(Recast) Commentary: Tampering with Murayama Statement will lead to evil consequences

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's impudently declared attempt to tamper with the 1995 Murayama Statement -- a landmark war-repentant statement made by post-war Japan -- will only lead to evil consequences detrimental to the nation's image and diplomacy.

Abe alleged on Sunday that he planned to issue a statement for the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, in which he would change wording like "colonial rule" and "aggression" in the 1995 Murayama Statement to show his regime's thinking for the post-war history and the future development of Japan.

This attempt of Abe showed that he actually planed to betray the spirit and sincerity of the Murayama Statement that offers an apology to other Asian countries for Japan's wartime atrocities, although the current Japanese prime minister repeatedly voiced that he would "generally carry forward" the statement.

The Murayama Statement, made by then Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama on the 50th anniversary of the end of WWII on Aug. 15, 1995, was not his personal statement, but a conclusion for Japan's aggression history, which Murayama made on behalf of the Japanese government and nation on the 50th anniversary of the end of the war.

Murayama said in the statement that Japan caused "tremendous damage and suffering" to the people of Asia and other countries through its colonial rule and aggression, and expressed "feelings of deep remorse" and "heartfelt apology."

His statement reflected a spirit of introspection and remorse, and was a basis for Japan to realize reconciliations with the countries that Japan invaded during the war.

Murayama's cabinet was a coalition of parties that upheld different political views, but his statement was unanimously agreed by all cabinet members, in one of the broadest consensuses of the Japanese society on historical issues after WWII.

Even some obstinate Japanese leaders, like then Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi who held rigid stance on visits to the notorious Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, still used the same language of remorse in his own statement which marked the 60th anniversary of the end of the war.

However, when countries around the world are prepared to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the war, Abe is attempting to reverse the trend of the times and dance to another tune on a well-established fact.

It is obvious that if the core of the Murayama Statement is discarded, the so-called "Abe Statement," no matter how rhetorical it might be, will come to the overturn of Japan's post-war historical consensus.

If so, such a kind of statement will not only shake the foundation for Japan's return to the international community and reconciliation with countries that had suffered seriously from its wartime atrocities, but will also cause great harm to the image and reputation of the country and its government.

Since he took office, Abe has repeatedly committed mistakes on historical issues, including his remarks on the "unestablished definition" of Japan's aggression and a visit to the Yasukuni Shrine honoring the war dead including Class A war criminals, which fomented the right-leaning deviation and historical revisionism in the Japanese society.

Abe's remarks on Sunday came only some 20 days after he said at a New Year press conference that he will inherit the past cabinets' historical recognition as a whole in his statement on the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII.

The international community should be on full alert that such an inconstant person's statement will become a "model" for Japan's further distortion of history, which will generate a negative influence on Japan's politics and foreign relations.

It is advisable for the Japanese government to take the international reactions to its historical revisionism seriously, as the unwise move can hardly "bring Japan back", but would only taint Japan's image and reputation as a peace-loving country and may even alienate the country away from its neighbors.

It is hoped that Japan will follow the path of peaceful development, win trust from the international society through concrete actions, and play a constructive role in safeguarding peace and stability in the region. Endi