was a Japanese ultra-nationalist politician, Imperial Japanese apologist, and brief political hopeful. She was the granddaughter of General Hideki Tojo, the Japanese wartime

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

who was convicted as a Class A

war criminal A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hostage ...

and hanged after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1948.

Politics

In May 2007, Tojo revealed her intention to run in the

House of Councillors The is the upper house of the National Diet of Japan. The House of Representatives (Japan), House of Representatives is the lower house. The House of Councillors is the successor to the pre-war House of Peers (Japan), House of Peers. If the t ...

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

at the age of 68. She ran on a far-right platform. Tojo denied Japanese war crimes during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

and

. Tojo was a patron of '' The Truth About Nanjing'', a movie by filmmaker Satoru Mizushima widely considered to advocate for denial or revisionism of the

Nanjing Massacre The Nanjing Massacre, or the Rape of Nanjing (formerly Chinese postal romanization, romanized as ''Nanking'') was the mass murder of Chinese civilians, noncombatants, and surrendered prisoners of war by the Imperial Japanese Army in Nanji ...

. Mizushima alleges that the 1937 Nanjing Massacre was a politically motivated fabrication by China and numerous western eyewitnesses. Japan's nationalists, including former Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, distanced themselves from her. Political commentator has said of her: "Tojo’s nationalistic attitude might appeal to certain elements of the population, but most Japanese do not sympathize with her views. She has no chance at all at the elections."

Death

Tojo died on 13 February 2013, from interstitial pneumonia at the age of 73, ten years after her entry into politics.

Quotes

"Japan did not fight a war of aggression. It fought in self-defense. Our children have been wrongly taught that their ancestors did evil things, that their country is evil. We need to give these children back their pride and confidence". "In Japan, there are no war criminals. Every one of those enshrined at Yasukuni died fighting for their country, and we should honor them". "Many people, including Kyuma, believe that the atomic bombs stopped Japan's 'aggression,' but Japan did not fight a war of aggression". "If there was one mistake, however, it was the fact that we lost. And if my grandfather is to blame, it's not because he started the war but because we lost". "People think I'm a hawk, but I'm actually a dove on the '' torii'' of Yasukuni Shrine".

References

External links

Official Site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tojo, Yuko 1939 births 2013 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in Japan Japanese activists Japanese far-right politicians Japanese women activists Japanese nationalists Japanese monarchists Japanese political candidates Nanjing Massacre deniers Place of birth missing Japanese historical negationists