Farewell to Japan’s divisive Abe
WITH flowers, prayers and a 19-gun salute, Japan honoured slain former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe yesterday at the first state funeral for a former premier in 55 years – a ceremony that has become as controversial as he was in life.
Abe’s ashes were carried into the Nippon Budokan Hall in Tokyo by his widow, Akie, to music from a military band and the booms of the honour-guard salute. Thousands of mourners flooded to designated spots near the venue from early morning to pay their last respects. In hours, about 10 000 people had laid flowers, with more waiting in three-hour long queues.
Abe’s killing at a July 8 campaign rally set off a flood of revelations about ties between lawmakers in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party he once ran and the Unification Church, which critics call a cult, sparking a backlash against current premier Fumio Kishida.
With his support ratings dragged to their lowest ever by the controversy, Kishida has apologised and vowed to cut party ties to the church.
But opposition to honouring Abe with a state funeral, the first since 1967, has persisted, fed by an $11.5-million (about R206m) price tag to be borne by the state at a time of economic pain for ordinary citizens. In one part of downtown Tokyo, protesters waved signs and chanted “No state funeral” to the tune of a guitar.
Inside the Budokan, better known as a concert venue, a moment of silence was followed by a retrospective of Abe’s political life and speeches by leading ruling party figures, including Kishida and Yoshihide Suga, Abe’s successor and Kishida’s predecessor as prime minister. Suga noted many young people had showed up to offer flowers. “You always said you wanted to make Japan better, that you wanted young people to have hope and pride,” Suga said, his voice trembling. Abe’s widow wiped away tears as Suga spoke.
Japan’s longest-serving prime minister was a divisive figure dogged by scandals. An unapologetic nationalist, Abe pushed the country toward a muscular defence posture that many now see as prescient amid growing concern about China, but others criticised as too hawkish.
About 4 300 people attended the funeral ceremony itself, along with at least 48 current or former government figures, including US Vice-President Kamala Harris and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Russia’s ambassador to Japan, Mikhail Galuzin, also attended.
About 20 000 police were deployed, nearby roads were closed and some schools shut as Japan sought to avoid the security blunders that led to Abe’s shooting with a homemade gun by a suspect who, police say, accused the Unification Church of impoverishing his family.