Abe visits Meiji instead of Yasukuni

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Meiji Shrine in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, and offered a prayer Saturday in an apparent attempt to placate conservatives.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe waves to visitors at Meiji Shrine in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, on Saturday. KYODO PHOTO

Some political observers said the visit was intended as a substitute for a pilgrimage to Yasukuni Shrine so as not to upset China and South Korea.

Wearing a formal tailcoat to Meiji, he signed the shrine's guest book as "Prime Minister Shinzo Abe."

When he prayed at the altar, he followed the formal Shinto rite of making two bows followed by two claps and another bow.

He was accompanied by Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Hakubun Shimomura.

Asked by reporters why he visited Meiji, Abe only said, "This is a venerable shrine. Since this place is close to my house, I often come here."

Yoshiro Mori prayed at Meiji Shrine when he was prime minister. By reviving a similar practice, Abe wanted to send a signal to conservatives that he respects the national religion as well as the major Shinto shrines, according to political sources close to him.

Meiji Shrine is dedicated to the spirit of Emperor Meiji and his consort, Empress Shoken.

Visits to Yasukuni Shrine by past prime ministers, especially Junichiro Koizumi, severely strained ties with Japan's neighbors.

The meetings are being arranged for Jan. 14 when Abe is to arrive on the resort island of Cebu from Europe for a two-day visit to attend the East Asia Summit, which was postponed early last month due to an approaching typhoon.

The three leaders are expected to take up the North Korean nuclear standoff.