August 1st, 2009

The big rumour circling yesterday is that the new Japanese PM(their first ever female PM) will continue to enrage the international community and indeed visit the shrine on August 15th(the anniversary of Japan’s surrender).

When I first came to Japan, I thought of it as a country that was on the cutting edge of technology, leading the charge for environmental change, and progressive on so many respects. I knew it also had tons of tradition, but I was blissfully unaware of its recent past, and of the emperor system, which more than 60 years after its abolishment is still a hot button topic amongst the people. As someone who voted Liberal in every Canadian election, I have to say I’m really surprised by some of things that have occurred in Japan in recent years. I’m not going to argue that the government is far right, but when you hear about some of the things that have occurred, such as the removing any mention of ‘comfort women’ from history books (with no official reason given despite more international protest). I’ve been struggling with this for the past few days, and in my opinion, Japan was given a free pass post World War 2. If you compare the sanctions imposed on Germany and Japan post war, there is a large discrepancy. Regardless of the America’s reasons(specifically their mini-colonization of Japan so that they had a presence against communism in the pacific), the emperor should never have been allowed to escape persecution. I understand that Japan was made to suffer(including the dropping of the bombs), but post-war they were essentially given a slap on the wrist in terms of sanctions. This means that many present day Japanese citizens have been insulated from many of the horrible realities that occurred. Last week I was given the chance to watch the movie “Japanese Devils”, which features horrifying testimonies of Japanese soldiers. When I asked my Japanese friend how the Japanese public reacted when this film was released, he told me the film was given a very small and quiet domestic release. To paraphrase one of the veterans, “People don’t understand why we feel the need to talk about it, to bring up this shame. But people need to know...”. Unfortunately, not enough Japanese do. I have no problem with Yasukuni as a place used to remembering the past(and past mistakes). There is a renewed call, however, to remember the past in terms of glorifying those who died while serving the emperor. The emphasis should be on those who died, and remembering why, as well as how we can prevent this in the future. I believe in the current climate, Yasukuni has become a rallying point for many rightists, a cause to get behind. If they are able to re-nationalise the shrine, it would be the first domino in a series leading to the creation of a new constitution. Thankfully, from what I’ve read, there is an equally large amount of people opposed to this(including some that want the shrine abolished), but I can’t help but feel that more people who are in a position of power are in favour of the shrine. From a traditional standpoint, I understand the shrine has meaning. However it may be time to re-examine exactly what it means to all Japanese. If it is to remain a place central to glorifying Japan’s recent past, then government officials should back off. On the other hand, twisting that tradition in order to drum up a new wave of nationalism while conveniently downplaying(or downright denying in some cases) the sad history behind it all is something I can’t except. I know that is important to cling to tradition, but like in the classic Japanese film, Hara Kiri, there comes a time when you must question the meaning behind the tradition. I hope the day comes soon when someone in the government will stand up and demand some real accountability among his peers in order to take full responsibility and ensure future generations know the mistakes of the past.