Emperor Showa's Visit to Europe and International Criticism--December 1971

Emperor Showa's Visit to Europe and International Criticism--December 1971

The Showa Emperor's first visit to Europe in 1971 was welcomed in Japan as part of goodwill diplomacy, but was met with harsh criticism in the international community. In particular, the French newspaper Le Monde characterized the visit as "anti-communist diplomacy," and saw the Cold War structure and Japan's inclination toward the Western camp in the background. The article questioned the emperor's past, namely his collaboration with fascism before and during the war, and criticized that "there was neither apology nor explanation. It also decried the Japanese emperor system itself as an "anti-democratic institution" and warned that its existence is still not understood by the international community. In European countries, there was a wave of protests and voices referring to the emperor's responsibility for the war, especially in the Netherlands, where some said that he should be tried as a war criminal. Harassment of Japanese families living there was also reported, exposin
g the antagonistic feelings behind the visit to Europe. In Japan, on the other hand, these international criticisms were hardly reported, revealing the attitude of giving priority to the external image at the end of Japan's rapid economic growth. The tone of Le Monde's article confronts the gap in historical understanding and unresolved postwar issues, and quietly speaks of the need for political maturity.