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But Koizumi refused to abide by the verdict and vowed to continue his visit to the controversial shrine in the center of Tokyo which honors 2.5 million Japanese who died in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. They include several World War II class-A criminals. The shrine is also associated with the ideology of Japanese emperor worship.

Despite his defiance, the sensational ruling is not only stirring Japanese society but also drawing keen global attention, especially from Korea, China and other Asian neighbors which had suffered the brutalities from the hand of the Japanese imperial military.

The Japanese court in Fukuoka ruled that Koizumi’s visit to the shrine encroached upon the separation of state and religion stipulated in the Constitution. Japanese government workers are prohibited from engaging in religious activities in public. Koizumi was sued by a group of over 200 Japanese activists.

Koizumi has visited the shrine four times since he took office in 2001, the latest one on New Year’s Day this year, enraging the peoples in Korea, China and other Asian countries, the major victims of the Japanese imperialism.

As before, Koizumi complained that he visited the shrine as a private person. However, his argument seems not to convince even many Japanese people, let alone the rest of the world.

Japanese government leaders, both former and incumbent, have repeatedly offered an apology for the atrocities which their old military had inflicted on Korea, China and other Asian countries. But their actions have betrayed their words, thereby losing trust and confidence from those countries.

In recent years, Korea, China and many other Asian countries have been deeply concerned with Japanese leaders’ tilt towards extreme-rightist nationalism, reminding them of the horror of the Japanese imperial militarism. In particular, Tokyo Mayor Shintaro Ishihara has stunned and infuriated the Korean people with his chauvinistic speeches, flatly distorting historical facts. He has even said that Japan annexed the Korean peninsula upon a request from the Korean people.

Even though Koizumi’s visit to the Yasukuni Shrine was checked by his country’s court because of religious reasons, he ought to stop so as not to hurt any more the people in Asian countries which its imperial military had devastated.

We sincerely hope that the Japanese government will take appropriate action, instead of giving lip service, to demonstrate its repentance for the atrocities perpetrated by its military. That is the only choice for Japan to take in order to win back trust from its Asian neighbors and expand relations with them a step further.

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04-08-2004 19:12