What is Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine, linked to Japan’s wartime atrocities?

Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine, which commemorates some two and a half million mostly Japanese soldiers and civilians killed in World War II, is one of the country’s most revered sites, visited by millions every year. But the shrine, which also honours 14 convicted war criminals, is seen as a symbol of Japan’s colonial-era atrocities in Asia.

The visit to the shrine by Japanese officials, including Defence Minister, Shinjiro Koizumi, has provoked criticism from China and South Korea – who view the shrine as symbolic of Tokyo’s failure to atone for the atrocities its forces committed.

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Japan’s Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, also a regular visitor before becoming leader in October, did not join other officials. Local media reported that she instead paid tribute from a short distance away and sent an offering to the shrine, as previous prime ministers have done.

So what is the shrine’s history and why is it controversial?

Here’s what we know:

What is the Yasukuni Shrine?

The Yasukuni Shrine, or Yasukuni Jinja, was established in 1869 under Emperor Meiji’s rule to enshrine the souls of fighters who died during the country’s wars.

According to the shrine’s website, “Yasukuni” means to preserve peace in Japanese and when Emperor Meiji visited the shrine for the first time in January 1874, he composed a poem: “I assure those of you who fought and died for your country that your names will live forever at this shrine in Musashino”.

Around 2.5 million people, including Japanese war criminals who fought in wars with China’s Qing Dynasty, other Asian countries and the Soviet Union during the Second World War are enshrined at Yasukuni.

Who visits the shrine?

During annual war anniversaries in Japan, politicians join citizens in visiting the shrine to pay tribute to the war dead. Millions visit each year. An imperial emissary from the royal family also visits during the shrine’s spring and autumn festivals.

In the past, many Japanese prime ministers have also visited.

Yasuhiro Nakasone was the first, paying his respects in 1985. Junichiro Koizumi, who was prime minister from 2001 until 2006 visited frequently.

But Shinzo Abe was the last serving prime minister to visit in December 2013, which caused an expression of disappointment from the administration of then-US President Barack Obama.

Why is the shrine controversial?

According to the Japan Times, Prime Minister Takaichi did not visit the shrine on Saturday but was not far away. She stepped out of her car in a car park about 200 metres from the shrine. She bowed twice, clapped twice and then bowed again in the direction of the shrine.

According to critics, her stance comes amid rebukes from South Korea and China over Japanese politicians visiting the shrine.

“My goal is to create an environment to obtain understanding from our allies and neighbouring countries,” Takaichi said in February when asked by reporters about Japanese prime ministers visiting the shrine, according to the Japan Times.

Takaichi, however, did not mention Japan’s wartime atrocities or express remorse for them, according to the AP news agency.

The controversy over the shrine began in 1978 when 14 Japanese civilian and military leaders convicted by a post-war international tribunal – and known as “Class A War Criminals” – were enshrined. Along with at least 1,000 others, they were found guilty by Allied tribunals after ⁠⁠Japan’s World War II defeat in 1945.

Japanese forces committed atrocities, including mass killings and the sexual enslavement of women after invading and occupying large parts of Asia before and during the war. Millions died during Japan’s era of militarism.

Japan has embraced pacifism since its surrender, but memories of its colonial atrocities still run deep, particularly in neighbouring China, South Korea, North Korea and Taiwan. They see visits by Japanese officials as a lack of remorse for wartime actions.

On Saturday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing said China “strongly condemns” Takaichi’s offering and the minister’s visit to the shrine.

“We have lodged … strong protests with the Japanese side,” the ministry said.

South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed “deep regret” over what it called the “anachronistic” actions of Japanese leaders who sent offerings or visited Yasukuni Shrine. Seoul urged Japan’s leaders to face history and demonstrate through actions “humble reflection and sincere remorse” for the past.

But some Japanese officials have defended their visits to the shrine ⁠⁠as being in their personal capacity to honour the war dead.

On the 81st anniversary of Japan’s surrender on Saturday, Japan’s Defence Minister Koizumi visited the shrine and told reporters: “Along with our vow to renounce war, I reaffirmed our determination to continue fulfilling our responsibility to uphold Japan’s postwar path as a peaceful nation”.

What is Japan’s history of atrocities in China and Korea?

In 1931, Japanese forces invaded the northeastern region of Manchuria, which included parts of China and the Soviet Union.

In what is known as the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1937-1945 estimates vary but historians think between 15-20 million Chinese were killed. Japanese authorities said about 48,000 of their soldiers died.

Japanese leaders have expressed remorse and issued statements regarding wartime actions, but Sino-Japanese relations remain strained.

As do relations with North and South Korea, Japan has a complicated relationship with both.

In 1910, imperial Japan colonised the entire Korean peninsula, used many Koreans for forced labour and also sent many Korean women known as “comfort women ” to military brothels across Asia and also in Japan.

While its colonisation of the peninsula ended in 1945, Tokyo’s relations with both North and South Korea remain tense due to historical grievances.