The Japanese media announce the death in Nara hospital after the attack this morning. The longest-serving Prime Minister in recent Japanese history, he had stepped down from leading the government for health reasons, but continued to play a key role in the Liberal Democratic Party. Economic reforms, nationalism, and the push for rearmament were his political hallmarks, deeply polarizing public opinion.
Tokyo () – The Japanese media announce the death of Shinzo Abe. The former Japanese prime minister was taken to Nara hospital this morning in a dying state after being shot by an attacker during a rally. The politician was in the traditionally conservative province to promote his party in the current election campaign that takes place in the country.
Abe was the most influential politician in Japan in the last decade. In addition to being the longest-serving prime minister in the country’s history – with a first term between 2006 and 2007 and a second between 2012 and 2020 – Abe was the architect of the rebirth of Japan after Fukushima. With his heterodox economic policies (baptized as Abenomics), his emphasis on security reforms and international activism, Abe Shinzo attempted to shake up an aging country in deep social crisis. At the same time, during his career as prime minister and even after him, he was one of the politicians who most polarized Japanese public opinion.
Despite the fact that a health problem forced him to leave the government in September 2020, Abe remained active in party politics. Last year, during the consultations to choose a new prime minister, he was one of the architects of the rise of the current premiere Fumio Kishida. Since then he has been Kishida’s main supporter, but also his main rival.
Over the past year, Japanese politics has in fact been characterized by an underground clash between Abe and Kishida. The former premier’s support was crucial for any Japanese government, because the largest group within the PLD – the Liberal Democratic Party, which has a majority in the lower house – had Abe as its point of reference. In fact, the PLD, being a right-wing party, is home to a large current of nationalists and conservatives who until now saw the former premier as their political leader. Kishida, whose personal political leanings are much more moderate, would never have managed to become prime minister without this support.
In the recent political scene, Abe played the role of champion of reforming the country’s defense and security policies. The declared objectives are basically two: reduce military spending to 2% and reform the pacifist constitution. At the moment, the unwritten rule of Japanese policy is that the government should not spend more than 1% on defense, but according to Abe and his supporters this would not be enough in the current uncertain scenario. Doubling the budget, bringing it to 2%, would not only bring new resources to the armed forces, but would also be ideal for meeting NATO parameters, with which Japan is strengthening its strategic alliance.
The amendment to the 1947 Constitution, on the other hand, refers to article 9, according to which Japan renounces the right of belligerence and the possession of armed forces. However, since the 1950s, the country has maintained what is actually a full army with navy and air force, under the name “Self-Defense Forces”. Over the years, various proposals have been circulated on how to modify the Constitution, but the most recent version (and the one most accepted by the population) adopted by Abe is the one that simply adds a paragraph that expressly recognizes the legitimate existence of the Armed Forces. Self defense.
Tetsuya Yamagami, 41, the terrorist who shot Abe this morning, is a former member of the Japanese navy. A circumstance that could suggest a connection with these issues, although at the moment there are no concrete indications about the motive for the attack.
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