Japan protest Korean sign

TOKYO: Japanese officials said yesterday they would lodge a protest over the display of a banner criticising their country when their national team played South Korea in the final match of the East Asian Cup in Seoul.

During the match at the Olympic Stadium, South Korean fans displayed a giant banner reading: ‘‘There is no future for people who have forgotten their past’’ — a reference to Japan’s reluctance to acknowledge its colonial and militaristic history, including in Korea.

The banner, which may violate Eaff regulations banning political campaigns during its games, was taken down after the first half.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a news conference the display was ‘‘extremely regrettable’’, according to Kyodo News.

The Japanese government ‘‘will respond appropriately based on Fifa rules when the facts are revealed’’, Suga said, referring to the sport’s governing body.

The Japan Football Association has submitted a letter of protest to the East Asian Football Federation (Eaff), public broadcaster NHK and other reports said.

‘‘It was regrettable,’’ Japan Football Association president Kuniya Daini said, according to Kyodo. ‘‘We want the East Asian [Football] Federation to investigate and deal with the case firmly.’’

Japanese fans at the game waved the Rising Sun flag of their country’s military — a symbol of its imperialistic past — before they were asked to put it away.

Relations between the two countries are often prickly, with disputes often related to Japan’s harsh 1910-45 rule over Korea. The acrimony sometimes clouds sporting fixtures.

A similar incident occurred when the two football teams met during the London Olympics last year. South Korea’s Park Jong-Woo was banned for two games by Fifa and fined after he displayed a sign referring to a territorial dispute between the two countries.