Contested Reconciliation: War apology and Yasukuni policy under the Abe administration

Compared to other recent governments, the Second Abe Administration has been seen as a government with a larger interest in nationalism and patriotic history. According to various scholars, this nationalism is represented in Prime Minister Abe’s war commemoration statements, as in his 2013 visit to the Yasukuni Shrine. What is often overlooked in such discourse, is the fact that the current administration has now lasted for eight years and counting, and that no further visits to the shrine were actually made by Abe, despite his long-standing support for Yasukuni. It could be argued that rather than his actual visit, his restraint on further visits is more conspicuous. This study aims to determine the rationale behind Abe’s Yasukuni policy. Building on existing scholars’ work, it asks: How can the Yasukuni policy of Shinzo Abe be understood beyond the existing personal preference explanations? In this context, personal preference is defined as the affinity that prime ministers have...Show moreCompared to other recent governments, the Second Abe Administration has been seen as a government with a larger interest in nationalism and patriotic history. According to various scholars, this nationalism is represented in Prime Minister Abe’s war commemoration statements, as in his 2013 visit to the Yasukuni Shrine. What is often overlooked in such discourse, is the fact that the current administration has now lasted for eight years and counting, and that no further visits to the shrine were actually made by Abe, despite his long-standing support for Yasukuni. It could be argued that rather than his actual visit, his restraint on further visits is more conspicuous. This study aims to determine the rationale behind Abe’s Yasukuni policy. Building on existing scholars’ work, it asks: How can the Yasukuni policy of Shinzo Abe be understood beyond the existing personal preference explanations? In this context, personal preference is defined as the affinity that prime ministers have with nationalistic interpretations of Japanese history, and how these are leading in determining their Yasukuni policies. Based on an analysis of previous prime ministers’ war commemoration statements (Murayama, Koizumi) and Abe’s personal profile, it could be argued that the Abe administration represents a shift towards nationalism. In relation to the Japanese publics approval of prime ministerial visits, surveys were held by Japan’s main news organizations which showed a slight increase in Yasukuni support over the last 15 years. While this change is generally attributed to the deterioration of Japan’s relations with neighboring countries over time, results of government surveys showed a drastic deterioration of the public’s perception of foreign relations. What these disproportionate results indicate, is that feelings of social distance between the Japanese people and their neighboring countries do not necessarily increase their support for prime ministerial Yasukuni visits. More convincing majority votes were found on surveys that asked whether the public approved on Abe’s restraint on Yasukuni visits, and whether the public found that Japan’s relations with its neighboring countries should be improved. On this basis, this research argues that restraint on the Yasukuni issue satisfies the majority of the public and is thus beneficial from a perspective of political survival. Further research is needed to adequately assess how the state of international relations will influence prime ministerial visits in the future.Show less

Leiden University Student Repository

Documents

In Collections

Contested Reconciliation: War apology and Yasukuni policy under the Abe administration