By Mina Pollmann
Japan should not let the tragic murder of two citizens shake its resolve to uphold world peace and security.
“I feel strong indignation at this inhumane and contemptible act of terrorism. I will never forgive these terrorists. Japan will work with the international community to bring those responsible for crimes to justice,” Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged in response to the apparent murder of two Japanese nationals, Haruna Yukawa and Kenji Goto, by the Islamic State (IS) after a 12-day long hostage crisis. This is the first time that Japan, wrapped in the cocoon of its pacifist constitution and resting comfortably under the U.S. security umbrella, has reacted with such a spirit of vengeance.
It is too soon to tell how this hostage crisis will affect Japan’s security legislation debate, but one thing is for certain: the Japanese worldview will never be the same. As Kunihiko Miyake, former Japanese diplomat, said to The New York Times, “This is 9/11 for Japan. It is time for Japan to stop daydreaming that its good will and noble intentions would be enough to shield it from the dangerous world out there. Americans have faced this harsh reality, the French have faced it, and now we are, too.”
The world is a dangerous place – and Japan is a part of it. While sakoku (a strict isolationist policy) worked in the 17th century to keep Japan safe, it is no longer a policy option for the 21st century. No matter how hard Japanese pacifists might try to distinguish their country from its more martial American patron, at the end of the day, both nations share the same interests: a rule-based international order and a world that promotes democratic governance and universal human rights. Japan cannot expect that radicals such as the IS will care to distinguish between the two. There are risks to being a U.S. ally, and Japan has simply been extraordinarily lucky in avoiding most of the drawbacks until now.
Read the full story at The Diplomat