Overview:

The difference of interpretations about Yasukuni's purpose and significance for the diplomatic relations in the region lay the foundations for conflict, severely aggravated by the fact that important political figures in Japan visit the shrine. There are a lot of clash points to the conflict, but two of them seem to have prevalent significance-the issue of separation of church and state in Japan, and the impact of the visits on the world's view of current Japanese interpretations of history.

Separation of Church and state:

Although the only Prime Minister to visit Yasukuni in his official capacity was Yasuhiro Nakasone, the visits Prime Minister Koizumi pays to the shrine provoke heated debates. Koizumi has stated many times that his visits are private, they are not carried out in his public capacity. However, the public seems to disagree. The Osaka High Court ruled that his worshipping in the shrine is a public act, and hence, it is a violation of the constitutional separation of state and religion.The response of Junichiro Koizumi at a parliamentary session, following the decision of the court was the statement: "I don't understand why my visits to Yasukuni violate the constitution, I'm paying my respects to those who died in the war, with the conviction that we must never wage such a war again" The position of the court, however, is viewed by Mitsunori Nakajima, a lawyer for the Taiwanese plaintiffs, as "..groundbreaking, a landmark ruling... recognition that Koizumi's visits were clearly carried out in a public capacity".

Japanese interpretation of historical truth:

Apart from the argument of separation of church and state, the sole idea that the Prime Minister of Japan is visiting the controversial Yasukuni shrine, no matter in what capacity he does that, is by itself a reason for conflict. In the context of the Japanese textbooks controversies and the popular opinion that Yasukan war museum is presenting historical truth in a distorted manner, Koizumi's visits of the shrine are viewed as an attempt to legitimize Japan's past militarism. The world thinks he is paying homage to war criminals found guilty of carrying out numerous atrocities, which explains why his visits are deeply offensive to countries that suffered from Japan's past military actions, namely China and South Korea. As a result protests against Koizumi's visits were launched on both governmental level and by the people of the affected countries. Moreover, disapproval has been expressed by the opposition Democratic Party of Japan, by certain Japanese peace groups, and even in Koizumi's cabinet itself. The public opinion is also divided so that a lot of people disapprove of Koizumi's actions, as well.

Image taken form: http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/1945000/images/_1947448_koizumi150.jpg