A Pokémon Trading Card Game event scheduled to take place at the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo has been cancelled following strong backlash from China.
The event, which was organised by a certified third party and promoted through an official Pokémon platform, was due to be held on Saturday near Japan’s Imperial Palace. However, after criticism emerged online and in Chinese state media, The Pokémon Company issued an apology and confirmed the cancellation.
In a statement released on Friday, The Pokémon Company acknowledged that the event should never have been promoted and cited internal oversight failures, “It should not have been held in the first place.”
The company explained that the event listing was “mistakenly posted” on its official Pokémon Card Game website due to a lack of due diligence.
“After the incident was discovered, the event was promptly cancelled”, they added, “We sincerely apologise for the various reactions and opinions that have been generated as a result of this publication.”
The company also stated that it will thoroughly review and strengthen its approval processes to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Whats The Actual Story?
Yasukuni Shrine commemorates approximately 2.5 million Japanese war dead, including soldiers from the Sino-Japanese wars and World War II. However, it also enshrines more than 1,000 individuals convicted as war criminals, making it a deeply sensitive and controversial site, particularly for countries such as China and South Korea that suffered under Japanese occupation.
Because of this history, any entertainment-related events held at the shrine often attract criticism from abroad.
Following news of the Pokémon event, China’s official Communist Party newspaper, People’s Daily, sharply criticised the decision.
“Brands that disregard history and hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will ultimately be abandoned,”
The outlet further warned: “The relevant enterprises must accordingly take social responsibility and not make light of the heavy weight of history in the name of entertainment.”
China’s state-run tabloid Global Times also weighed in, praising online criticism from Chinese users.
“China’s young netizens” were right to criticise the event, the paper said, adding: “Any entertainment or leisure activities held at such a site constitute an open affront to historical truth, and staging events aimed at children there is even more egregious.”
The incident comes amid worsening diplomatic relations between China and Japan. Tensions escalated further in November after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested that Japan could respond with its Self-Defence Forces if China were to attack Taiwan.
China considers Taiwan part of its territory and has not ruled out using force to reclaim it. Following the dispute, both governments advised their citizens against travelling to the other country, and the release of two major Japanese films in China was reportedly postponed.
Pokémon, which originated as a video game series in 1996, has since grown into one of the world’s most influential multimedia franchises, spanning video games, anime, films, and trading card games. Due to its large child and family audience, the franchise is often held to higher standards when it comes to cultural and historical sensitivity.
The cancellation highlights how entertainment brands operating globally can quickly become entangled in geopolitical and historical disputes, even when events are organised by third parties.
Source: BBC
