would continue visiting the shrine even if, in the future, George Bush's administration asks him to reconsider.
I think that the Japanese Emperor has his own point of views with regard to such type of visits. Like Koizumi, he should have his own say in whether or not he wants to go. Even though most of us would probably agree that the Emperor merely serves as a puppetlike role, it is still rather unfortunate to see that the symbol of Japan is being manipulated for such extreme right-wing agendas even in the modern times. Personally I fail to see much advantage to the relations of Japan with her neighbouring countries. However, there's much as stake with the nationalism movement, and it would be a victory for those parties if and when the Emperor visits the shrine.
BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Japan emperor 'must visit shrine'
I am interested in seeing your views on whether or not you think the Japanese Emperor should visit the warshrine. The Foreign Minister of Japan says that "from the viewpoint of the spirits of the war dead, they (the Japanese soldiers) hailed 'Banzai' ['long life'] for the emperor. None of them said, 'Long live the prime minister'"
Many of us probably have heard that the Japanese Prime Minister J. Koizumi have chosen to visit the same shrine yearly, because of "personal" reasons. He has claimed in various reports that angers directed toward his visits in neighbouring countries such a Republic of Korea & PR China is due to "misunderstandings" of his true intentions, and that relations between the countries will improve once the "misunderstandings" cease. It has also been reported that he would continue visiting the shrine even if, in the future, George Bush's administration asks him to reconsider.
I think that the Japanese Emperor has his own point of views with regard to such type of visits. Like Koizumi, he should have his own say in whether or not he wants to go. Even though most of us would probably agree that the Emperor merely serves as a puppetlike role, it is still rather unfortunate to see that the symbol of Japan is being manipulated for such extreme right-wing agendas even in the modern times. Personally I fail to see much advantage to the relations of Japan with her neighbouring countries. However, there's much as stake with the nationalism movement, and it would be a victory for those parties if and when the Emperor visits the shrine.