ID :
73223
Fri, 07/31/2009 - 16:49
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/73223
The shortlink copeid
Japan's opposition party says it will respect atonements for imperialist past
TOKYO, July 31 (Yonhap) -- A senior official from Japan's main opposition party,
favored to win the upcoming general election, said Friday that his party will
live up to the Japanese government's 1995 apology for its past aggressions
against Asian neighbors.
"We will inherit the Murayama statement," Katsuya Okada, secretary general of the
opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), told South Korean correspondents
here.
Okada was referring to a 1995 statement by then Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama
stating that Japan inflicted tremendous damage and suffering on Asian nations and
other countries "through its colonial rule and aggression."
The DPJ is expected to break a half-century of rule by the Liberal Democratic
Party through its widely predicted victory in an Aug. 30 general election.
Okada said his party, if it takes power, will pursue a "future-oriented"
relationship with South Korea.
"There is no concrete plan for issuing a new statement (on the past), but we will
maintain Japan-South Korea relations for a better future on the basis of the
existing positions of the two nations' governments," he said.
South Korea and Japan, despite their growing economic and cultural ties, are
often locked in a diplomatic standoff over historical disputes. Repeated comments
by Japanese government officials and politicians justifying Japan's brutal
colonial rule of Korea from 1910-45 have infuriated South Koreans.
The neighboring nations also stage recurring diplomatic battles over the
ownership of Dokdo, a set of rocky islets effectively controlled by Seoul but
also claimed by Tokyo.
Okada defended his party's position on the sovereignty over Dokdo, saying it is
"softer" than that of the ruling party.
The DPJ's policy book issued for the general election describes Dokdo as Japan's
territory.
"It is not new. Such descriptions were also used in former policy books," he
said. "(Our party's) related expressions are not stronger than those of the
Liberal Democratic Party," he said.
(END)
favored to win the upcoming general election, said Friday that his party will
live up to the Japanese government's 1995 apology for its past aggressions
against Asian neighbors.
"We will inherit the Murayama statement," Katsuya Okada, secretary general of the
opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), told South Korean correspondents
here.
Okada was referring to a 1995 statement by then Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama
stating that Japan inflicted tremendous damage and suffering on Asian nations and
other countries "through its colonial rule and aggression."
The DPJ is expected to break a half-century of rule by the Liberal Democratic
Party through its widely predicted victory in an Aug. 30 general election.
Okada said his party, if it takes power, will pursue a "future-oriented"
relationship with South Korea.
"There is no concrete plan for issuing a new statement (on the past), but we will
maintain Japan-South Korea relations for a better future on the basis of the
existing positions of the two nations' governments," he said.
South Korea and Japan, despite their growing economic and cultural ties, are
often locked in a diplomatic standoff over historical disputes. Repeated comments
by Japanese government officials and politicians justifying Japan's brutal
colonial rule of Korea from 1910-45 have infuriated South Koreans.
The neighboring nations also stage recurring diplomatic battles over the
ownership of Dokdo, a set of rocky islets effectively controlled by Seoul but
also claimed by Tokyo.
Okada defended his party's position on the sovereignty over Dokdo, saying it is
"softer" than that of the ruling party.
The DPJ's policy book issued for the general election describes Dokdo as Japan's
territory.
"It is not new. Such descriptions were also used in former policy books," he
said. "(Our party's) related expressions are not stronger than those of the
Liberal Democratic Party," he said.
(END)
