Japan Press Weekly

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2021 April 21 - 27 [POLITICS]

Civil group working for Japan-China friendship protests PM Suga’s offering to Yasukuni Shrine

The Japan-China Friendship Association (chairman Inoue Hisashi) on April 22 published a statement in protest against the offering of a sacred “masakaki” tree by Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide to the war-glorifying Yasukuni Shrine on the previous day on the occasion of the shrine’s annual spring festival. The statement was sent to PM Suga.

The statement points out, “PM Suga’s act goes counter to the constitutional principle of the separation of religion and politics, and shows that the head of Japan takes the position of justifying Japan’s past war of aggression as a ‘holy war’.” It states, “Such an act will arouse concern in the international community that Japan may take the path toward the revival of Japanese militarism.”

The statement expresses strong concerns that amid a growing uneasiness over the possibility that the latest Japan-U.S. joint statement could intensify tensions in the Taiwan Strait, PM Suga’s act of making an offering to the Yasukuni Shrine may harm the current level of trust between Japan and China.