Abe makes ritual offering to war-related Yasukuni Shrine

April 22, 2018

Tokyo- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a ritual offering of a "masakaki" tree stand to Yasukuni Shrine on Saturday, the first day of the war-related shrine's three-day spring festival.

Abe presented the sacred tree under his name with the title of prime minister. Abe is unlikely to pay a visit to the Shinto shrine in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward during the festival period.

Tadamori Oshima, speaker of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Diet, the country's parliament, Chuichi Date, president of the House of Councillors, the upper chamber, and Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Katsunobu Kato also offered masakaki tree stands to the shrine.

About 80 ruling party and opposition lawmakers belonging to a nonpartisan league promoting Yasukuni visits by Diet members made a group visit to the shrine on Friday, ahead of the start of the spring festival. Among them was former Upper House Vice President Hidehisa Otsuji, who heads the league of lawmakers.

Yasukuni Shrine honors Class-A World War II criminals among the war dead, and is thus regarded as a symbol of Japan's past militarism by countries including China and South Korea.

Abe visited the shrine in December 2013, a year after the start of his current administration, but has since refrained from paying a visit, including during its spring or autumn festivals or on the war-end anniversary of Aug. 15. Jiji Press