AP News, August 24th, 2007
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday met with the son of an Indian judge who sat on the World War II war crimes tribunal that acquitted Abe's grandfather, a visit some in Japan fear could affect improving relations with its neighbors.
Abe ended a three-day visit to India with a stop in the city of Calcutta to meet Prasanta Pal. Pal's father, Radhabinod Pal, decried the trials as victor's justice and voted for the acquittal of all those standing trial. He was the only one of the tribunal's 11 judges to do so.
Abe's grandfather, Nobusuke Kishi, spent 3 1/2 years in prison as a war criminal before being acquitted by the tribunal. He later served as prime minister of Japan from 1957 to 1960.
"(Abe) told me the Japanese still remember my father and love him," Pal said after his meeting with the Japanese leader. "We talked about his grandfather and my visit to Japan in 1966."
Japanese nationalists idolize Radhabinod Pal, although many Indian historians argue his stance in the tribunal was rooted in anti-colonialism and had little to do with the allegations of war crimes committed by the Japanese.
A monument dedicated to him stands on the grounds of the Yasukuni Shrine, seen by many in Asia as a symbol of Japan's wartime militarism.
Abe's meeting with Pal had been criticized by some in Japan, who said it could hurt the country's relations with China and South Korea. Both nations were victims of Japanese aggression in the lead up to and during World War II.
Since becoming prime minister a year ago, Abe has worked to improve Tokyo's relations with its neighbors. His predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi, had raised tensions by visiting the Yasukuni shrine, where some convicted war criminals are honored along with the nation's war dead.
Abe has not visited the shrine.
