The recent visit by the Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe to the Yasukuni shrine caused outrage amongst its former colonies, with China and South Korea leading the chorus of objections. What this recent visit by Abe proved is that Korea and Japan still have a long way to go in healing the wounds of the past. The atrocities committed by Japan during its long period of colonization of the Korean peninsula should not be forgotten quickly but as we begin 2014 should the question not be asked what does either country gain from holding on to its past?

In Ireland,