Justin Bieber has apologized for and removed an Instagram photo of his visit to a controversial Japanese World War II shrine after the image outraged Chinese and South Korean fans.
The Yasukuni Shrine honors Japanese soldiers killed in World War II — along with some convicted war criminals. Chinese and Koreans were subjected to violent atrocities committed by Japanese soldiers during their World War II occupation of those lands.
Bieber originally tweeted a link to the shrine photo with the words “Thank you for your blessings.” He later removed the image from his Instagram account, by then “liked” 666,000 times, after Chinese followers on social media asked him to take it down, Time reports.
Good news: Bieber unlikely to return to China RT @shanghaiist: And... Justin Bieber just went to the Yasukuni Shrine http://t.co/d09l8cD2Po
— tania branigan (@taniabranigan) April 23, 2014(sharing this with misgivings) It appears Justin Bieber just visited Yasukuni Shrine. http://t.co/1nry8UwCrD
— Chico Harlan (@chicoharlan) April 23, 2014He’s officially just screwing with us now. RT @globeandmail: Asia in uproar over Justin Bieber’s apparent visit to Yasukuni Shrine
— Colby Cosh (@colbycosh) April 23, 2014Justin Bieber dropped by Yasukuni Shrine. There goes his Chinese, Korean market.
— Toon Seri Anthraxxxx (@anthraxxxx) April 23, 2014Who would have thought the Beibs would be the next to add to the #YasukuniShrine saga... *SMH* http://t.co/WSKuGsBkG6 via @JapanToday
— Yumi Araki (@yaraki) April 23, 2014@justinbieber Stupid guy, do you konw what Yasukuni Shrine visit means？You will lost ALL Chinese and South Korea fans.
— Mingyu Sun (@punica_sun) April 23, 2014@justinbieber Do you know Yasukuni Shrine is a very out of favour in the Asia?
— Min的木子慧❤Bieber (@1046776177) April 23, 2014@justinbieber how can you go to the yasukuni shrine, I can only say that even if I love you very much, but now I have some sad ::>_<::
— 罗雅婷 (@bieber_lyy598) April 23, 2014@justinbieber You go to visit the Yasukuni Shrine in Japan, you know what it means to us???
— l love Justin (@1272682676) April 23, 2014On Wednesday, Bieber explained in an Instagram post that he visited the shrine because he was struck by its beauty and didn’t realize what it represented. “While in Japan I asked my driver to pull over for which I saw a beautiful shrine. I was mislead to think the Shrines were only a place of prayer. To anyone I have offended I am extremely sorry. I love you China and I love you Japan,” he wrote.
Visits to the shrine by 150 Japanese lawmakers earlier this week reportedly angered China and South Korea. Although Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe did not visit the shrine with those lawmakers, he made an offering to the shrine this week that has strained relations with those countries.