Victor's justice is a two-edged sword. The attempt to bring former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic before a war-crimes tribunal in The Hague may satisfy the West's urge to find a bogeyman to justify its own irresponsible behavior toward the former Yugoslavia. But it is unlikely to impress those on the other side. The fallout will be with us for a long time to come.
In the same way, and more than half a century after the event, we still have to suffer the fallout from the unseemly rush by the Allies to punish Japan for its World War II aggressions. The planned Aug. 15 visit to Yasukuni Shrine by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is one result. Another is the never-ending controversy over school history textbooks .
Objections to the Yasukuni Shrine visit hinge mainly on the fact that the shrine claims to harbor the souls of World War II leaders executed by the Allies for alleged war crimes.