Yuichiro Hata
Yuichiro Hata is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan, a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet. A native of Setagaya, Tokyo, and graduate of Tamagawa University, he was elected to the House of Councillors for the first time in 1999. He is the son of the late Prime Minister Tsutomu Hata. He was appointed the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism on June 4, 2012.On August 15, 2012 Hata, along with National Safety Commissioner Jin Matsubara became the first cabinet ministers of the DPJ to openly visit the controversial Yasukuni Shrine on August 15 since the party came to power in 2009. They made their visits to commemorate the 67th anniversary of the end of World War II despite requests from South Korea to refrain from doing so, and despite Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda requesting his cabinet not to do so.
