ed Political crime

A Seoul court turned down a request from Japan to extradite a Chinese man who admitted to committing an arson attack on Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine and allowed him to leave Seoul Friday.

The Japanese government expressed regret over the ruling and Japan’s press raised the possibility that the already-sour relations between Seoul and Tokyo could worsen. But Japan doesn’t’ deserve to make an objection in this case and must respect the ruling.

The 38-year-old Liu Qiang was arrested in January last year for throwing petrol bombs at the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, which left burn marks on the mission’s outer wall but caused no other damage. He served a 10-month prison sentence for the attack.

Tokyo had sought his extradition in connection with the shrine attack in December 2011 that also caused a minor damage. China, for its part, urged Korea to send Liu back to his home country, arguing that he is a political prisoner whose actions were prompted by Japan’s past crimes committed in China.

The Seoul High Court said in its ruling, ``Extraditing Liu who committed a political crime goes against the nation’s political order and Constitution. This would also deny the universal values of most civilized countries.’’ The ruling went on, ``Liu harmed none with the attack with no significant property damage. Given all these factors, it is difficult to say he committed a serious, cruel and anti-humanity crime.’’

The grounds the court cited while reaching the ruling are quite reasonable and it’s common sense that political prisoners must be protected. At the heart of the controversy in the ruling was whether he can be recognized as a political prisoner.

The court accepted his argument that he carried out the attacks because he was angry with the Japanese government’s refusal to deal with the historical issue of the Imperial Army’s use of sexual slaves, euphemistically dubbed ``comfort women.’’ Liu’s tragic family history ― his maternal Korean grandmother was allegedly one of the victims ― and the symbolic meaning of the shrine, which honors Japan’s 2.5 million war dead including 14 A-class World War II criminals, were also considered.

There is no need for Japan to be ill-tempered because it was a court ruling and not influenced by Seoul’s political considerations. Rather, this should be a warning to Japan, which is rapidly shifting toward the far-right conservatism and militarism. Beijing needs to avoid stimulating Tokyo, too.

As it has been pointed out repeatedly, Japan holds the key to ensuring peace and stability in Northeast Asia. In this regard, the island country should face up to history as it is and make efforts to establish a future of reconciliation and cooperation, as President-elect Park Geun-hye said while greeting special envoys of Japan’s new Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Friday.