Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan has sparked controversy as the result of his views regarding his nation’s stance on reparations and amends for the Second World War. He has chosen to continue his frequently recurring statements that Japan has apologized and made its reparations already, and does not need to do so anymore. Shinzo Abe has also gone so far as to imply that Germany only attempted amends to unify with Europe and that Japan has no need of this.
Many are not very shocked that he has taken this stance, as he has refused for some time to budge from the belief that Japan has been thorough enough in their reconciliations with those they harmed during the Second World War. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe does not feel the desire the deal with things in the same way as Germany, as Japan is not as reliant on the other nations in its continent since it is separated by a body of water and has a lot of its own agriculture.
One thing that the Japanese leader has ignored is that Germany was not simply responding to European unity but rather to the demands made by the post-war treaty. One of the major arguments that Shinzo Abe has made is that Europe made it easier for Germany to reconcile due to mutual benefits shared by the continent and that Asian countries do not offer this same incentive. In truth, Germany was required to make amends or else progress would not have been made.
While it would appear to some that both Germany and Japan have been prone to a level of denial when it comes to the war, this is not so. The apparent denial on Germany’s part has been more of a wish not to speak about a sordid past, whereas to many people Shinzo Abe appears to be dodging the issue of Japan’s part in some of the war crimes committed by the Axis. This denial has caused many to cast a judgmental eye on Japan for their government’s refusal to acknowledge past wrongdoings, the People’s Daily Online reports.
Shinzo Abe appears to be hurting his own nation through his repeated assertions that Japan has done all it can or all it needs to regarding WWII amends. Even were this true, his arguments are based on flawed logic which do not seem to respect the actions Germany has taken to reintegrate themselves with the rest of the world. China is especially growing angry with Shinzo Abe as they feel they were particularly wronged by the WWII actions of Japan.