Japan’s finance minister, Taro Aso, has courted fresh controversy after expressing admiration for the Nazis, describing Adolf Hitler as “having the right motives”.
In 2013, he came under pressure to resign after suggesting that Japan should follow the Nazis’ example when considering how to change its constitution.
His comments came soon after another public figure in Japan attracted criticism for voicing admiration for the Nazis.
Earlier this week, the Simon Wiesenthal Centre said it had called for an investigation into Katsuya Takasu, a well-known plastic surgeon and TV celebrity, who highlighted the Nazis’ contribution to science and medicine, and appeared to deny the Holocaust.
After saying he had learned “how great Nazism was” while studying at Kiel University in Germany, Takasu wrote: “There is no doubt that the Jews were persecuted. But we only know it from hearsay and all of it is based on information from the Allies.”
In June, Yutaka Harada, a member of the board of Japan’s central bank praised Hitler’s “wonderful” fiscal and monetary policies.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/30/japan-minister-tara-aso-praises-hitler-right-motives