http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/26/opinion/japan-crown-prince-ww2-comments/?iid=ob_article_organicsidebar_expansion&iref=obnetwork
It's been a little while since I found this article - it was published in late February. But I was saving it for my next blog post, and I definitely think it's relevant.
Shinzo Abe, Japan's current prime minister, has shown some disturbing revisionist tendencies towards the crimes that his country committed in World War II. He's also shown interest in loosening the restrictions on Japan's military capabilities. The current emperor's son and crown prince, Naruhito, recently turned 55, and during a news conference he made a statement about the war. He said that even though it was before his time, he thinks that it is important to "look back humbly on the past and correctly pass on the tragic
experiences and history Japan pursued from the generation which
experienced the war to those without direct knowledge."
The article notes that statements from Japan's royal family tend to be
very vague and ambiguous. However, even with that in mind, this
particular comment seems to be aimed at Abe's attitude towards the war,
saying that Japan should not ignore the darker parts of its past. While
the emperor of Japan (and his family) do not have any real political
power, I would imagine that they do have some level of influence. With
that in mind, this statement seems somewhat reassuring.
It is also mentioned that "The Imperial Household almost never strays into political affairs due to
constitutional constraints, but Emperor Akihito has on occasion
stretched his tether to its limits, and when he has done so it has
always been to repudiate right-wingers who prefer to think they are
acting in his name." Basically, this is not the first time that statements of this nature have been made, and this pattern makes it more likely that the prince's words were meant as caution.
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