Seo Gyeong-deok, a professor at Sungshin Women’s University, strongly criticized Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura for visiting Yasukuni Shrine, where Class A war criminals are enshrined, and for offering tributes to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
Professor Seo wrote on his Facebook page on the 17th, “Yesterday (16th), Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura visited Yasukuni Shrine a day before the fall annual festival and offered an offering at his own expense, causing great controversy. Additionally, Kyodo News reported that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida offered an offering called ‘Masakaki’ at Yasukuni Shrine in the name of ‘Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.’”
Regarding this, he said, “It is an act of defending Japan’s past wars of aggression, and can only be seen as ignoring neighboring countries such as Korea and China. “This is because Yasukuni Shrine is a facility that honors the souls of those who died in large and small wars of aggression waged by Japan, and in particular, is the place where 14 Class A war criminals from the Pacific War, including Hideki Tojo, are enshrined,” he pointed out.
Professor Seo, who recently visited Tokyo to investigate sites of historical distortion in Japan, including Yasukuni Shrine, said, “One of the problems with Yasukuni Shrine is that a lot of Rising Sun Flag products are being sold everywhere. There was a much greater variety of products than before. He emphasized, “This is like Japan admitting that it used the Rising Sun Flag during the war it started.”
He continued, “The Rising Sun Flag promotional video produced by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been promoting it around the world, leaving out only the explanation that the Rising Sun Flag was used as a ‘war criminal flag’ in World War II and the Pacific War. We will further strengthen our global publicity campaign to properly inform people around the world of the historical significance of ‘Yasukuni Shrine’ and ‘Rising Sun Flag’. “If Japan distorts history, we have to tell the truth,” he added.
Song Chi-hoon,
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.