Li Falls Foul of the Keepers of the Shrine

Demanding that cuts be made to his film, the officials of the Yasukuni war shrine alleged that Li Ying, director of the controversial documentary Yasukuni, didn’t ‘follow proper procedure’ when he requested permission to film at the shrine because he failed to tell them he was making a film.  

Naoji Kariya, the swordsmith who features prominently in the film, also requested that footage of him be edited out of the film, but Argo refused.   Supporters of the film claimed that Kariya was pressured into making the request by a lawmaker from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

Argo said it would respond within a two-week deadline imposed by the shrine, but would proceed with planned screenings in Tokyo and elsewhere.   Loft Plus One, a live music club in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district had already announced that it intended to show a preview of the film on Friday 18^th April and had invited right wing group activists to attend.

Keepers of the shrine accused Li of misrepresenting it in his film, saying in a statement that, ‘It is very regrettable that the film, which may cause (people) to misunderstand this shrine, was produced and is to be screened.’

(Sources: Variety Asia, Japan Times)

Further Reading:

2008

Japan: 2008