Martin Duffy
The murder on 8 July 2022 of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe while campaigning for upcoming elections in the historic city of Nara, shocks both Japan and the world at large. Doctors fought to save Mr Abe’s life, but despite a few moments of consciousness after the shooting, the former PM was described as being continuously comatose during desperate efforts of medical resuscitation. Responding to this apparent act of political violence, PM Fumio Kishida condemned the attack, saying: “It is barbaric…and it cannot be tolerated.” The Fire and Disaster Management Agency had earlier confirmed that Mr Abe had a bullet wound on the right of his neck, and also suffered subcutaneous bleeding under the left part of his chest. Mr Abe was said to be responsive in the minutes after the attack, but the 67-year-old’s situation later deteriorated. Eyewitnesses saw a man firing twice at Mr Abe from behind. Security officers detained the attacker, who made no attempt to run, and seized his weapon – reportedly a handmade gun. The suspect has been identified as Nara resident Tetsuya Yamagami. Local media reports say he is believed to be a former member of Japan’s Maritime Self-Défense Force, and that it was an improvised firearm. Explosives have subsequently been found at the suspect’s home. On Japanese social media, the hashtag, “We want democracy, not violence” was trending, with many social media users expressing their disgust towards the incident.
Politically hawkish, Shinzo Abe favoured revision of Japan’s pacifist constitution, and honoured the Yasukuni Shrine, itself controversial primarily because its Book of Soul’s contains more than a thousand war criminals from WW2. Naturally world leaders are stunned by Shinzo Abe’s murder. Japan’s own Foreign Ministry and several prominent politicians in Japan and abroad warned of, ‘attacks on supporters of democracy everywhere’. British PM Boris Johnston described his murder as “despicable”, while French President, Emmanuel Macron said it was “an atrocity”. Antony Blinken, US secretary of state, described the shooting as a “very, very sad moment”,” speaking from the G20 in Bali, Indonesia. Former US president Donald Trump, called it. “a tremendous blow to the wonderful people of Japan”. Japan’s fellow Quad members, Australia, India and the US, were among the first to respond after the shooting. Abe was instrumental in its formation. China’s foreign ministry also expressed “shock” at Abe’s shooting and extended condolences to his family. Kevin Rudd, the former Australian PM, called it, “a sober reminder to all our democracies of how precious our freedoms are…. an attack on supporters of democracy everywhere.”
India’s PM Narendra Modi said he was, “deeply distressed”. Abe’s public support for Taiwan had strengthened since he left office in the face of rising Chinese aggression against the democratic nation. Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan president, condemned the “violent and illegal acts”. Charles Michel, European Council president said he was “shocked and saddened by cowardly attack on Shinzo Abe…The] EU stands with people of Japan and [prime minister Fumio] Kishida in these difficult times.” Abe had previously outraged Chinese nationalists. A Weibo comment about the incident immediately went viral across the PRC: “Don’t forget that he visited the Yasukuni Shrine,” referring (above) to the controversial memorial that honours Japan’s war dead. Leif-Eric Easley said the shooting was a “major shock for Japanese politics and society…But Japan’s foreign policy will probably remain consistent, focused on strengthening the rules-based order with the USA and other international partners.” Anthony Albanese, Australia’s prime minister, observed, “our thoughts are with his family and the people of Japan at this time”.
In Japan, possession of firearms is restricted and while political violence is not unheard of, the assassination of prominent political leaders might be regarded as a phenomenon only of Japan’s dark history. However, Abe’s shooting revisits the ghastly memories of Japan’s Pre-World War II era, when political assassination was a blunt instrument of opposition. The result were bullets, or in some cases samurai, literally lobbed at the powerful, or even deployed by the ruling party as a means of discouraging rivals. Sometimes the motive was a direct attack on aspects of Japan’s colonial past. For example, PM Hirobumi Ito, was killed in 1909—after he had left office—at a train station in Japanese-occupied northeast China. The assassin was a Korean nationalist who objected to Japan’s colonization of the Korean peninsula. Indeed, Tokyo Station still bears an inscription near the site where another PM, Takashi Hara was fatally stabbed on Nov. 4, 1921, by a humble railway switchman opposing government’s policies.
Japan’s political violence intensified during the 1930s as ultra-rightists sought to destroy the multiparty constitutional government. For example, an attempted coup on Feb. 26, 1936, assassinated finance minister, Korekiyo Takahashi, and others; wounded the PM, and almost overwhelmed legitimate democratic government. The coup was quashed, but at the expense of growing military influence over the government. This was a crucial factor in the authorization of Japan’s Pearl Harbour raid in December 1941 and thus its entry into World War II.
Post WW2, as Japan metamorphosed into a democracy, political violence lessened, but even so there were outbreaks of riots and assassinations. For example, in 1960, an opposition party boss was fatally stabbed during an election campaign. In 2007, Nagasaki’s Mayor, Iccho Ito, a fervent opponent of nuclear weapons, was shot dead by a right-wing group.
In 2016 Otoya Yamaguchi stabbed to death Mr Inejiro Asanuma, leader of the Japanese Opposition Socialist movement. Yamaguchi was from the extreme right-wing Great Japan Patriotic Society. Prior to this, the worst was the stabbing to death of Koki Ishii, an outspoken member of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan in October 2002. This was probably Japan’s first political assassination for over 40 years. The next serious incident to that one was when the Socialist party leader Inejiro Asanuma was also murdered by a right-wing youth at a political rally. However, Japan does possess a submerged history of political violence, uncannily in a country known for its post-WW2 pacifism and high level of public safety. Its politicians are periodically threatened by right-wing extremists and gangsters connected with industry. Ishii had been a vocal critic, prompting even the prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi, to speculate that the murder may have been politically motivated. Ishii had also helped track down the Aum Supreme Truth Cult, which carried out the 1995 sarin gas attacks in the Tokyo underground.
Probably the most atrocious single incident before WW2 was PM Inukai Tsuyoshi’s murder on May 15, 1932, Tokyo. His assassination marked the end of party participation in the Japanese government in the period preceding World War II. Despite the lack of political stability, modernization efforts during Japan’s so-called Taisho democratic era continued. A greater openness took hold. Literary societies and magazines were tolerated. University cities and a theatre culture grew, with some calling this period “Japan’s roaring ’20s.” For these reasons the Taisho era has also been dubbed Taisho democracy as Japan enjoyed a climate of political liberalism unforeseen after decades of Meiji authoritarianism.
Using social unrest as an excuse, the Imperial Army arrested political activists, using the chaos created by a major earthquake to effectively seize civilian power. Having responded to this natural emergency the generals did not let go of control. Their relationship with the emperor began to shift. According to the Meiji Constitution, the emperor led the army and navy. However, all military decisions were actually made by the PM. As political activists became more vocal, many were abducted and “disappeared”. Local police and army officials who were responsible claimed these so-called radicals used the earthquake crisis as an excuse to overthrow the government. More repression followed. Prime Minister Hara was assassinated, and a Japanese anarchist attempted to assassinate Taisho’s first son, Hirohito. This was a period of intense Japanese militarization and abruptly terminated the Taisho democratic era.
Order was restored when a more conservative government gained influence and passed the Peace Preservation Law of 1925. Besides threatening up to 10 years imprisonment for anyone attempting to alter the kokutai (rule by the emperor and imperial government, as opposed to popular sovereignty), this law severely curtailed individual freedom. The transition in the emperor’s role to one of greater power began with the death of Emperor Taisho on December 18, 1926. Following tradition, his son Hirohito ascended to the throne, forming all the ceremonial duties flawlessly but appearing in public only for orchestrated state occasions. Over time, as the political climate within Japan shifted to a more militaristic stance, so did the role of the emperor. One specific gesture is emblematic of the changes occurring in the emperor’s powers. When Hirohito first appeared in public, commoners would remain seated but were permitted to look at him. By 1936 it was illegal for Japanese citizens to look at the emperor. It was in this spirit that Japan entered WW2, In the shadow of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, only the reverence for the emperor survived as Japan sought to forge a new post-WW2 democracy.
Japanese citizens will surely question the fragility of their democracy as former PM Abe will be laid to rest in public ceremonies which will almost inevitably quicken the consciousness of the Japanese far-right. Perhaps this incident will also cause its citizens to question the illusion of security which leaves this apparently peaceful society so vulnerable to acts of domestic terrorism. Far more significantly, Mr Abe’s death will reawaken memories of the worst aspects of Japan’s dark heritage of political assassination. Perhaps at the roots of this contradiction, and at the apex of Japanese society, is a convenient reluctance to confront the painful underlying realities of the Japanese past. Modern Japan is still weakened by the fault-lines of an unresolved war. It still possesses powerful forces of the right. Foremost among these truths is a dark history of entrenched ideological division and vulnerability to such episodes of assassination.
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