Abe's tepid offering of remorse at Asian-African summit bad omen for WWII anniversary statement

Updated: 2015-04-23 09:54

(Xinhua)

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But political observers believe that Abe, a staunch nationalist and active revisionist, along with the majority of his cabinet and a horde of lawmakers, is not planning to follow in his predecessors' footsteps.

"The prime minister has already said that he upholds the Murayama Statement as a whole and therefore does not feel the need to repeat it," Asian affairs analyst Kaoru Imori told Xinhua. "But the problem with this is, it's no use simply saying that you 'uphold' something without doing anything tangible to prove it."

He added that the victims of Japan's wartime wrongdoings, such as China and South Korea, were undoubtedly and perhaps for the first time since Abe took office, looking for a glimpse of humanity in Abe, who has set about whitewashing over Japan's past while simultaneously beefing up its military.

"The 70th anniversary of the end of WWII is a golden opportunity for Abe to reach out to his neighbors with honor and dignity, in the same way his predecessors did," said Imori.

Living legend and Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami, known to be extremely reclusive, told local media recently that he believes that Japan must repeatedly say sorry to China, South Korea and the other countries it invaded in the 20th century until its former victims have heard enough.

Murakami, often been mentioned as a possible recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, said, "The issue of historical understanding carries great significance, and I believe it is important that Japan makes straightforward apologies."

Even Japanese Crown Prince Naruhito who on the occasion of his 55th birthday encouraged the government led by Abe to maintain a correct view of history and to put an end to a stream of seemingly elusive revisionist maneuverings

"I myself did not experience the war ... but I think that it is important today, when memories of the war are fading, to look back humbly on the past and correctly pass on the tragic experiences and history Japan pursued from the generation which experienced the war to those without direct knowledge," he said.

In addition, earlier Wednesday former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama took a swipe at Abe.

"If he does not want to use such clear-cut words (such as Japan's wartime 'colonial rule and aggression' that caused suffering to neighboring countries), he had better not issue a statement at all. "

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Schedule

Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Pakistan and attend the Asian-African Summit and activities commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference in Indonesia from April 20 to 24.

April 22
Attend the opening ceremony of the Asian-African Summit;
Meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo;

April 23
Bilateral meetings;
Attend the closing ceremony of the Asian-African Summit;

April 24
Historical walk from Savoy Homann Hotel to Gedung Merdeka;
Attend activities commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference;

...