Researcher(s)
- Nicholas Turley, International Relations, University of Delaware
Faculty Mentor(s)
- Alice Ba, Political Science, University of Delaware
Abstract
The recurring cycle of escalation and de-escalation surrounding Japanese prime ministerial visits to Yasukuni Shrine is not random. Rather, crises tend to emerge when prime ministers deliberately visit the shrine amid low bilateral relations, nationalist leadership, and domestic political pressure. More importantly, these visits also serve as a form of historical revisionism and function as a tool of both domestic and international political signaling. Prime ministers then often retreat from the controversy once the immediate political purpose has been achieved, while avoiding a deeper regional conflict, allowing them to further advance their domestic agenda while avoiding the costs with China and South Korea, and even the United States.
Previous research has identified the main conditions, stated above, under which prime ministers visit Yasukuni Shrine, but it has largely overlooked the central role of historical revisionism. My primary source is the work of Taisuke Fujita and Hiroki Kusano, who compiled election data, public opinion polls, and approval ratings across multiple prime ministers and Yasukuni controversies from 1985 to 2013. Their research is also supported by historical evidence on the shrine and its domestic and international effects during and after the Yasukuni Shrine controversy.
My findings suggest that one major factor missing from the existing literature, including the Fujita and Kusano study, is the historical revisionist orientation of the prime ministers themselves, particularly Nakasone, Koizumi, and Abe. All three used Yasukuni Shrine to advance revisionist political goals, especially by promoting a vision of Japan that moves away from shame about its past and toward national pride. This position is consistent with broader revisionist policies, including denial regarding comfort women, revisions to history textbooks, patriotic education, and related rhetoric. However, once international costs from China, South Korea, and the United States become too high, these leaders often moderate their rhetoric and reduce the controversy while preserving domestic political gains.
Fujita, Taisuke and Kusano, Hiroki, “DENIAL OF HISTORY? YASUKUNI VISITS AS SIGNALING,” Cambridge University Press, cambridge.org, April 15th, 2020.