Steve George, a journalist for CNN International, recently commented on a photo of a statue at a mall in Northeast China.
I wasn't surprised to see how Shinzo was depicted or to later discover that the mall is in Shenyang, where six years ago I saw rows of statues depicting the "disgraceful end of the Japanese aggressors" — all in a similar pose — at a museum.
However, the photo also reminded me of a contrasting set of statues I saw several weeks ago between a Starbucks and a Burger King at the ICITY shopping center in Dalian, another city in Liaoning province.
The statues of five world leaders, past and present, were all clearly labeled.
Obama and Putin were the only current leaders of the set, and Putin is now the President of Russia. It was the statue of the previous Prime Minister of Japan which most caught my eye. Unlike the statue in Shenyang, the design showed no sign of humiliation or apology. Or even a Hitler mustache. Instead, the statue of Koizumi was on equal footing with the others and greeted shoppers as they exited one of the two facing elevators.
The statue in Shenyang reflects the anti-Japanese sentiment common in China. But as Chinese traveling to Japan during a Victory Over Japan holiday last year indicated, the full story of Chinese attitudes towards the country and its people is complicated. The statue of the Japanese prime minister in Dalian appears to be representative of a more positive side.
Koizumi did have some small scruff marks though.
How Japan is viewed in China. statue of Japanese PM Abe Shinzo, w/ Hitler moustache, bowing apologetically, now on display in Liaoning mall pic.twitter.com/Y9Z6qXbMdE— Steve George (@steve0george) November 22, 2016
I wasn't surprised to see how Shinzo was depicted or to later discover that the mall is in Shenyang, where six years ago I saw rows of statues depicting the "disgraceful end of the Japanese aggressors" — all in a similar pose — at a museum.
However, the photo also reminded me of a contrasting set of statues I saw several weeks ago between a Starbucks and a Burger King at the ICITY shopping center in Dalian, another city in Liaoning province.
The statues of five world leaders, past and present, were all clearly labeled.
 |
| "President of the U.S.: Barack Obama" |
 |
| "President of France: Nicolas Sarkozy" |
 |
| "Prime Minister of Russia: Vladimir Putin" |
 |
| "President of the U.S.: Bill Clinton" |
 |
| "Prime Minister of Japan: Junichiro Koizumi" |
Obama and Putin were the only current leaders of the set, and Putin is now the President of Russia. It was the statue of the previous Prime Minister of Japan which most caught my eye. Unlike the statue in Shenyang, the design showed no sign of humiliation or apology. Or even a Hitler mustache. Instead, the statue of Koizumi was on equal footing with the others and greeted shoppers as they exited one of the two facing elevators.
The statue in Shenyang reflects the anti-Japanese sentiment common in China. But as Chinese traveling to Japan during a Victory Over Japan holiday last year indicated, the full story of Chinese attitudes towards the country and its people is complicated. The statue of the Japanese prime minister in Dalian appears to be representative of a more positive side.
Koizumi did have some small scruff marks though.
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