New Delhi: A suspect, a 24-year old male, has been taken to the police station for further enquiry over a ‘smoke bomb’ attack on Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Saturday morning, according to The Japan Times. Kishida reportedly escaped unhurt and was evacuated.
The attack on Kishida, who was on a campaign trail at the Saikazaki Port in Wakayama Prefecture, according to various news agencies, comes within a year of the assassination of his predecessor and the country’s longest serving PM, Shinzo Abe.
An explosion occurred right before Kishida’s speech, where he was rooting for the Liberal Democratic Party’s (LDP) candidate for a local election. Local news TV channel NHK reported that some of the witnesses saw something being thrown at him followed by an explosion.
Almost an hour before the attack happened (at 11.25 am local time), Kishida had posted on Twitter, asking people to ‘clearly express their thoughts’.
The English translation of his tweet read, “We are now holding elections, the most important part of democracy for our country. I have to ask each and every one of you, who are the main players in this country, to clearly show your thoughts.
“With that thought in mind, I continue to stand on the stage of street speeches. I am determined to carry this important election through to the end, working together with the people.”
いま私たちは、私たちの国にとって民主主義にとって最も大切である選挙を行っています。この国の主役である皆さん1人1人の思いをしっかり示して頂かなければなりません。
その思いで私は街頭演説の場に立ち続けます。
この大切な選挙を、ぜひ国民の皆さんと力を合わせて、最後までやり通す覚悟です。 pic.twitter.com/ALbamNBZfQ
— 岸田文雄 (@kishida230) April 15, 2023
Though Japan has strict gun-control laws, the country has witnessed politically charged incidents such as this and Abe’s assassination, albeit with less sophisticated weapons.
During Abe’s assassination, the attacker had used a homemade gun and this time around, Kishida was attacked by what seemed like a ‘pipe-like’ object.
Campaign unchanged
Kishida was attacked in Wakayama at around 11.25 am local time, however, the PM continued his rally in the Prefecture, according to The Japan Times.
He finished his speech at the Wakayama station at about 1 pm and is expected to speak in the afternoon at the Urayasu and Ichikawa in Chiba Prefecture.
“I would like to express my sincere respect for the courage to bear the brunt immediately after the situation. I believe that freedom and democracy can be protected by a strong will that does not yield to violence, and I intend to fight this election”, said the LDP’s Tuji Kiyoto, member of the Japanese Parliament from Tokyo 2nd ward.
Later in the day, LDP Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi also condemned the incident. According to one report, he had spoken to Kishida after the incident.
“It is extremely regrettable that such an incident took place during an election which is the foundation of democracy. I strongly condemn it,” he was quoted by the Japanese press as saying.
(Edited by Smriti Sinha)
