The annual autumn observance is scheduled for October 17-20 at Yasukuni Shrine in central Tokyo. In view of the current international situation, there appears no more opportune time than now for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to realize his long-cherished dream of a visit to the shrine, where the spirits of the nation’s war-dead are enshrined.

　　　On August 15th, Abe sent his proxy Koichi Hagiuda, who serves as his special advisor, to Yasukuni. Abe instructed him to convey “my heart-felt condolences to the spirits of those who died fighting for our nation and its people during the last war” and to “deeply apologize for my failure to personally be present due to the present circumstances.” Two months later, on October 11th, Abe observed on BS Fuji’s “Prime News”: “I regard it as a very natural sentiment and an intrinsic right of the leader of a nation to show reverence to the spirits of the war-dead who sacrificed their lives fighting for the nation.”

　　　These remarks eloquently convey the strong yearning on the part of Abe to visit the controversial shrine. Violent reactions from China and South Korea, each determined to politicize the issue, have frustrated Abe’s plans to visit Yasukuni. And now, with the autumn observance just around the corner, a visit by the prime minister is again being taken up in China and South Korea as a serious “diplomatic issue”.

　　　On condition of anonymity, a senior member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party commented:

　　　“Frankly speaking, the biggest stumbling block for Mr. Abe is neither China nor South Korea. In point of fact, it is US. President Obama, ridden with delicate issues such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) negotiations, North Korea, and Syria, among other things. His hands also full with domestic issues, Obama regards discord between Japan and China over Yasukuni as an added burden on the US.”

　　　Those fundamentally opposed to Abe’s Yasukuni visit conveniently take advantage of such sentiments on the part of the US administration, eagerly looking for reasons why Abe should not visit Yasukuni. They say, for example, that: (1) even the Emperor is unable to visit the shrine because of the so-called “Class-A war criminals” enshrined there; and (2) the Japanese people are not convinced that those who did not die on the battleground should be enshrined at Yasukuni. They say that the people do not support a visit by the prime minister.

　　　Although these are essentially trivial reasons, largely groundless, they nevertheless are still frequently brought up. Let us consider reason (1). Emperor Hirohito visited Yasukuni on November 21^st of 1975. That was the last time an emperor—either Emperor Showa or current Emperor Akihito—visited Yasukuni. It was not until three years later that the spirits of seven of the “Class A war criminals” were enshrined there. That is to say that the enshrinement of these so-called “war criminals” has had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that the Emperor has refrained from visiting Yasukuni.

Criticism from the US

　　　I suspect that back in 1975 the Imperial couple decided not to visit Yasukuni Shrine because of concern over how such a visit would be interpreted in view of the separation of government and religion, which was hotly discussed in the Diet at the time.

　　　That, I believe, is why, instead of personally visiting Yasukuni, Emperor Akihito along with Prince Akishino and other members of the imperial family send their emissaries or make votive offerings at the annual spring and autumn observances each year.

　　　As regards reason (2), here’s how I see it. Hideki Tojo and Koki Hirota—war-time prime minister and foreign minister respectively—did not die on the battleground per se. In point of fact, all of the seven “Class A war criminals,” including these two, were hanged under the war-like circumstances created by the American military occupation of Japan. The Japanese government describes as “homu-shi” (a term used to describe death by execution) the death by hanging that occurred under the peculiar conditions which made Japan powerless, legally and materially, as a result of the defeat in the Pacific War. The death by execution of the seven “Class-A war criminals” resulted from their fight for the nation’s survival under strenuous circumstances. Therefore, I consider it fair to say that they did indeed sacrifice their lives for the nation in the same way as the other war-dead.

　　　Yasukuni Shrine has never had a policy of only enshrining who died on the battleground. Japanese detainees in Siberia following the end of the war—and to go back even further, Shoin Yoshida (1830-1859) who was tried and executed for his involvement in the Ansei Purge (1858-59)—are also enshrined there. This makes reason (2) irrelevant.

　　　When one visits Yasukuni, it is clear that the claim that the Japanese people do not approve of the enshrinement of so-called “the Class-A war criminals” is false. Observing waves of visitors who come to the shrine to pray, one can understand how much the people appreciate those who sacrificed their lives for the nation and its people. During the spring and fall, as well as in August (when the end of the war is marked), the spacious compound of this shrine becomes so packed with visitors that one finds it almost impossible to move an inch. It is on these occasions that one clearly realizes that it is a fiction that the people of Japan have not forgiven the so-called “war criminals.”

　　　Seiichi Eto, an upper house lawmaker who serves as a special advisor to Prime Minister Abe, points out a surprising fact in connection with Abe’s plans to visit Yasukuni:

　　　“Among the bureaucrats surrounding Mr. Abe, there are some who claim to stake their lives to prevent the prime minister from making the visit. I suppose they want the Abe administration, which they value highly, to last as long as possible. On the contrary, I believe a visit to Yasukuni is indispensable for Abe in order to live up to the expectations of the people.”

　　　Abe’s long-promised visit to Yasukuni is indepensable not only to respond to the expectations of the general populace, but also to enable Japan to hew a new path through the harsh realities of international politics. Who among us can expect to dedicate himself to a mother country whose prime minister is unable to publicly offer prayers to his own war-dead while still able to present a wreath and offer prayers to America’s war-dead at Arlington National Cemetery? Such a nation cannot possibly sustain itself.

　　　And yet, according to Eto, the US—our most important ally—is trying to block a visit by Abe to Yasukuni. Needless to say, we must pay close attention to the state of our relations with the US in order to address any possible hostile criticism from China and South Korea resulting from a Yasukuni visit by Abe.

　　　I believe there fundamentally are two elements to America’s opposition: (1) a concern that Japan, as China asserts, is pursuing historical revisionism to the detriment of post-war international order; and, (2) a fear that friction between Japan and China could constitute a serious new burden on US foreign diplomacy.

Needed: Quiet Determination

　　　As concerns reason (1), I am inclined to think that it should be fully possible to resolve any misunderstanding on the part of the US pertaining to Japan’s basic posture toward international peace. The US-Japan Security Treaty has been in place for 61 years. Japan is an important Pacific partner who has been closely allied with the US over more than a quarter of its history. While there understandably are various historical interpretations and debates in the US concerning Japan, it is most important to remind the US of how earnestly Japan accepted the terms of the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951 as well as the ensuing postwar regime. The US, as the primary nation involved with post-war Japan, should naturally be expected to be fully aware of this. Nevertheless, Japan should take every opportunity to remind the US that it has genuinely endeavored to become a model democracy of the post-war world.

　　　As for reason (2), we must coolly and objectively continue to stress to the international community the following: it clearly is not Japan, but rather China, that is causing problems in the international arena. Already the international community is aware of the overbearing way China behaves, frequently refusing to honor international law. It is China—not Japan—that is the lone wolf of international politics today.

　　　Japan must spare no effort in making the US understand how seriously detrimental to US national interests it truly would be to turn to criticism of Japan in tandem with China and South Korea based on Japan’s mourning for its war-dead—something that any country would be expected to do.

　　　What is most badly needed is an all-out effort to help the US realize how important an ally Japan really is. I am confident that Japan, sharing the same values with the US, will be able to efficiently supplement some areas of US foreign policy, which has increasingly become inward-looking, especially these past few years. It befits US national interests for Japan to remain a trustworthy ally economically as well as in terms of international security. In order for Japan to be such a nation over the long term, it is important indeed that it be able to pay public homage to its war-dead just like any other nation.

　　　It is necessary that all of us Japanese come to grips with the fact that by being overly concerned about the sentiment of foreign nations—such as China, South Korea, and the US—we are reducing this vitally important matter of the prime minister praying at Yasukuni to a political tool. What is critical now is that Japan have a quiet determination with which to continue demonstrating its fundamental stance as a solid democracy contributing to the peace and stability of the world.

　　　At a time when China’s aggressiveness is quite obvious, a strong Japan can be entrusted with complementing an inward-looking US. The path ahead may be steep, but I think it is fair to say that Japan has never had so great an opportunity as now. I earnestly hope Prime Minister Abe will not miss his opening.

(Translated from “Renaissance Japan” column no. 579 in the October 24, 2013 issue of The Weekly Shincho)