Fishermen dealing with a man suspected of a second attack on a Japanese politician in less than a year said on Sunday they were surprised by the lack of security for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
Konishi said fisherman Tsutomu Konishi was watching Kishida at a campaign event at the fishing port when an object flew past the prime minister. A security officer covered the object with a bulletproof briefcase, said Konishi, 41. The fishermen surrounded the attacker.
“I never thought this kind of crime would happen in my hometown, which is a small fishing area,” said 41-year-old Konishi, sipping a can of coffee at the port of Saitozaki on Sunday. “I’m still shocked and stunned.”
The prime minister was unwell but Konishi, like many others in Japan, was on Sunday reflecting on what the country should do to better protect public figures.
“At a time when the serving prime minister of Japan is traveling, perhaps we may need a metal detector,” Konishi said.
Masaaki Nishide, a 55-year-old fisherman from Saikazaki, said most of the people at Saturday’s event were residents and supporters of the local candidate. He said a young man carrying a silver-grey bag was standing outside.
“Everyone here dresses like me, and no one carries a bag; It was only him,” said Nishide, dressed in a sweatsuit and red rubber boots. “If I were in charge of security, I would ask for bag checks.”
After an unsuccessful attack on the prime minister, one fisherman grabs the suspect’s neck from behind, another pushes his head down, and Konishi grabs his leg. They were holding the man down as police officers dragged him to the ground.
The chaotic scene was reminiscent of the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe nine months earlier, also during a campaign tour. Police tightened their security measures after an investigation found lapses in Abe’s security. Abe was assassinated with a homemade gun during a campaign speech. Suspect Tetsuya Yamagami has been charged with murder and several other crimes, including violating gun control laws.
Yamagami told investigators he killed Abe, one of Japan’s most influential and divisive politicians, because the former prime minister had apparent ties to a religious group Yamagami hated. Yamagami said in his statements and social media postings that his mother had donated to the Unification Church which bankrupted his family and ruined his life.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, and with its strict gun control laws, only a small number of gun-related crimes occur in the country annually. Most cases are gang-related, although there has been growing concern about homemade guns and explosives in recent years. There have also been some high-profile cases of random knife attacks on subways and arson attacks.
Several groups of officers have guarded serving prime ministers. Cabinet ministers and former leaders are being watched by fewer officers.
Compared to US elections, political campaigns in Japan often allow spectators to be much closer to the dignitaries. Front row spectators at Kishida’s campaign event were only a short distance away.
Only one person, a police officer, was hurt, having his hand cut by fragments of the device, which did not explode completely. Police arrested Ryuji Nakamura, 24, on suspicion of throwing explosives into a metal tube in Kishida.
Police sent a special anti-explosives team to the suspect’s home in Hyogo Prefecture to search for evidence of bomb-making. There are local elections across the country this month. And Japan is hosting a series of Group of Seven meetings in the run-up to the May 19-21 leaders’ summit in Hiroshima. Diplomats arrive on Sunday for the G-7 foreign ministers’ meeting in Karuizawa.
Public security expert Isao Itabashi said on NHK TV that the attack raised questions about how to conduct an election campaign. He said it is logistically difficult to protect top politicians in campaigns, and it is also difficult to balance tight security with free elections.
Kiyotaka Hamada, 70, a senior member of the local fishing union, said he felt something hit his shoulder as he heard the bang and was running from the scene. The police took away his jacket to see if it had a piece of explosive attached to it.
“I just want to ask the suspect why he had to come here to create trouble,” he said.
For Hamada and other fishermen, there is also concern about the expected loss of income from the days they cannot work while port facilities are closed for the investigation.
“We made a lot of efforts in the whole village to welcome the prime minister when he came here for the first time,” Hamada said. “Now we can’t even go out to sea.”
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)