- 14 Mar 2002
- 21,135
- 19,070
PM Takaichi resisted the forces of the Dark Side, while Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, Economic Security Minister Kimi Onoda, Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Minoru Kiuchi, and Hitoshi Kikawada, Minister for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs, visited the shrine in person.
However:
No remorse:
Takaichi avoided using words such as "remorse" or a "pledge never to wage war" in her speech marking the anniversary of Japan's defeat in the Second World War, a year after her predecessor revived such language for the first time in 13 years. Takaichi delivered the address at the National Memorial Ceremony for the War Dead (全国戦没者追悼式) at Tokyo's Nippon Budokan on 15 August, the 81st anniversary of the end of the war. Her remarks reflected her longstanding conservative views on Japan's wartime responsibility.
The speech largely followed the approach taken by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with whom Takaichi was closely aligned ideologically. Her position on wartime remorse is not new. Speaking in the Diet in 1995, Takaichi said that she belonged to a generation that could not be considered a party to the war. She said she felt no remorse and did not believe there was any justification for others to demand remorse from her.
However:
No remorse:
Takaichi avoided using words such as "remorse" or a "pledge never to wage war" in her speech marking the anniversary of Japan's defeat in the Second World War, a year after her predecessor revived such language for the first time in 13 years. Takaichi delivered the address at the National Memorial Ceremony for the War Dead (全国戦没者追悼式) at Tokyo's Nippon Budokan on 15 August, the 81st anniversary of the end of the war. Her remarks reflected her longstanding conservative views on Japan's wartime responsibility.
The speech largely followed the approach taken by former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, with whom Takaichi was closely aligned ideologically. Her position on wartime remorse is not new. Speaking in the Diet in 1995, Takaichi said that she belonged to a generation that could not be considered a party to the war. She said she felt no remorse and did not believe there was any justification for others to demand remorse from her.