In tense Japan, a rare and controversial state funeral for assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe began on Tuesday. The occasion for one of the country’s most divisive politicians has deeply divided public opinion.
Japan bids farewell to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in an extravagant state funeral on Tuesday, despite popular outrage over the event’s cost as the country grapples with the memory of their late leader.
Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, Shinzo Abe, was assassinated at a campaign rally in Nara in July, shocking a country where gun violence is extremely rare.
More than 4,300 people are expected to attend the service at Tokyo’s Nippon Budokan Arena, including US Vice President Kamala Harris and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Abe’s ashes were carried inside the venue, where a video homage to his life and accomplishments was played. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida then gave a memorial speech in which he praised Abe’s “courage” and dedication.
Other government officials, including former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, who served as Abe’s right hand man for many years, also spoke before participants laid flower gifts and bowed in turn.
An honour guard, gun salute, and musical performances are also scheduled before a government reception for visiting foreign leaders.
Police have increased security, with NHK claiming that 20,000 police officers will be deployed to keep the calm. Nonetheless, clashes erupted outside the funeral place between police and demonstrators.
Disagreements about legacy
Crowds gathered outside designated memorial sites on Tuesday morning to drop flowers and pay their final respects to Abe, who dominated Japanese politics for a generation.
However, while they mourned, over 1,000 people flocked to the streets in anti-funeral rallies, demonstrating a deep public rift over the occasion, Japan’s first official funeral for a Japanese leader since 1967.
Crowds marched near the funeral place, chanting slogans and holding banners calling for an end to the ceremonies. Protest leaders used loudspeakers to rally the throng, and a van passed by with music blasting from a boom box.
At times, the protests became tense, with several loud confrontations and scuffles between demonstrators and police.
Since Abe’s death, the country has seen rising inflation and revelations that half of Japan’s ruling party members had ties to the controversial Unification Church, which has faced criticism for its fundraising practises, prompting the church to pledge reforms to ensure that donations are “not excessive.”
Some critics have referred to Abe’s unpopular policies as a source of anger, and have questioned why so much taxpayer money is being spent on the state burial, which will cost approximately $12 million (1.66 billion yen) during a time of severe economic stress.
“It was a tragedy that Abe was gunned down and lost his life, but we shouldn’t make him a hero out of this tragedy,” one protester, Shinsaku Nohira, told CNN at a recent anti-state funeral demonstration outside Japan’s parliament.
“At least half of Japan’s population is opposed to this state funeral, therefore I don’t want the government’s propaganda to get out there; I want people to know that there are Japanese individuals who are opposed to this event.”
According to an earlier September NHK poll, 57% of respondents reject the state funeral, while 32% support it – and the rest indicated they didn’t know or declined to comment.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has attempted to assuage the people by declaring that a state funeral for Abe would be “appropriate” given his achievements as previous Prime Minister. He stated in August that the ceremony is not intended to “push people to mourn” or to become a “political issue.”
The legacy and assassination of Abe
Abe had two terms in power, during which he altered Japan’s security posture, calling into question the country’s position as a pacifist nation, and approved key security legislation in 2015 that increased what Japan might do militarily to support the US.
He was also a significant figure on the international stage, building strong relationships with Washington while attempting to improve relations with Beijing – all while attempting to resist Chinese growth in the region by uniting Pacific allies.
One of his final achievements as president was obtaining the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, though the pandemic Covid-19 forced the competition to be postponed to 2021.
Abe remained active in politics after stepping down in 2020, citing health reasons, often advocating for his party – which is what he was doing at the time of his assassination.
According to NHK, the alleged gunman, Tetsuya Yamagami, targeted Abe because he believed Abe’s grandfather – another previous Japanese leader – had aided the expansion of a religious group he despised.
Leah Millis/Pool Photo via AP
CNN has not been able to independently establish which group Yamagami was referring to, or whether there were any links between Abe and any group the suspect felt animosity for.
However, the assassination sparked a backlash against the Unification Church, which claimed Yamagami’s mother was a member who attended church events, despite the fact that Yamagami was never a member.
It further stated that the church got a message of support from Abe at an event it hosted, but that the former prime minister was neither a registered church member nor a member of its advisory board.
Abe’s death shocked Japan and the international community, with thousands of mourners gathered in Tokyo in July for his private funeral.