The Pokémon Company has had to issue a formal apology after advertising an event on its official website that was scheduled to be held at the Yasukuni Shrine, a deeply controversial place that has been the epicentre of decades of social and political turmoil in Japan and around the world.
The event wasn't an official one--the BBC reports it was being staged by a third party--but The Pokémon Company had it listed on their website regardless, which (after being discovered) prompted Chinese state media to write in the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, as quoted by the BBC:
Brands that disregard history and hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will ultimately be abandoned...The relevant enterprises must accordingly take social responsibility and not make light of the heavy weight of history in the name of entertainment.
This has not come at the most opportune time! China and Japan are in the middle of a full-blown diplomatic crisis, and the last thing anyone needed was news that a Pokémon event was being held at a shrine that, while dedicated to the memories of all Japanese soldiers killed in war since 1868, also contains the names of 1,066 convicted war criminals--all of whom served in China and the Pacific in the Second World War– which has made it a diplomatic flashpoint.
A statement from The Pokémon Company says that not only are they apologising for advertising the event, but that it had been cancelled as well:
After the incident was discovered, the event was promptly cancelled. We sincerely apologise for the various reactions and opinions that have been generated as a result of this publication.
The company also says it will now "thoroughly review and strengthen" its processes, which shouldn't be too hard; adding a "don't promote events taking place at notorious war shrines in the middle of a diplomatic crisis" bullet point to the company handbook should do it.
