Japan remembers PM Shinzo Abe one year after murder
Japan on Saturday marked the anniversary of the shock assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe, the country’s longest-serving leader and a towering political figure who was murdered a year ago.
The late prime minister was reportedly shot death in broad daylight while giving a campaign speech in western Japan, by disgruntled man over the former leader’s links to the Unification Church.
The suspect, Tetsuya Yamagami, was arrested on the spot and is said to be angry at the sect over large donations that his mother made that impoverish his family.
Reports revealed that gun violence is extremely rare in Japan which has strict gun laws. Yamagami is believed to have used a homemade weapon.
It was gathered that on Saturday, visitors from all walks of life formed a long queue outside Tokyo’s Zojoji Buddhist temple, offering flowers before framed pictures of a smiling Abe in his commemoration.
“I think he was the icon of Japanese people. He was the icon of the conservatives,” said mourner Tomoko Shimoda, 57.
She said, “the way he communicated with other people, what he said publicly, and the way he behaved” made a lasting impression on her.
Hiroyuki Kumagi, 69, said he was “a real worshipper of Mr. Abe”.
“I participated in the prayer at the last year’s national funeral, and of course I am here today,” he told AFP.
It was Said that in the western Nara region, people brought flowers and prayed outside Yamato-Saidaiji Station — the site of Abe’s shooting.
Abe’s death had attracted condolences from the world leaders, many of whom met the former prime minister as he worked to raise Japan’s diplomatic profile.
It was said, however, at home, the assassination caused waves of political revolution.
First, the renewed attention on the Unification Church — whose members are sometimes called “Moonies” — prompted revelations of deep ties between Japan’s conservative lawmakers and the sect.
It was gathered that the Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who saw his approval ratings tumble as the revelations emerged, was forced to first investigate the ties and then announce his party would sever any relations with the church.
Abe’s murder also prompted soul-searching over Japan’s security arrangements, with pledges to improve the protection of politicians.
Less than a year later, an attacker was able to approach Kishida at a campaign event and throw a homemade explosive. The prime minister was unharmed in the April event, and his attacker was detained at the scene.
Describing him as a real patriot, an outspoken scion of a political dynasty, Abe was said to stimulate socially conservative movements through his push to amend the post-war pacifist constitution.
He attempted to move Japan’s regional relations past the bitter memories of World War II, stressing the nation’s history of pacifism since the war.
While he was perhaps Japan’s best-known leader overseas, at home, Abe was a divisive figure whose conservative values and high-handed ways alienated liberal voters.
His “Abenomics” economic programme, which promoted easy monetary policies and huge government spending, achieved uneven results, and his administration was linked to several political scandals.
He first came to power in 2006 but left after a year following turmoil in his cabinet, a huge election loss, and health problems.
He returned in 2012 and went on to become the longest-serving leader in Japan’s modern history.
“Mr. Abe alone had worked so hard to defend the country from crises, and everyone was relying on him. He was a real patriot,” said a 58-year-old visitor to Abe’s memorial at Zojoji temple.
“To be honest, I have never been so devastated even when a family member passed away. It’s been a year, but I still get teary.”
