Yasukuni Shrine: 2.5 Million Enshrined, Including War Criminals

Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, a site that honors Japan’s war dead, currently enshrines roughly 2.5 million individuals. Among those commemorated are soldiers, officers, and other personnel who served the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy during the first half of the twentieth century, including figures later identified as war criminals by international tribunals and domestic courts.

The shrine’s inclusion of war‑time figures who were convicted of crimes against humanity has long drawn criticism from neighboring countries such as China and South Korea, as well as from human rights observers. Visits by Japanese officials and politicians to Yasukuni are routinely viewed as provocative, prompting diplomatic protests and calls for a more nuanced approach to Japan’s wartime legacy.

Despite the controversy, the shrine remains a focal point for Japanese remembrance ceremonies, especially on national holidays. Its continued role in memorializing a broad spectrum of wartime personnel underscores the complex and contested nature of Japan’s collective memory of World War II.