まゆの部屋

Records show Emperor Showa was displeased by war criminals' enshrinement at Yasukuni



Notebooks on which former Imperial Household Agency chief Tomohiko Tomita recorded Emperor Showa's statements.Emperor Showa stopped visiting the controversial Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo because he was displeased at the enshrinement of Class-A war criminals there, a note left by an aide has revealed.

The late Tomohiko Tomita, then head of the Imperial Household Agency, took a note of comments made by the now deceased Emperor Showa in 1988 in his notebook. The Nihon Keizai Shimbun, a major economic daily, obtained the note from Tomita's bereaved family and reported its contents in a story run in its Thursday morning edition with photos.

It has been widely known that Emperor Showa, father of Emperor Akihito, had not paid a visit to the shrine since Class-A war criminals were enshrined in 1978, but the reason why had not been disclosed.

This latest discovery is likely to have a huge influence on the discussions on whether Class-A criminals should be separated from the other war dead at the shrine and the pros and cons of visits to the shrine by a prime minister, observers say.

The notebook suggests that Emperor Showa made the remarks in April 1988. "Class-A war criminals have been enshrined. Even Matsuoka and Shiratori (have been enshrined). I've heard that Tsukuba dealt cautiously with the matter, but ..." part of the note reads.

"I wonder what the current chief priest, who is the son of Matsudaira, thinks about it. I think Matsudaira (senior) had a strong belief in peace," the note says. "That's why I haven't paid a visit to the shrine since then. That's my belief."

Matsuoka and Shiratori are believed to refer to former Foreign Minister Yosuke Matsuoka and former Ambassador to Italy Toshio Shiratori, both Class-A war criminals. Both of them died in jail.

Tsukuba apparently refers to the late Fujimaro Tsukuba, former chief priest of Yasukuni Shrine who decided not to enshrine Class-A war criminals. Matsudaira and his son are apparently former Imperial Household Minister Yoshitami Matsudaira and former Yasukuni Shrine chief priest Nagayoshi Matsudaira, who enshrined the Class-A war criminals. Both are now deceased.

A member of Tomita's bereaved family said he often talked with Emperor Showa at the Imperial Palace while he was head of the Imperial Household Agency and took note of their conversations. The family member added that Tomita told his family about the remarks that Emperor Showa made about the enshrinement of Class-A war criminals at Yasukuni Shrine.

Visits by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to the shrine sparked protest from Asian neighbors that are victims of Japan's wartime atrocities because Class-A war criminals are enshrined. Critics argue such visits constitute a violation of the Constitution, which provides for the separation of state and religion. (Mainichi)


July 20, 2006