Graffiti targeting Wuhan residents over virus found at Yasukuni shrine

Such a shame that Abe didn't get his constitution changed(lol), then these morons could fail to get into the military and lament that they weren't the first with boots on the ground to attack innocent Chinese citizens being oppressed by their own government. Some days I wonder why I even bother to go through the news.

Could easily have been done by a non-Japanese looking to stir things up. Regardless, a stupid thing to do but examples of a few bad apples are hardly representative of the whole regardless of what people here say.

And this is hardly the only backlash against Chinese citizens, it is happening the world over. It's about time someone started calling out the Chinese government and some of its citizens for vile racism against non-Chinese.

with global anti-Chinese sentiment probably at an all time high, I wouldn't be surprised that things like this would happen more often. Fear often turns to anger and violence.

Some people in or around Wuhan are responsible for destroying the global economy and killing hundreds of thousands of people. But this is certainly not the way to get the message across.

As long as governments and international bodies refuse to pinpoint and clarify responsibility and take tough measures to ensure it doesn't happen again, people's frustrations are going to spill over in such ugly ways.

As long as governments and international bodies refuse to pinpoint and clarify responsibility and take tough measures to ensure it doesn't happen again

China will never admit nor take responsibility for this. The only way to force them to do so would be war. They will just say ‘it was the CIA’ and dust their hands off.

And like it or not, there isn’t much the world can do about it. China has not just the manufacturing, but also the manufacturing knowledge of the world. A lot of talent in China doesn’t exist anywhere else in any meaningful numbers because China has monopolized their manufacturing for so long.

They’ve got us. It’s same as after Iraq where we just had to accept that a superpower did whatever they wanted without taking responsibility for it, and there is nothing the rest of us can do about it.

The graffiti was scribbled on the walls of the male restroom at the shrine, seen by Japan's Asian neighbors as a symbol of its past militarism. The police are investigating the incident as a case of property damage.

Quit stirring the pot! It's just some ignorant fool! You want to make it into something more to get more people to respond!

Could very well be some Chinese person too! Some have a habit of doing crap at Yasukuni so why not?

Just who are these "Some people in or around WuHan?" This is neither the first pandemic nor the last one. It is not the fault of the Chinese. MERS happened in the mid-East when a corona virus passed from a camel to a human. These viruses are out there mutating. When the next one arrives it will be from some other random place in the world. What the Chinese did to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus in HuBei province is unbelievable. The people of WuHan suffered horribly. We should be thanking them for the efforts and sacrifices they made to control its spread.

Today I read that a case of COVID-19 occurred in France in December. They had well preserved swabs from a sick individual who recovered. They recently tested them three times and each time the test was positive. It is unclear when exactly this virus initially arrived outside of China. Some here in the US expect it was last fall. We had an unusually early flu season.

There is only one thing we can do to assure our futures. Be prepared. Stockpile Personal Preventative Equipment and Maintain it to assure it is working condition. Give much more of our defense budgets to support scientific research in vaccine preparation; searching for and cataloguing viruses in the wild; do not encroach upon wild animal habitats like bats; and build world-wide cooperation in these areas.

This political brow-beating countries for things that happened in the past or to generate hatred among voters to win elections is idiotic. All countries are guilty of this. It is simply stupid. We are one world and we need one another to solve these problems. Unite and Make the World Great Again.

And remember: Economies come back, the dead do not. All living species are special. Those who are willing to sacrifice the lives of others for their own personal or political gains should never hold a position of power. Never.

Bless all of you, be safe, and I cannot express with words the admiration I have for those nurses, doctors, scientists, etc., for their efforts to save lives and stop this virus. They have gone beyond the political madness that seems to surround us and given all of us an example of how to live our everyday lives helping others.

Bill

@Oldman; And this is hardly the only backlash against Chinese citizens, it is happening the world over. It's about time someone started calling out the Chinese government and some of its citizens for vile racism against non-Chinese.

This is very true. What China has done to African residents is absolutely disgusting.

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/13/asia/china-guangzhou-african-blacklash-hnk-intl/index.html

Racism exists everywhere, however the most racist and Xenophobic country I have ever been to (and none come close) is China.

I do not blame individual Chinese (unless they engage in this activity) but the CCP.

In this case I would not blame the individual Wuhan citizens and I would see them more as victims so there is no place for such graffiti.

While following an inquiry underway, I'm not sure if it was really committed by an anti-Chinese radical right wings as often speculated. As such groups of people are likely to consider Yasukuni as a very sacred place (even it toilets), vandalism itself is highly offensive.

Yasukuni is also controversial and targeted of vandalism or defamation. The latest is not at all unique. It just reminds me of another vandalism case or explosion taking place again in toilets inside the shrinei. It was done by a non-Japanese visitor.

Japan police arrest Korean suspect in Yasukuni shrine bomb

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-35048140

Putting Yasukuni aside, even in modern rational age, many ordinary Japanese tend to hold some belief that criminal acts or bad behaviors inside shrine or temple quarters should be avoided; otherwise they would be even coursed.

I'm fully aware that my thought or deduction at this moment is rudimentary with preconception. I may be wrong as a deception to frame someone is also common. All the same I hate such act no matter how it was motivated. Unjustifiable. Wuhan is another issue.

> Could easily have been done by a non-Japanese looking to stir things up. Regardless, a stupid thing to do but examples of a few bad apples are hardly representative of the whole regardless of what people here say.

Yasukuni Shrine and it’s revisionist museum are great examples that there are more than just a few bad apples here.

As for the virus crisis, I only criticize cover-ups and negligence made by Chinese authorities. I demand that they be more accountable if not apologetic. I am not interested in the origin debate ("bystander" curiosity remains, though). I'm aware of growing frustrations and grudge even sheer racism against China. But the current incident involving Yasukuni is irrelevant and simply wrong if someone tries to address thoughts.

Well said @Yubaru, well said. And at Yasukuni Shrine no less? Regardless of who wrote that, or what their motivation was, it’s like, really? Really? With all the stuff going on, you’re going to do something like this? And at the shrine the honors Japanese war criminals no less?

i’m seriously at a loss here, I seriously am.

You'd think that these many generations post-WWII would stop being so nationalistic. With the advent of the selfish newer generations (Millennials, Gen-Z), there's still hope that this will all pass. Yet, as long as Japan still has a PM that honors its war (criminal or not) dead, this will unfortunately most likely continue.

Yet, as long as Japan still has a PM that honors its war (criminal or not) dead, this will unfortunately most likely continue.

The current PM’s maternal grandfather was imprisoned as a suspected war criminal and was known as the Showa Monster for the atrocities he committed in China.

@WilliamJames

Just who are these "Some people in or around WuHan?"

Customers, vendors and suppliers connected to the wildlife trade at the Wuhan Seafood Market, and the people responsible for regulating the market. The research so far indicates these people are most likely the ones directly responsible for the virus's jump from bats to other animals and then starting the spread among humans. Once the medical investigators verify the causes, these people - who were engaged in illegal and\or unethical activities -- must be held accountable.

Any other questions?

Just another typical Japanese passive aggressive political statement. In a public toilet? C'mon, I've seen some krazy krap written in public toilets before, this isn't news other than it was at Yasukuni. Start concentrating on real hate speech and crimes that are often under-reported, and how 'bout starting with the morons in their black trucks and vans blaring idiot music; must be some kind of ordinance against the volume of the noise.

Well, since it's a message of hate directed at Chinese, they'll likely enshrine it.

@strangerland

companies should close their factories in China & set up elsewhere, like Vietnam, Cambodia or Myanmar.

By moving their companies out of China would take away a lot of China’s power

Big man, writing something Chinese people probably can’t even read in a place Chinese people probably have no interest in going. Japanese passive aggression at its most pathetic.

yaburu, totally agreed.

how 'bout starting with the morons in their black trucks and vans blaring idiot music; must be some kind of ordinance against the volume of the noise.

Couldn't agree more. Lately they've been cruising around Abe's place near Tomigaya every sunday morning, they can be heard for 2 kms around. I seriously daydream about throwing their truck in a volcano.

Don't take it out the people!, they paid a heavy price as well. It's their oppressive government that LIED about the severity of the spread of the virus, and it's infectious nature for the first month that led to the pandemic.

Toilet nationalism. Rightists flushed with pride?

companies should close their factories in China & set up elsewhere, like Vietnam, Cambodia or Myanmar.

By moving their companies out of China would take away a lot of China’s power

Sure. If that happened.

But it hasn't, so therefore my post still stands.

I love Chinese food. I always have but I've stopped going to Chinese restaurants just as I've stopped going to any restaurants right now. In the future, I look forward to returning to my favorite Chinese restaurants.

Most people are not angry at Chinese people in regard to the coronavirus. They're angry at the Chinese government for the cover-up it was involved with early on. Had the Chinese government taken decisive action in 2019 instead of arresting and shutting up whistle-blowers, then this global catastrophe might have been contained, minimized and even prevented.

The Chinese government is responsible for this catastrophe. That's a fact.

"Most people are not angry at Chinese people in regard to the coronavirus. They're angry at the Chinese government for the cover-up it was involved with early on." Yes! This! Well said!

If you scribbled some nationalistic graffiti about hakko ichiu or something in the toilet at Yasukuni, would that make the national news?

The shrine honors convicted war criminals, along with more than 2.4 million war dead.

Err, the shrine honors war dead, but also a number of war criminals from World War II.

The Chinese communist party and it's leadership are to blame, The Chinese people are just as victimized as the rest of the world.

The most potent punishment is to sue the communist party for the 6.5 Trillion USD the world has lost due to this pandemic as it is already happening.

@Strangerland

"The only way to force them to do so would be war."

Nope. Tough and total sanctions, like the ones imposed on Apartheid-era South Africa. They worked spectacularly well.

If that happened....But it hasn't,

Come on, past tense? LOL. The crisis is 3 months old! It IS happening. Japan, for one, has announced it will subsidize the costs of Japanese manufacturers and companies that re-locate operations out of China. Officials in the EU are discussing re-positioning the global supply chain, and so on.

Hmm, something strange here. Notice, the graffiti targeted people from Wuhan, and not the whole country.

Black marker? Or sharpie?

Racism exists everywhere, however the most racist and Xenophobic country I have ever been to (and none come close) is China.

I dont know, Ive experienced some pretty extreme racist and xenophobics in Japan. Chinese tend to take care of their business, family. They dont want you in their country Im sure, but they not as extreme as Japanese IMO, but I never lived in China.

Couldn't agree more. Lately they've been cruising around Abe's place near Tomigaya every sunday morning, they can be heard for 2 kms around. I seriously daydream about throwing their truck in a volcano

Ive noticed a downturn in the nutters activities, at least around where Im at. They are not missed at all. Around the area you mention, they love to make noise, with yasukuni as their shrine. I think some former IJA bases are shrines also to them. I often wondered how they would of been controlled during the Olympics, as Japan is overly sensitive about its image; seeing nuts in green vans would be disturbing? Well, I mean it is real Japan after all. I was told by a Japanese guy that the nutters were "turned loose" by directives from above, to complain this or that, then a meeting was scheduled to discuss their "needs". I guess they have a purpose? Who knows.

They’ve got us. It’s same as after Iraq where we just had to accept that a superpower did whatever they wanted without taking responsibility for it, and there is nothing the rest of us can do about it.

The same thing was said and written about the Japanese in the 80s. Nobody is ever "gotten" Its just allowed through favored trading partner agreement, useless politicians and lazy people who fall for the bait every time. The US doesnt need China but their country makes for a great market.

You'd think that these many generations post-WWII would stop being so nationalistic. With the advent of the selfish newer generations (Millennials, Gen-Z), there's still hope that this will all pass.

Wish, but doesnt work like that. Its always under the surface, kind of an ebb and flow according to the economic mood. People get Japan all wrong and start hoping. China is the same way. It will never die out. There is nothing to replace it with; you cant replace the ancient ways with something foreign and radical because change represents risk and chaos, a big no no in collective Confucius oriented societies. In the 80s and 90s, Japan was in a great mood, music was happy, people were rich, but the nationalism was always there. Its the fall back.

And giving press to this is exactly what the troll vandal wanted. One stupid troll doesn't reflect everyone's opinion.

A bit of graffiti written in a public toilet makes the news? Guess that shows the not-so-high crime rate in Japan.

@chip star and @mark are both spot on.

this is a non event not worth reporting and certainly not worth any police time.

but the memory of the ww2 dead is insulted by the inclusion of the 1,000+ war criminal names recorded at the Yasukuni shrine. Abe remove those names

A lot of people in this thread who are under the la-la delusion that China is going to sit back and let sanctions happen without any retaliation against countries that put sanctions on it.

People don't seem to realize that if China cuts off the supply lines as a result, the rest of the world has no alternative, and will suffer harshly as a result.

Unfortunately, we couldn't make the US take responsibility for Iraq, and we can't make China take responsibility for trying to cover up the Wuhan virus so it wouldn't make them look bad.

Sigh.... I miss the days when the only graffiti I'd find in the restroom usually involved "For a good time, call Jenny. 867-5309," or something like that. Light reading for distraction, ya know?

Sigh.... I miss the days when the only graffiti I'd find in the restroom usually involved "For a good time, call Jenny. 867-5309," or something like that. Light reading for distraction, ya know?

Why have so many people got it in for Jenny?

This is not a good joke. Grow up.

Things like this silent ijime is very common around bad Japanese. If U want to do this kind of actions, do it in front of everyone , coward.