February 11th is a holiday of Japan called National
Foundation Day. It is believed that the first Emperor of Japan, Jinmu, acceded
on the day in B.C. 660. The ultra-conservatives set this year as the beginning
of history. Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, for the first time as a current Premier,
delivered a message to celebrate the day on Tuesday. Although it appealed to
the nation holding patriotism, no critical reaction from China and South Korea has
appeared so far.
“I am renewing my determination and responsibility to make
our beloved country, Japan, more beautiful and dignified,” told Abe in his
message. “This is a day of significance,” Abe added, “for each of us to
remember the effort of our ancestors to build the basis for current prosperity
we are enjoying, and to pledge to further develop the state.” He stressed the
significance of the day to be remembering the foundation of the nation and
cultivating patriotism.
Before World War II, February 11th had been called the Day
of Era. Although it was abolished three years after the end of the war, Prime
Minister, Eisaku Sato, granduncle of Abe, legislated it to be a national
holiday. The conservatives and liberals had separately been holding ceremony to
praise or criticize the day. This year, a liberal historian, Masayasu Hosaka,
argued that Abe kept on making historically baseless remarks and forcing to
share his sentiment using adjectives like “beautiful.” A conservative group
called Association to Celebrate the Foundation of Japan paraded in downtown
Tokyo with over five thousand attendees.
This is a prime minister who likes to celebrate historical
event from conservative perspective. The Government of Japan decided to send a
parliamentary vice-minister of Cabinet Office to the ceremony of Takeshima Day
on 22th of February. Takeshima is an island administrated by South Korea, and
Japan has been disputing its sovereignty. At the time the prefectural
government of Shimane legislated the day as Takeshima Day, South Korea strongly
opposed it. It is obvious that South Korea will negatively respond to the
ceremony this year.
Actually, South Korean government has taken countermeasures.
On National Foundation Day of Japan, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family
of South Korea announced that it would seek legislating Comfort Women Day this
year. August 14th, the day a former comfort woman identified herself for the
first time, is considered to be Comfort Women Day.
On Northern Territory Day, February 7th, Abe attended the
ceremony of remembering the day of Shimoda Treaty was signed in 1855, then
embarked on Sochi, Russia, to attend Olympic ceremony. On the treaty, Japan and
Russia established official relationship, on which Japan has been disputing
sovereignty on the Northern Territory against Russia.
On the other hand, Chief Cabinet Secretary, Yoshihide Suga,
indicated not to have any ceremony for Sovereignty Restoration Day, April 28,
on which Abe had received harsh criticisms, when he held a ceremony with
attendance of the Emperor for the first time last year. His behavior spread
negative impression against Japan in United States, from which Japan resorted
its sovereignty, and in Okinawa, which was laid under the administration of
U.S. as the compensation of the restoration of sovereignty.
As it appears to be stimulating sentiments of Japan’s
neighbors, there seems no limit of damage posed by Abe’s rightist agenda.
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