08-15-2002, 11:15 AM
Groups mark anniversary of war surrender
Numerous organizations representing a range of perspectives from nationalist to pacifist held events Thursday in Tokyo to mark the 57th anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II.
As many as 3,000 people took part in a gathering held at Yasukuni Shrine to pay tribute to the nation's war dead.
Speeches by organizers focused on a proposal by a government panel to create a new war memorial in a bid to put an end to the political and diplomatic controversy surrounding visits to Yasukuni by government leaders.
Yasukuni is considered by many a symbol of Japan's wartime nationalism. Among the 2.46 million military war dead honored at the shrine are 14 convicted Class-A war criminals.
Masao Horie, president of Eirei-ni-Kotaeru-Kai (Group to Honor the Souls of War Heroes), one of the organizers, denounced the panel's proposal.
"Such discussion to create an alternative facility to honor the war dead is a manifestation of extreme rudeness toward the spirits of these heroes, and must be prevented by all means," he said. "(Prime Minister Junichiro) Koizumi should follow the example of (Tokyo Gov.) Shintaro Ishihara, who visited the shrine again today with a resolute, proud attitude."
Meanwhile, at Zensuido Kaikan Hall, near JR Suidobashi Station, a much smaller crowd of around 180 people took part in the so-called Aug. 15 Meeting Not to Allow the State to Mourn for the War Dead.
Addressing the crowd, Hiroshi Ikeda, a professor of German literature and thought, at Kyoto University, said there is a conceptual similarity between Yasukuni Shrine and Valhalla, the hall in which Odin, the Norse god of wisdom, art and war, received the souls of the war dead. He said Nazi leaders utilized the mythological apparatus for propaganda purposes by saying the souls of those who fought and died for Nazism would go there.
"What does it mean to mourn for the war dead at Yasukuni?" Ikeda asked. "It means to forget those who became the victims of Japan's aggression.
"To have a passion to die for someone else's sake is the most precious thing in one's life," he said. "But Japan's emperor system cannot be condoned because Emperor Showa took advantage of this precious passion for his own purposes.
"To remember the dead is important. But we must not let the emperor's state mourn for them. We must remember them on our own responsibility."
Participants took part in a street demonstration after the meeting.
More than 200 people attended a gathering organized by the opposition Social Democratic Party to listen to the experiences of those who lived through World War II.
SDP leader Takako Doi attributed what she considered a strong showing at the meeting to people's sense of crisis, which she said has been heightened by a set of bills by the government during the last Diet session aimed at giving greater powers to the prime minister in cases of military attacks.
In her opening address, Doi spoke of her own war experiences as a child, which she said prompted her to work for peace. Doi said she is alarmed by the proposed legislation.
"We must work to abolish the emergency contingency bills and spread the spirit of the (war-renouncing) Article 9 of the Constitution."
Hideo Den, a former Upper House lawmaker whose mission to run a suicide attack boat as a navy officer was aborted when Japan surrendered, said he is concerned about the United States' tendency toward settling problems through military force, and Japan's deference toward Washington.
Den stressed that peace can only be achieved through the renunciation of war and the abolition of nuclear weapons.
The Japan Times: Aug. 16, 2002
(C) All rights reserved
Numerous organizations representing a range of perspectives from nationalist to pacifist held events Thursday in Tokyo to mark the 57th anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II.
As many as 3,000 people took part in a gathering held at Yasukuni Shrine to pay tribute to the nation's war dead.
Speeches by organizers focused on a proposal by a government panel to create a new war memorial in a bid to put an end to the political and diplomatic controversy surrounding visits to Yasukuni by government leaders.
Yasukuni is considered by many a symbol of Japan's wartime nationalism. Among the 2.46 million military war dead honored at the shrine are 14 convicted Class-A war criminals.
Masao Horie, president of Eirei-ni-Kotaeru-Kai (Group to Honor the Souls of War Heroes), one of the organizers, denounced the panel's proposal.
"Such discussion to create an alternative facility to honor the war dead is a manifestation of extreme rudeness toward the spirits of these heroes, and must be prevented by all means," he said. "(Prime Minister Junichiro) Koizumi should follow the example of (Tokyo Gov.) Shintaro Ishihara, who visited the shrine again today with a resolute, proud attitude."
Meanwhile, at Zensuido Kaikan Hall, near JR Suidobashi Station, a much smaller crowd of around 180 people took part in the so-called Aug. 15 Meeting Not to Allow the State to Mourn for the War Dead.
Addressing the crowd, Hiroshi Ikeda, a professor of German literature and thought, at Kyoto University, said there is a conceptual similarity between Yasukuni Shrine and Valhalla, the hall in which Odin, the Norse god of wisdom, art and war, received the souls of the war dead. He said Nazi leaders utilized the mythological apparatus for propaganda purposes by saying the souls of those who fought and died for Nazism would go there.
"What does it mean to mourn for the war dead at Yasukuni?" Ikeda asked. "It means to forget those who became the victims of Japan's aggression.
"To have a passion to die for someone else's sake is the most precious thing in one's life," he said. "But Japan's emperor system cannot be condoned because Emperor Showa took advantage of this precious passion for his own purposes.
"To remember the dead is important. But we must not let the emperor's state mourn for them. We must remember them on our own responsibility."
Participants took part in a street demonstration after the meeting.
More than 200 people attended a gathering organized by the opposition Social Democratic Party to listen to the experiences of those who lived through World War II.
SDP leader Takako Doi attributed what she considered a strong showing at the meeting to people's sense of crisis, which she said has been heightened by a set of bills by the government during the last Diet session aimed at giving greater powers to the prime minister in cases of military attacks.
In her opening address, Doi spoke of her own war experiences as a child, which she said prompted her to work for peace. Doi said she is alarmed by the proposed legislation.
"We must work to abolish the emergency contingency bills and spread the spirit of the (war-renouncing) Article 9 of the Constitution."
Hideo Den, a former Upper House lawmaker whose mission to run a suicide attack boat as a navy officer was aborted when Japan surrendered, said he is concerned about the United States' tendency toward settling problems through military force, and Japan's deference toward Washington.
Den stressed that peace can only be achieved through the renunciation of war and the abolition of nuclear weapons.
The Japan Times: Aug. 16, 2002
(C) All rights reserved