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myukku
Joined: 03 Oct 2006
Posts: 2
Location: Japan
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 Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2006 5:08 pm Post subject: About Yasukuni shirine |
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Maybe many Asians know about Yasukuni shrine.
I think the problem is that Yasukuni is enshrining men killed in World War2 and war criminals together. It is also problem that Japanese government people go there to pray.
In my opinion, we have to separate the places for civilians and war criminals, so to make other place for pray is good.
On more things, what I would like to say to Japanese government is that they should think about other country�s feeling. Before, President Koizumi went there and he said� I went there as a one private citizen�. Well�he is thinking that he went there as a citizen, but I don�t think so. He can�t separate his position in this case, and it is kind of ego. I could understand why other Asian country treat this news as big news. For citizen, President is president before one citizen. He has a big responsibility, now.
This is just my thinking, but I am very sad to feel bad about this news as a person who is studying international relations. |
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asterix
Joined: 26 Jan 2003
Posts: 1654
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| Posted: Wed Oct 25, 2006 2:32 pm Post subject: |
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A shrine is a religious site.
Every believer in the religion to which the site belongs is entitled to be buried there unless there is some religious reason for excluding him or her.
You will have noted, no doubt, that there were no "war criminals" on the winning side and in any case there are only about 150 so called war criminals buried there, among many thousands of others.
If the Prime Minister of Japan wants to pray at a shrine, it is nobody's business but his.
If the Japanese people don't like it, they can express their displeasure at the polls.
If foreigners wish to try to embarrass Japan about it, it is probably because there is a political reason to do so. |
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flying_pig319
Joined: 01 Jul 2006
Posts: 369
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| Posted: Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:18 pm Post subject: |
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Ooh, politics and religion!
I'm there.
Can either of you be so kind as to explain the issue to me? I don't think I'm familliar with it...
The US media doesn't do a very good job of keeping up with things that aren't in the US...
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Outofin
Joined: 09 Feb 2006
Posts: 71
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| Posted: Wed Oct 25, 2006 8:51 pm Post subject: |
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If you worship Hilter, your religion sucks and shall be forbidden. Period.
| asterix wrote: |
A shrine is a religious site.
Every believer in the religion to which the site belongs is entitled to be buried there unless there is some religious reason for excluding him or her.
You will have noted, no doubt, that there were no "war criminals" on the winning side and in any case there are only about 150 so called war criminals buried there, among many thousands of others.
If the Prime Minister of Japan wants to pray at a shrine, it is nobody's business but his.
If the Japanese people don't like it, they can express their displeasure at the polls.
If foreigners wish to try to embarrass Japan about it, it is probably because there is a political reason to do so. |
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asterix
Joined: 26 Jan 2003
Posts: 1654
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| Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 12:45 pm Post subject: |
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And your point is, Outofin? Where does Hitler come into this?
To Miss FP.
Some Chinese, encouraged by their government, are annoyed that the former Prime Minister of Japan went to pray at the Yasakuni Shrine.where some war criminals are buried. China is looking for an apology over Japanese actions in WW2
No doubt the Chinese government can see some political advantage in this It may be something to do with the dispute over the Spratley Islands, but probably one of our Chinese friends can explain it better. |
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flying_pig319
Joined: 01 Jul 2006
Posts: 369
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| Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2006 3:31 pm Post subject: |
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| asterix wrote: |
And your point is, Outofin? Where does Hitler come into this?
To Miss FP.
Some Chinese, encouraged by their government, are annoyed that the former Prime Minister of Japan went to pray at the Yasakuni Shrine.where some war criminals are buried. China is looking for an apology over Japanese actions in WW2
No doubt the Chinese government can see some political advantage in this It may be something to do with the dispute over the Spratley Islands, but probably one of our Chinese friends can explain it better. |
Interesting, thanks!
Did the former Japanese PM know that this would spark Chinese anger? Did he visit the shrine just to upset the Chinese, or did he not realize it would have this effect at all?
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asterix
Joined: 26 Jan 2003
Posts: 1654
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| Posted: Fri Oct 27, 2006 7:04 am Post subject: |
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I'm sure he would know that his visit to the shrine would be contoversial, after all, he has advisors, but no doubt he doesn't like some foreign government trying to tell him what to do.
Anyway, there is a new Prime Minister now. We will have to see how he handles it. |
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Bob S.
Joined: 29 Apr 2004
Posts: 1767
Location: So. Cal
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| Posted: Fri Oct 27, 2006 12:12 pm Post subject: |
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| flying_pig319 wrote: |
| Did the former Japanese PM know that this would spark Chinese anger? Did he visit the shrine just to upset the Chinese, or did he not realize it would have this effect at all? |
A sort of brief history:
Yasukuni Shrine is a Shinto shrine built in 1869 to honor all the nation's war dead who died in the service of the emperor (soldiers & civilians working for the military), a kind of Arlington Cemetery for Japan. So it includes the names of all soldiers who died up to 1951 when Japan officially signed a peace treaty and became a demilitarized country. For this reason, the shrine has become a sort of becon for right-wing pro-militarism nationalists in Japan who like to rewrite history to whitewash Japan's war crimes in China (and drive around in black vans with speakers blaring "Defend the Emperor! Expel the foreigners!").
In 1978, 12 of the worst of Japan's war criminals were added to the rolls of the shrine, obstensibly adding them to the list of the sacred honored dead. And when this came to light, it became a point of contention with Japan's neighbors, particularly China which was just starting to emerge from the bloody shadow of Chairman Mao (who committed far more crimes against humanity against his own people than the Japanese did, but that's another argument). In Japan's defense, when the Emperor found out about the added war criminals, he quit visiting the shrine in person. But for the militarist nationalists who have rewritten history in their own mind, nothing has changed.
Fast forward to today. Japan has a parliamentary system like most European countries where the legislature is composed to many different parties (as opposed to our mostly bicameral system). So, like those systems, the Prime Minister's ruling party does not rule alone but with a coalition of several parties which in this case includes a far right nationalist party (which is suspected of getting a lot of funding from yakuza, but you didn't hear that from me). So, IMNSHO, I suspect that the previous Prime Minister's visit to Yasukuni Shrine has more to do with domestic political considerations and to placate his (wealthy) fringe base (goodness knows that never happens here, eh?) inspite of its impact internationally. |
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