The far-right Japanese newspaper, Sankei Shimbun, recently expressed frustration, stating, “Korea’s anti-Japan syndrome is tiresome.” In response, Professor Seo Kyung-deok from Sungshin Women’s University criticized the newspaper, asserting, “Koreans are truly fed up with Japan’s historical distortion syndrome, and at the center of this issue is always the Sankei Shimbun.”
On the 27th, Professor Seo addressed the issue on Facebook, demanding that “Sankei should first adhere to basic journalistic principles before discussing Korea-Japan relations and must learn to approach history correctly.”
Previously, on the 26th, Sankei had published an editorial titled “Astounded by Korea’s Anti-Japan Syndrome at the Sado Mine Memorial,” criticizing the Korean government’s absence from the memorial service at Sado Mine by labeling it as “anti-Japan syndrome,” dismissively calling it “tiresome.”
The absence was reportedly due to growing domestic opposition in Korea following reports of Akiko Ikuina, a Japanese government official, visiting the Yasukuni Shrine.
Sankei further argued, “It is natural for Japanese politicians to visit the Yasukuni Shrine, which enshrines the war dead, and there’s no reason for foreign criticism.” They also suggested that if Korea refused to participate in events due to this, it indicated an unwillingness to have proper relations with Japan.
Professor Seo countered, pointing out that “the Yasukuni Shrine enshrines Class A war criminals of the Pacific War,” and criticized such visits as denying Japan’s history of wartime aggression.
Meanwhile, the Korean government did not attend the Sado Mine memorial service held on the 24th. Instead, on the morning of the 25th, a separate memorial ceremony was held at the site of the former dormitory for Korean laborers at Sado Mine.