Abe's act 'unconstitutional'

Q&A | Tomiichi Murayama

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited the Yasukuni shrine in December, deeply damaging Japan's relations with China and South Korea. What's your opinion on the Yasukuni issue?

I don't think it is an issue when ordinary Japanese people pay respects to Japan's fallen soldiers or their own relatives at Yasukuni. However, a visit by a Japanese prime minister is a clear violation of the peace treaty Japan signed with its neighboring countries after the war. Japan accepted the convictions of the Class A war criminals by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East. As a result, Japan has grown into what it is today. A prime minister's pilgrimage to the shrine means that Japan is going back on its political pledge. He should not visit.