Yasukuni Shrine
Sat Class, we discussed this today with reference to the qn below...
The argument goes thus: possible to forgive if the other party at fault apologises. But can rebut saying by that if the apology is half-hearted, insincere, an merely paying lip service, then forgiveness is ultimately unlikely to occur.
Best example of this is Japan's attitude towards China and South Korea. There were times when the PM of Japan will apologise, only to visit the controversial Yasukuni shrine, which houses the Class A war criminals from World War II. The Japanese regard these dead soldiers as martyrs, heroes who died protecting their motherland. For the Jap govt to apologise and then visit the shrine is something which South Korea and China cannot tolerate. It's like a smack in the face, akin to a man apologising to another for sleeping with the latter's wife, and then in the next moment, continue to see -- and sleep with -- the wife!
You can read a short write-up of the shrine HERE which I wrote during my visit to the shrine a few years back...Btw, the anecdote about Ai Weiwei and his middle finger concerns the Forbidden City, not the Yasukuni shrine. You can see the pic by Ai Weiwei in the link above.....
Qn: How far is it possible for one country to forgive another for its past actions? (Cam. 2015)
The argument goes thus: possible to forgive if the other party at fault apologises. But can rebut saying by that if the apology is half-hearted, insincere, an merely paying lip service, then forgiveness is ultimately unlikely to occur.
Best example of this is Japan's attitude towards China and South Korea. There were times when the PM of Japan will apologise, only to visit the controversial Yasukuni shrine, which houses the Class A war criminals from World War II. The Japanese regard these dead soldiers as martyrs, heroes who died protecting their motherland. For the Jap govt to apologise and then visit the shrine is something which South Korea and China cannot tolerate. It's like a smack in the face, akin to a man apologising to another for sleeping with the latter's wife, and then in the next moment, continue to see -- and sleep with -- the wife!
You can read a short write-up of the shrine HERE which I wrote during my visit to the shrine a few years back...Btw, the anecdote about Ai Weiwei and his middle finger concerns the Forbidden City, not the Yasukuni shrine. You can see the pic by Ai Weiwei in the link above.....
Qn: How far is it possible for one country to forgive another for its past actions? (Cam. 2015)
posted by Dark Shadow | 12:18 AM
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