This is the final series of images I shot on my latest trip to mainland Japan.

August 15th is the anniversary of Japan’s surrender at the end of WWII. On this day, several thousand Japanese come to Yasukuni Shrine to pray for those Japanese soldiers who died in battle. At 10AM doves are released and there are prayers for peace. There are one or two WWII veterans in uniform, and surprisingly some younger men dressed in military uniforms / costumes.

But things are a little more complex. The shrine is believed to hold the spirits of dead soldiers, and that with enshrinement comes absolution of all sins. The problem is that Japanese war criminals were also enshrined at Yasakuni. The presence of these spirits has led to  international controversy over whether Japanese politicians should pray at the shrine. 2010 was the first time in 25 years that no members of the Japanese cabinet attended.

This controversy has made Yasukuni Shrine, and in particular the August 15th anniversary, a place for protest by the more extreme ends of the political spectrum.

Arriving at the subway station I saw the first of the riot police. On the street, the big black buses of the extreme-right were circling with speakers blaring out their own special blend of intolerance. Uniformed police, riot police and plain-clothed police were everywhere. By late afternoon the right-wing supporters gathered just outside the shrine waving flags and shouting. They were waiting for the far-left to parade past, and the police were there to keep the two groups apart. When the far-left marchers appeared, police blocked the roads and shepherded the marchers past the far-right protestors. There were a few scuffles, but it seemed to be more about shouting and theatrics than violence.

Normally I only put up two or three images with each post, but for this one I thought I needed to show an entire series.

A few words of warning:

This is not a festival. I do not recommend turning up to witness the spectacle. I shot the event in the same way I have always worked. I talked to people (in broken Japanese) asked to take their photo and got in close.  Nearly everyone I met was polite and friendly, they included an old lady who held my hand and talked about Hiroshima, an undercover policeman, a member of the far right with  a swastika on his arm, and a WWII veteran.  However. things can, and did, change quickly. After I’d left, my friend, and fellow photographer, Damon Coulter had far-right supporters trying to  punch and hit him over the head with the Japanese flag while he was taking photographs. You can read his account of the day here.

My day at Yasukuni was an interesting experience, unlike anything else I’ve photographed in Japan. Personally, my photography tends to focus on the beauty and charm of  places or  people rather than search out the grittiness at the extremes.

It was time to pack up my gear, and fly back to Okinawa.