Why is Japan’s Yasukuni Shrine so controversial?

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Yasukuni Shrine in the Japanese capital Tokyo has long been a place of controversy since it enshrines the nation’s 2.5 million war dead including 14 Class-A war criminals. Since 1975, several prime ministers and cabinet members have visited Yasukuni in an official capacity, sparking anger in China and South Korea, which both suffered under Japanese imperial rule in the early 20th century. Yasukuni has also generated controversy domestically. The shrine is the centre of Japan’s native Shinto faith, yet regarded by some as a symbol of militarism and a place where leader visits violate the principle of separation of religion and state.

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[paulmartin]

This shrine is controversial because the Japanese government choose not to separate those in military convicted of war crimes from those who died in wars. The Japanese government, unlike Germany still admires their leaders who were guilty of committing heinous war crimes during WW2. The solution is simple that is to separate those convicted of war crimes in another shrine but Japan refused to do this. The current Japanese government still have desire to respect war criminals.

[GIN..A]

Well, considering Abe Shinzo's grandfather, Kishi Nobusuke, was himself a class A war criminal for his atrocities as the shadow boss of Manchuria. The very fact that he was not only let go by McArthur's cronies in exchange for his willing cooperation as an anti-communist bulwark, but also went on to become the PM of Japan, instead of having justice served to him, explains perfectly well why the Yasukuni is controversial.

[andrewgeorge]

some of you might not understand why neighboring countries blast on Japanese politicians visiting Yasukuni Shrine, in this shrine there are dozens of a list war criminals ( according to International Military Tribunal for the Far East) still being worshiped, this is a manifestation that the official government of Japan refuse to acknolwedge the war crimes and atrocities this country commited in China, Korea and southeast asia. If you as a Japanese teen, he probably knows nothing about Japan's notorious conducts in the past. this part of history is not taught and totally erased by the government, which is a stark contrast to modern German's attitude that admits fully and apologize to the victims.

[oizorref]

If someone from the Middle East created an Osama bin Iaden memorial shrine, than would you rather called them extremist, or rather someone who preserved the Arabic culture???

The same goes to Japan who decided to honor their criminals

[arthurdanielles]

DO remember that this shrine is NOT state owned. The USA told the Japanese to separate it from the EMPEROR / state. Which they did ... handing it over to a private organisation who some have questioned re their honouring of war criminals.. Of the 2, 466, 532 people named in the shrine's Book of Souls, 1, 068 are war criminals or alleged war criminals including fourteen men charged with Class A war crimes (eleven were convicted on those charges, one was found not guilty of Class A but guilty of Class B, two died during or before trial) by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, because of the decision to honour individuals who were found responsible for serious breaches of international humanitarian law, China, Russia, [2] South Korea and North Korea have called the Yasukuni Shrine an exemplar of the nationalist, revisionist and unapologetic approach Japan has taken towards its conduct during World War II. The USA allowed what transpired following the Japanese defeat, for extremists to deny, block and often pervert the truth re war crimes, crimes against humanity and many other terrifying horrors the Japanese were found guilty of. Denying that history to millions of school children from kindergarten onwards.. many of whom grew up without knowing the truth partly due to many ex war criminals ending up in positions of power within the 'diet' / political overseers.

[kadruninsaf]

One thing that nobody knows is, the emperor himself (also previous emperors like hirohito and akihito) never visited this shrine unlike the prime ministers.

[maneil]

They should own their mistakes NOT deny them

[velelimaka]

Yasukuni Shrine is a highly political shrine that was originally built by the Meiji government to legitimize its overthrow of the Edo shogunate.
At the beginning of the Boshin War, the imperial family was still on the side of the Shogunate, but this shrine also enshrines the enemies of the Imperial Court who were on the Meiji Restoration side.
Furthermore, although it has the name of a Shinto shrine（神社）, it more like a Taoism shrine（廟） than a shrine（神社） that treats the dead as heroes.
When this shrine got criticized from overseas, it is only criticized for enshrining war criminals who committed war crimes in Asia.
but this shrine also served as a facility to glorify death, telling many young people at the time, ``If you fight and die for Japan, you can become a heroic spirit.''
I used to like this shrine, but the more I learned about it, the more I felt there were various political, historical, religious, and moral contradictions in it, so I don't like it anymore.

[davidtomlinson]

Flying the imperial army flag is offensive. The war crimes committed in Asia under that flag have gone largely unanswered.

[koroba]

I have visited the Yasukuni Shrine while in Japan for business. Overall it is an excellent museum and has very nice exhibits showing the war from their standpoint. I did notice some obvious glossing over of some events (such as the Manila Intermuros massacres) which I wrote about in a visitors book. Allow me to recall a conversation I had with my father after he started communicating with a young German gentleman who lived in the area of Germany where my father’s brother was killed in action (RIP Uncle Jack) they traded some fascinating letters and developed quite the friendship. I asked my father if he harbored any resentment toward Germans in general because of his brother’s death. He said that he did not, and the reason was that the average German solider was following orders and doing his duty. He believed all wars are started by the politicians and he thought if 2 countries got into a disagreement it was best to have several regular folks from each country sit down at a kitchen table over coffee and sort it out. So I agree with many of the other comments here that if the shrine eliminated the convicted war criminals then the shrine could have a different meaning and let the regular folks honor the on-the-ground soldiers and sailors who died doing their duty. (Slightly ironic, Dad was in the Seabees in the Pacific during the war and after the surrender he served in Sasebo, Japan during the USA Occupation and really enjoyed the regular folk there).

[DevSarman]

This is why it's still very hard to forgive Japan for their war crimes against Asia-Pacific, they never had their own 'vergangenheitsbewältigung'.

[chatter]

A lack of punishment of criminals after the war has led to this

[realjoecracker]

I was born and raised in the American south. I can understand where they’re coming from. There’s so many monuments honoring confederate soldiers while those honoring confederate generals are the most controversial. My family driving though downtown often pass by a 6 foot obelisk that’s built on the sight of a church that burnt down during the civil war. Beneath the obelisk it reads “Our Confederate Dead” so if you’re going though Tokyo and you see something in a Shinto or Buddhist shrine that says “Our Japanese WWII Dead” I can understand how some looking on the outside would get upset. We in America have completely come to peace with Germany, Italy, and Japan after the war ended. American news media has never made a fuss about the events mentioned in the video.

[bbly]

The real controversy with Yasukuni is that the 13 war criminals were quietly enshrined in 1969, over 20+ years after they were executed.

Why did Japan wait 20 odd years to do it? Why do it at all? We know why.

[deans]

One of the problems is that many Japanese know very little about what Japan did in WW2 as it is not widely taught in schools in Japan and many of its War Criminals are still revered as heroes to many Japanese. It is usually only when Japanese go abroad that they start to learn the truth of what atrocities the Japanese military did during WW2. It’s a tough pill to swallow when it’s discovered your hero isn’t so much of a hero.

[Crown]

In the first place, there is no clear legal basis for the distinction between A, B, and C. These are criminal categories used by the Allies for convenience in selecting war criminals, and the designation "Class A war criminal" is merely a "common name.

[ChuanTeh]

Forgiveness is to move forward, but not to forget is our future peace, we can forgive but never forget

[jonpaul]

The fact japan doesnt teach their youngs bout their war attrocities is disgusting.

[jovolle]

Bowing down at Yasukuni Shrine is shameful for all who know about history.

[mujur]

3.5 years of Japan occupancy in Indonesia was worst than 300 years of Dutch Colonialism in Indonesia.
The pity is most of young Indonesian never knew or learned the history.