LDP presidential candidates are Yasukuni Shrine worshipers

The four rivals for Liberal Democratic Party president competed for public recognition as being the most loyal to Yasukuni Shrine, which played a key role in driving the people into the war of aggression and enshrines Class-A war criminals among the war dead.

At the press conference organized by the National Press Club of Japan on April 17 and 18, they said they are willing to visit Yasukuni Shrine as government officials.

An Akahata comment on April 19 criticized the four "LDP presidential candidates" for representing the anachronism of the LDP lacking self-criticism of Japan's war of aggression.

Hashimoto Ryutaro (former prime minister) has long wanted to make an official visit to Yasukuni. Kamei Shizuka (LDP Policy Research Council chair) said, "Any Japanese citizen must worship at the shrine." Koizumi Jun'ichiro (former health and welfare minister) said, "I will never fail to visit the shrine on August 15." Aso Taro (state minister for economic and fiscal affairs) said, "Full respect must be paid to those who gave their lives to the country."

Akahata stressed the fact that Yasukuni Shrine is not only an institute to remember the war dead. It is a religious-military institution which in prewar days enshrined as "gods" those whom the military recognized as being dead in battles fought for Tenno (the emperor). For this reason the shrine at the time was made a spiritual pillar used to mobilize the people to support militarism and the war of aggression against other countries.

Even in postwar years, Yasukuni Shrine had 14 Class-A war criminals including Tojo Hideki, enshrined together as "state martyrs."

The present Japanese Constitution is based on the principle of separation between politics and religion. It prohibits state and other public institutions to conduct any religious activity.

This is why the 1985 official visit to Yasukuni Shrine by Nakasone Yasuhiro, prime minister at the time, and the 1996 visit by the then prime minister, Hashimoto Ryutaro, were major political issues.

Akahata said that it is extraordinary for LDP presidential candidates in the 21st century expressing their intention to make an official visit to worship at Yasukuni Shrine. (end)