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© (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2014.Cabinet minister denies ties to hate speech group
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titaniumdioxide
Why is there a need for her to deny? There's nothing wrong with being patriotic. Defending your own country's pride and honor is heroic. The only people who hate to hear the words "right-wingers" are the ones with great sense of hatred against that nation.
_Jack
One picture. Has not been seen with them since. Grow up.
But do remember they are all on the right side of the political spectrum. Kind of funny how they share so many other political views isn't it?
senseiman
In other words:
"Honestly, I had no way of knowing that members of an anti-Korean group would be at that anti-Korean rally I was attending."
Right.
Actually it is true that is just one photo, taken in an instant at some public event, but that misses the point I think. This wouldn't have been an issue if the cabinet members (now 3 in total) didn't espouse views which made them very attractive to these hate groups in the first place. Neo-nazis and other racists aren't clamoring to have themselves photoraphed with members of the DPJ, but they seem to absoluely love these new members of Abe's cabinet. That says something.
cechanju
http://mid.parfe.jp/kikannsi/115.pdf
Not just one picture. She's looking pretty cozy here with Masuki. Not a good look for the cabinet minister in charge of police to be hanging out with people with criminal records. If he were yakuza, she'd be out of a job. But uyuko is ok... sad.
ebisen
Kick her out, then let her deny whatever. Oh sorry, this is only an option in civilized countries...
noypikantoku
titaniumoxide - you are wrong, too much patriotism leads to hate and racism. Read your history books,denying the mistakes of your country because you are a nationalist is very dangerous as they can repeat the mistakes of the past. And who will suffer for that? I know a lot of Japanese people who are proud japanese citizens but they recognize their fault during the war and condemn honoring the war time criminals in Yasukuni. These Politicians job is to serve the country and people using the TAXPAYER'S (us) money, not to be a Patriot!
therougou
@noypikantoku
sarcasm...
toshiko
Abe should replace them with none controversial nicer politicians right away,
Papi2013
And people fault S.Korea for not wanting to deal with this government....
titaniumdioxide
Noypitaku, your irony is best given to the Koreans and the Chinese. You should be aware who the real haters are. If Ms. Yamanati were trully patriotic, I don't see any good reason for her to deny such wonderful heroic act.
Cricky
A neo-Nazi group that alone is enough surely. For those uneducated or been educateded in Japan Nazies are bad now and forever. There is no reason at all for a photo opportunity with a nazi.
GW
Ok.......so they say they were unaware of this guys VIEWS,.......... BUT were they unaware he was a member of the right wing group......... H'mmmm I wonder!
noypikantoku
titaniumdioxide - you said yourself that there is nothing wrong with being patriot and extremely nationalistic? but not for Koreans and Chinese? these Koreans and chinese who hate Japan are the nationalists of their countries, so do you really believe in what you've posted? or you are just being biased to Japan? real haters? Japanese, Chinese, Korean "Nationalists" are the haters, but not the majority or their people. She is lying or not about her knowledge of Zaitokukai I dont know, but there is a good reason now for her to deny this and that is by not being kicked out of her job, because if she obviously shows her too extrimism Japan's big allies like U.S. can ask Abe to kick her out and Abe kun cannot say no to U.S.
Kazumichi
Why is this important enough to be an article?
That's because the media are biased and trying to hide what's more important by exaggerating what's not. Or attacking who's cumbersome.
kenjiooi
I agree with senseiman that just because Yamatani espouses an ultra-nationalistic view on how Japan should be on its take on the last war and governing in terms of the restoration of the pre-war imperial restoration, they in the zautoku hate group saw something in common between her and themselves. In this respect I would put the three of Inada, Tkaichi and Yamatani under the same category of ultra-nationalists, who are ideologically on the saame page as Mr. Abe. The common denominator among the four of them is putting their personal reactionary polotical ideology, which we had gotb rid of with Japan's defeat in the war, on the front burner and putting the national interests on the back burner as they give a blind eye to the fact that they are elected to represent the whole country.
BNlightened
"Like many of their male colleagues, they share Abe's agenda of recasting Japan's wartime history with a less apologetic tone and boosting national pride."
Nothing wrong with boosting national pride in the present, as long as "boosting" isn't an euphemism for "irrational and chauvinistic state-directed nationalism" (which, in fact, is what these ladies actually crave.) But there's a clean difference between being proud of one's country and papering over the atrocious behavior of one's country in the past (or even present).
Personally, I feel that one of the major benefits of being a citizen of open democracies like the UK, US, Canada, Australia, etc, is that everyone gets to air their views (even non-citizens), and if you take a position in public you will inevitably and almost instantaneously be made aware of the positions and opinions of those who vehemently disagree with your perspectives.
Americans, for example, get to read and hear ALL THE TIME about how terrible "their" foreign policy is, how illegal "our" wiretapping is, how the atomic bombs were just a demonstration of the country's capabilities against Stalin's Soviet Union, or how awful "we" treated the slaves. Of course, I could go on. As an American, I've been told these points inside and out countless times (though every person who brings them up still seems to act as if they're revealing something really groundbreaking) so that if I choose to support or reject such positions, I had better back my claims up or else quickly learn why I am either dead-wrong or spot-on (depending on the perspective and my chosen sources.)
Japan, it seems, is somewhat different. If someone here "recasts Japan's wartime history with a less apologetic tone," no one wants to or is allowed to directly and immediately contradict them. The government, rather than the citizenry, initiates the "correct interpretation" of history, and everyone else is expected to get on board. Opposing viewpoints are withheld or restricted, thereby manufacturing a "nationwide consensus." Yet, the moment "less apologetic" Japanese go overseas to spout off how their country "beneficially helped Asia to modernize its backward ways through militarism and enlightened imperialism," "taught Koreans culture and beneficially brought them into the modern world" or "responded defensively in the 1930's to outside aggressors rather than actually being a violent instigator throughout Asia," (all claims presently being made here in Japan), they seem to have a really hard time defending their claims when faced with informed opposing viewpoints and...well...facts.
I call this trend the "Fish-Out-Of-Water Syndrome," where someone can strut around Japan confidently doling out revisionist historical interpretations and not get challenged, but when actually faced with contradictory views, their confidence suffers rather significantly. I've seen it happen dozens of times, and this has to be due to more than just a lack of confidence! Perhaps their "interpretations" are in fact flimsier than they think???
Conclusion: go ahead and say what you want, revisionists, but please be ready to be forced to actually defend your positions when your comments leave these "consensus" shores for more open, more informed and far more free-thinking destinations.
noypikantoku
titaniumdioxide
Then why you condemn these Korean and Chinese Nationalists who hate Japan because of their past war crimes? these Nationalists (Koreans/Chinese) think that they are also defending their country and think that what they're doing is patriotism.
Kristianna Thomas
The German Nationalist under the hand of Hitler had to pay for their war crimes, and Japan who was an ally was brought up on its crimes that it committed during the war. Like many in the US they are still fighting the Civil War; many in Japan are still fighting WWII. The Japanese Nationalist Party, mirrored after the German counterpart, are the extreme right-wing. Many cry about how being a "Right Winger" is a name that one should be proud of; like being a racist was about be "proud of one race". In the Southern US this pride took the form of lynching by the KKK, who believed that Black, Native, Asian and Jewish people should be put in their place. History states that being part of the Right will lead to following the footsteps of Hitler and the KKK; death, destruction and genocide. Will there be a generation who will rebuild the death and concentration camps, and justify it all by again saying, "I was only following order."
tokyodoumo
Yamatani was a Public Safety Commission Chairwoman and she didn't know about Zaitoku-kai?... what a farce! Public Safety Commision is an organization that monitors every socio-political groups in Japan. Her position as the Chairperon required her to know about Zaitoku-kai. Believe you me she knew who they were and she was arrogant and ignorant enough to take pictures in a public forum with them.