Japan Press Weekly

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2016 August 10 - 16 [POLITICS]

Abe shows no remorse over past war of aggression for 4 straight years

On August 15, the 71st anniversary of the end of WWII, Prime Minister Abe Shinzo in his address at the government-hosted National Memorial Ceremony for the War Dead refused to express remorse over Japan’s past war of aggression for four consecutive years after returning to power.

Earlier on the same day, the prime minister sent a ritual offering to the Yasukuni Shrine which justifies Japan’s wartime invasion of neighboring countries. Abe’s stance will heighten tension among Asian countries.

Ministers of the Abe Cabinet paid a visit to the Yasukuni Shrine. Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Takaichi Sanae and Minister in charge of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games Marukawa Tamayo visited the shrine on August 15 and some other ministers visited the shrine before August 14. Politicians’ visits to Yasukuni clearly indicate that they take a stance glorifying the past war of aggression.

The Japan Conference (Nippon Kaigi) and other rightist organizations calling for constitutional revisions held a rally at the Yasukuni Shrine on August 15 and adopted a statement which demands that future prime ministers regularly visit the shrine. The statement welcomes the Abe government move to revise the Constitution and requests to change the supreme law as early as possible.

PM Abe intends to use his Liberal Democratic Party’s draft constitution as a basis for discussions on constitutional change, which means that Abe seeks to change Clause 2 of Article 9 which prohibits possession of war potential to one declaring the creation of the national defense force and introducing an emergency clause.

In Northeast Asia, there exist numerous causes of potential future conflicts and tense situations, such as North Korea’s nuclear development program, territorial issues, and disagreements about historical recognition. The need now for Japan is to pursue peaceful diplomacy based on the spirit of Article 9. The Abe government is pushing forward with its move to create a Japan that engages in wars abroad without having any remorse over the past war of aggression. Abe’s attitude goes counter to the historical trend seeking peace.

Past related articles:
> Shii: Abe Statement marking 70 years of WWII end is deceitful [August 15, 2015]
> 3 ministers, 161 lawmakers visit Yasukuni Shrine on Aug. 15 [August 16, 2015]