Chinese Man Allegedly Vandalizes Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo

Jiji Press

16:24 JST, June 4, 2024

Tokyo, June 3 (Jiji Press) — A Chinese man suspected of spraying graffiti on a pillar of Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo has left Japan for his home country, Japanese police said Monday.

The graffiti of “toilet” in English was written around 10 p.m. Friday with red spray on the stone pillar bearing the name of the war-related shrine near the entrance, according to Tokyo’s Metropolitan Police Department.

Police investigators confirmed the existence of the graffiti around 5:50 a..m. Saturday, when the man in question had already left Japan.

The police suspect the involvement of another person who allegedly recorded the act, as a video showing the graffiti being written has been shared on social media.

The video also captured the man apparently urinating against the stone pillar.

The Tokyo police believe that at least two people, including the man who has left Japan, were involved in the case, based mainly on footage from nearby security cameras, and are investigating them on suspicion of damaging property.

The shrine honors Class-A World War II criminals along with the war dead and is regarded as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism by neighboring countries such as China and South Korea.