By Zhong Sheng, People’s Daily
August 15 marks the day Japan surrendered in World War II. It is a day that commemorates the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War and serves as a solemn reminder to remember history and safeguard peace.
Yet on this very day, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made an offering to the Yasukuni Shrine, a site that honors Class-A war criminals from World War II.
Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, along with three other serving Cabinet members, the secretary-general and other senior officials of the Liberal Democratic Party, and approximately 90 lawmakers from the cross-party parliamentary group “The Assembly of Diet Members to Visit Yasukuni Shrine Together,” also paid their respects there.
This series of regressive actions once again exposes the Takaichi administration’s troubling intent to distort the history of aggression and glorify militarism.
It constitutes a blatant affront to historical justice, a grave insult to the feelings of people in Asian countries that suffered under Japanese aggression, and a deliberate provocation against the outcome of World War II and the postwar international order.
Unsurprisingly, it has drawn strong condemnation from the international community and conscientious voices within Japan itself.
Japanese politicians’ visits to Yasukuni Shrine are by no means merely a matter of personal religious belief or Japan’s internal affairs. They touch upon a fundamental question: whether Japan will honor its postwar commitment to peace and correctly confront its history of aggression.
Yasukuni Shrine is never an ordinary religious site. It served as a spiritual tool and symbol of Japanese militarism during its wars of external aggression. The 14 Class-A war criminals enshrined there were wartime culprits whose hands were stained with the blood of people across Asia.
History has repeatedly shown that sincerely reflecting on the history of aggression and thoroughly eliminating the legacy of militarism are important political foundations for Japan to develop constructive relations with its Asian neighbors.
An editorial in Japan’s Asahi Shimbun noted that such actions undermine Japan’s postwar pacifist principles and constitutional order, and damage political trust between Japan and neighboring countries such as China and South Korea.
The disgraceful actions of right-wing politicians such as Takaichi and Koizumi are not merely a short-term political stunt. They are a concentrated manifestation of their deeply rooted historical revisionism.
In her speech at the national memorial service for the war dead held on August 15, Takaichi deliberately downplayed the devastating suffering inflicted by Japanese militarism on other Asian countries, making no mention of “remorse” or “lessons learned.” Instead, she selectively highlighted Japan’s so-called “wartime sacrifices,” deliberately portraying Japan as a victim of the war.
This distortion of history is consistent with her conduct earlier at ceremonies commemorating the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. She also remained ambiguous about whether Japan should continue to uphold its Three Non-Nuclear Principles.
This distorted logic of emphasizing only a “victim narrative” while severing Japan’s identity as an aggressor is a familiar tactic used by Japan’s right-wing forces to evade responsibility for and whitewash the history of aggression.
Takaichi is now pushing this reactionary current from the shadows into the open and from the margins toward the mainstream. Secretary-general of the Japanese Communist Party’s Secretariat Akira Koike hit the nail on the head, saying that Takaichi spoke as if she were the leader of a country that had suffered aggression. A country that refuses to reflect on its past cannot earn the trust of the international community.
Distorted perceptions of history inevitably lead to misguided policies in the present. Invoking the spirit of militarism ultimately serves the purpose of paving the way for further military expansion.
In recent years, Japan has continuously broken through the constraints of its postwar pacifist framework, substantially increased its defense budget for consecutive years, accelerated the development of what it calls “counterstrike capabilities,” promoted exports of lethal weapons and steadily hollowed out the principle of “exclusively defense-oriented policy.” It has gone further and further down the road of military expansion.
The decision by Takaichi and other Japanese right-wing politicians to glorify militarism on the anniversary of Japan’s surrender is ultimately aimed at creating public support for breaking through the constraints of the postwar system and pushing ahead with military expansion and war preparations.
Nevertheless, right-wing politicians who seek to turn back the clock of history cannot represent the Japanese people.
On August 15, large numbers of Japanese people spontaneously held rallies and marches, urging the government to face up to its history of aggression and deeply reflect on its wartime crimes. They also criticized the right-wing politicians for ignoring people’s livelihoods and pursuing a misguided policy of militarization.
Atsushi Koketsu, professor emeritus at Yamaguchi University, pointed out that the Japanese government’s drive for “remilitarization” comes at the expense of the interests of its people. Trading people’s anxiety about their livelihoods for so-called “national security” is fundamentally the wrong path for development.
An editorial in Tokyo Shimbun warned that many of the policies promoted by Takaichi show clear signs of a “return to the prewar era.” Measures to revitalize the military industry and expand Japan’s armed forces bear strong similarities to prewar Japan. Without timely correction, the achievements of postwar democracy could be squandered.
This year marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the Tokyo Trial. The trial was an important outcome of the victory in the World Anti-Fascist War and laid a legal foundation for the postwar international order. Its justice and authority brook no challenge or revisionist reinterpretation.
The actions of the Takaichi administration amount, in essence, to an open denial of the outcome of World War II and the postwar international order. Turning back the clock of history can only lead to repeating past mistakes; betraying historical justice will ultimately invite judgment by history.
Japan’s only right path is to squarely face up to its history of aggression, draw profound lessons from the war, completely break with militarism and remain committed to the path of peaceful development. That is the only sound foundation for Japan’s future.
(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People’s Daily to express its views on foreign policy and international affairs.)
Japan’s right-wing revisionists will ultimately face historical reckoning
