Emperor best person to repair damage over sex slaves: LA Times

A major U.S. newspaper suggested in its editorial published Wednesday that Japan's Emperor Akihito "go one step further and offer a more forceful apology for all the crimes committed in his family's name," commenting on the ongoing controversy over the so-called "comfort women."

The Los Angeles Times' editorial said, "Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's attempt to finesse the Japanese government's role in forcing about 200,000 Asian women to work as sex slaves during World War II is worse than unfortunate. It is counterproductive — and the best person to repair the damage is Emperor Akihito himself," the Times said. "The person who could do the most to reconcile the people of Japan and their neighbors with the past is Akihito, the son of wartime emperor Hirohito. He is also the one person who could lift this issue above the political fray."