Abe Shinzo, Prime Minister of Japan, said in the Parliament on 23 April that the term "aggression" had not been defined yet, and whether the external conduct of modern Japan was aggression or not he would refer to the historians. This is more or less the same line as has been taken by most of the LDP Prime Ministers for the past decades.
But it is wrong to say that the aggression has not been defined. The UN General Assembly passed a Resolution on the definition of aggression on 14 December 1974(Resolution 3314) where it is defined, in short, as the use of force by one country against another's sovereignty, territory or independence. Those who might say that the Resolution is too recent and would not apply to Japan's earlier conduct, may be referred to the Treaty of Paris, 1928, or the Treaty on the definition of aggression, 1933.
Still, Abe and some others may not be convinced. They are determined that Japan's conduct was in self-defense. They do not hesitate to visit the Yasukuni Shrine. This is not an ordinary Shinto shrine. It is a huge institution where more than two and a half million who have supposedly dedicated their lives to the nation are being mourned. It is an office for such propaganda.
This must have been embarrassing to the countries like the US. All the more so as 14 defendants of the Tokyo Tribunal, including all the seven who were executed, are among them. Japan accepted the results of the Tribunal by the Peace Treaty. What the government is doing by way of extending its hand to the Shrine is thus a clear breach of the Peace Treaty. The US has, so far as I know, not said anything on this point, though they have voiced their criticism on some other points. They cannot afford to antagonize the LDP, for the sake of maintaining their bases, even at the expense of truth, and justice.
Interestingly, the same here in Japan. The more Abe tries to clear Japan's name over the past wars, the more he will have to defend the role of the Yasukuni, and the more he is likely to injure the feeling of others. Thus he will be in a contradiction. We will see how it will develop. I hope it will become fatal for him. It is bound to be. At the same time I hope that the confusion in Japan's politics will not disturb too much the new South Korean President Park's plan for the peaceful cooperation in the Northeast Asia.
But it is wrong to say that the aggression has not been defined. The UN General Assembly passed a Resolution on the definition of aggression on 14 December 1974(Resolution 3314) where it is defined, in short, as the use of force by one country against another's sovereignty, territory or independence. Those who might say that the Resolution is too recent and would not apply to Japan's earlier conduct, may be referred to the Treaty of Paris, 1928, or the Treaty on the definition of aggression, 1933.
Still, Abe and some others may not be convinced. They are determined that Japan's conduct was in self-defense. They do not hesitate to visit the Yasukuni Shrine. This is not an ordinary Shinto shrine. It is a huge institution where more than two and a half million who have supposedly dedicated their lives to the nation are being mourned. It is an office for such propaganda.
This must have been embarrassing to the countries like the US. All the more so as 14 defendants of the Tokyo Tribunal, including all the seven who were executed, are among them. Japan accepted the results of the Tribunal by the Peace Treaty. What the government is doing by way of extending its hand to the Shrine is thus a clear breach of the Peace Treaty. The US has, so far as I know, not said anything on this point, though they have voiced their criticism on some other points. They cannot afford to antagonize the LDP, for the sake of maintaining their bases, even at the expense of truth, and justice.
Interestingly, the same here in Japan. The more Abe tries to clear Japan's name over the past wars, the more he will have to defend the role of the Yasukuni, and the more he is likely to injure the feeling of others. Thus he will be in a contradiction. We will see how it will develop. I hope it will become fatal for him. It is bound to be. At the same time I hope that the confusion in Japan's politics will not disturb too much the new South Korean President Park's plan for the peaceful cooperation in the Northeast Asia.
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