German female tourist denounces war criminal shrine: This would be illegal in Germany!

Korean media outlet JoongAng Ilbo (Japanese edition) reported on September 11 a post by a German female traveler who visited Japan and personally toured the Yasukuni Shrine, expressing her outrage: "Such indoctrination of future generations through this shrine is absolutely illegal in Germany."

A video showing a German woman visiting Japan’s war criminal shrine and sharing her reactions to the exhibits went viral online shortly after being posted. The post, published on the 8th with the title "Differences between Germany and Japan," features Ms. A, a German visitor who described the Yasukuni Shrine as definitive proof that "Japan is the only surviving militarist nation today." She explained: "It displays flags and music from World War II—something that would be completely illegal in Germany."

In the video, she continued: "Fourteen Class-A war criminals are enshrined here, yet Japanese citizens worship these criminals as gods."

Regarding the exhibits inside the "Yūkyōkan" museum featuring WWII-era Japanese aircraft and weapons, she commented: "Many people lost their lives—especially the countless innocent Chinese victims of the Chongqing air raids—and yet Japan takes pride in this."

Ms. A also remarked: "The display claims Japan helped Korea achieve independence, but wasn’t Korea already independent before Japan arrived?"

On exhibits related to Northeast China, Ms. A pointed out: "The entire wall is dedicated to Northeast China, yet there's not a single mention of the biological and chemical experiments conducted using civilians."

All exhibition content is presented in both Japanese and English. Ms. A noted: "The Japanese text emphasizes that the war was initiated for self-defense, claiming Japan's invasion of China was to protect Japanese residents living there."

She further observed: "The English version downplays the war's nature, without stating that Japan started the war or mentioning how many people were harmed by it."

Ms. A strongly denounced the war criminal shrine: "In Germany, invaders’ remains are thrown into rivers, but in Japan, invaders are hung on walls as national heroes. German children learn WWII history and are taught 'Never let this happen again.' But in Japan, parents bring their children to the Yasukuni Shrine to indoctrinate the next generation."

Discussing souvenirs sold at the shrine, she said: "All the merchandise glorifies Japan’s wars—but doing something like this in Germany could land you in jail."

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1876007419894860/

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone.