Days after the report of a shooter in the U.S, local media including national broadcaster NHK and the Kyodo news agency reported that former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe was shot and he is currently in a very critical condition battling life and death. While reasons for the shooting remain unknown, many have come out to say a possible reason Shinzo Abe was shot is because he might have offended the shooter during his reign as the Japan prime minister.
The former prime minister is currently in “cardiorespiratory arrest”, a term often used in Japan before a feared death can be officially confirmed by a coroner.
The attack is a shock to the people of Japan as the country is famous for its low level of violent crime and tough gun laws. 67-year-old Abe was delivering a speech at an event ahead of Sunday’s upper house elections, with heavy security present, but spectators were able to approach him easily. Footage from the scene showed him standing on a stage when a loud blast is heard and smoke is visible in the air.
A man is then seen being tackled to the ground by security. A young lady repeating the NHK reporters said: “He was giving a speech and a man came from behind.” “The first shot sounded like a toy. He didn’t fall and there was a large bang. The second shot was more visible, you could see the spark and smoke,” she added. “After the second shot, people surrounded him and gave him a cardiac massage.”
An official at Nara Medical University hospital told AFP: “What we can share now is that his transfer here has been completed,” declining to comment on the former leader’s status. “We are all saddened and shocked by the shooting of former prime minister Abe Shinzo,” US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel said in a statement. “The US government and American people are praying for the well-being of Abe-san, his family, and people of Japan.”
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s special advisor Gen Nakatani speaking on the tragic event said: “terror or violence can never be tolerated.” Abe was Japan’s longest-serving prime minister, held office in 2006 for one year and again from 2012 to 2020, when he was forced to step down due to his bowel condition ulcerative colitis.
In Japan, obtaining a licenced gun is a long and complicated process even for her citizens, who must first get a recommendation from a shooting association and then undergo strict police checks. This is likely why the killer had to use a locally-made gun. Questions now are why the killer did what he did.
Politics is generally regarded as a dirty game which means its players will be seen as being dirty. Some said maybe during the reign of Shinzo Abe he had stepped on toes and the shooter might just be one of the people who felt offended. Investigations are currently ongoing as the shooter is in police custody. More information about the reason for the shooting will be made known as police release more information about it. He, however has been confirmed dead.