A 10-member advisory panel set up to discuss an alternative way to pay tribute to Japan's war dead held its inaugural meeting Wednesday, agreeing to draw up a report in a year.
The panel was set up after Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi pledged Aug. 13 to seek a way "for people at home and abroad to pay memorial tribute without discomfort." Koizumi made a controversial visit to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, which includes Class-A war criminals among the the war dead it honors, later that day.
"There were a lot of opinions over (Koizumi's) visit to Yasukuni Shrine and there is no doubt that we need to discuss this issue thoroughly and organize our views," said Takashi Imai, chairman of the Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren), who was appointed head of the panel.
Imai told reporters after the meeting that the team will start by examining historical facts and studying whether it is necessary to set up a new, nonsectarian monument.
Koizumi's visit to Yasukuni prompted fierce criticism at home and abroad, especially from China and South Korea. Japan has another war memorial, Chidorigafuchi National Cemetery in Tokyo, which is dedicated to unknown soldiers. The panel is expected to discuss whether a third site is needed, and if so, how to set it up.