South Korea Wants to Ban the Japanese Rising Sun Flag from Tokyo 2020 Olympics

South Korea wants to ban Japan's Rising Sun flag from the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo because it sees it as a symbol of Japanese imperialism and militarism. During the early to mid 1900s, South Korea was occupied by Japan and that ended with Japan's defeat in World War II. South Korea said that Japan's rising Sun flag "is akin to a symbol of the devil to Asians and Koreans." South Koreans see the Rising Sun Flag this way because many of Koreans were brutalized, murdered, and enslaved by the Japanese during their occupation, and they believe that it would be insensitive to allow the Rising Sun flag to be flown at an advent for international peace when it symbolizes, to them, such barbarism on the part of the Japanese. The Japanese responded by saying that it will not be banned because the Rising Sun flag is still a large part of Japanese culture and still used by it military forces.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/06/asia/japan-korea-olympics-rising-sun-flag-intl-hnk-trnd/index.html

-Alex Kitzmann