Japanese Nationalism and Its Impacts in East Asia

Japanese Nationalism and its Impacts in East Asia

Introduction

Led by a new group of conservative leadership, Japan is undergoing a rise in nationalism fueled by complex mixture of causes spanning from internal politics, economy, perception of new threat from China, and external influence know in Japan as Gaiatsu. Meanwhile, East Asia is experiencing a dramatic shift in regional dominance from Japan to China. Due to the rapid growth in China's economy, East Asian nations, having depended on Japan for regional leadership and economic aid, are now faced with a choice of adopting either a pro-China or pro-Japan policy. The rise in Japan's nationalism and its associated nationalistic actions are agitating many nations who have suffered from the Japanese colonial day. This trend, if continued, will lead to Japan's alienation from East Asian nations.

Japanese Nationalism

"The origins of Japanese nationalism are based on the following: (1) a belief that the Emperor is a descendant of God, (2) geographic isolation, (3) a desire for expansion within the region. Different kinds of nationalism have emerged during different periods in Japan's history?(Council on Foreign Relations, 2005).

However, current Japanese nationalism is defined by Wikipedia's statement that "From a political point of view and in the years leading up to World War II, the particular political and ideological foundations for the actions of the Japanese military can be called a Japanese nationalist ideology?(Wikipedia, Japanese Nationalism). Additionally, Matthews in his article Japan's New Nationalism, claims that Japanese nationalism took its modern form as a philosophy with fascist underpinning. These two statements, combined with the fact that, for much of its history, Japan was ruled by military leaders, allow for a deduction that the military is at the core of Japanese nationalism. Hence, it is fair to state that actions by current Japanese leadership to proliferate its military forces are a sure sign of the rise of Japanese nationalism.

Is it Really Here?

Matthews in his article Japan's New Nationalism contends that issues of Prime Minister Koizumi's continued visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, Japan's history textbooks, and debate over the revision of Article 9 of its constitution are wrong signs of Japanese nationalism.

Contradictorily, these events are all linked to the core of Japanese nationalism ?the military, as mentioned above. As Fujiwara Kiichi stated in Shorrock's article Emerging Public Opinion Heats Up Northeast Asia, "One possible cure to the rise of nationalism ?would be for Japanese prime ministers to stop visiting Yasukuni (Shrine). And rather than use that site as the national memorial to World War II, Japan should build a monument to honour all the war dead, including the millions of Koreans and Chinese who diedÐ'..." This comments clearly state, even from a Japanese academic perspective, that the issue of Yasukuni Shrine visit is a nationalism issue.

While maintaining its pacifistic ways, previous prime ministers of Japan restrained themselves from visiting the Yasukuni Shrine in fears that it will irritate its neighbors and sour its relationship with those nations, mainly China and South Korea. However, Prime Minister Koizumi pays annual visits to the Shrine even at the cost of broken talks and risk of worsening bilateral relationship with China . "South Korea President Roh Moo Hyun suggested to Prime Minister Koizumi that an alternative to Yasukuni be built expressing the sensitivity of the Shrine itself?(Min, 2005).

Other "issues at the forefront of the current discussion of nationalism in Japan are Article 9 of Japan's Constitution and history textbook reform. Many Japanese nationalists favor a stronger Japanese presence on the world scene and would like to see Japan have a stronger, full-fledged military, instead of being confined to the Self Defense Forces as dictated by the Japan's Constitution?(Council on Foreign Relations, 2005).

The key sign of the nationalism in Japan is the presence of neoconservatives (neo-cons) in Japan. It "is a term used by Asian media recently to refer to a hawkish new generation of Japanese conservatives. They are distinguished from older Japanese conservatives in that they take a more active view of the SDF ? Despite that, they enjoy fair popularity across the nation, especially with the middle aged population?(Wikipedia, Neoconservatism (Japan)).

Shintaro Ishihara is the most well known neo-con. "Being an independent ?having shunned the Liberal Democratic Party ?Ishihara may never become primer minister. But he has already done a great deal to popularize Japanese nationalism, allowing many ordinary Japanese to embrace the cause of self-reliance without shame?(Matthews, Foreign Affairs). Listing North Korea's kidnapping of Japanese citizens and Chinese official's entering of Japan's Beijing embassy in 2002, Ishihara strongly supports the revision of Article 9 claiming that for Japan to be more independent, it must have a strong military.

As members of the post-war generation, these neo-cons view themselves as unrelated and, thus, not-responsible for the Japan's conquests and wartime history. They express unashamed national pride and stress Japan's international role. "Many of these modern-day nationalists are the more forward-looking among the country's bureaucrats. They are also progressive corporate executives and successful new entrepreneurs. They also see structural reform to be in their best interest. But though they have sound reformist economic credentials, many of these same individuals also are in favor of a more assertive Japan?(Matthews, 2001).

To neo-cons, China is viewed as a country that harbors historical grievances for political gain, rather than accepting Japan's apologies. They no longer view the Korea - Japan relationship as anything special, but rather desire to rebuild it as a normal relationship; one in which Japanese war guilt is no longer a factor in bilateral negotiations.

Also, Koizumi has already dispatched Japanese troops to help bolster the US occupation of IraqÐ'--the first time since World War II that the country's combat forces have been deployed overseas. He is committed to removing all barriers to the revival of Japanese militarism, including article 9 of the constitution that prohibits war or the use of force as a "means of settling international disputes.?

One case in point is Koizumi's "increasingly nationalistic and militaristic voice to