Japan polarized by Abe state funeral

Akie Abe, center, wife of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, carries her husband's urn, as she follows Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida while leaving the state funeral for Abe at Nippon Budokan Hall, in Tokyo, Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2022. ((Kyodo News via AP)
Akie Abe, center, wife of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, carries her husband's urn, as she follows Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida while leaving the state funeral for Abe at Nippon Budokan Hall, in Tokyo, Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2022. ((Kyodo News via AP)


TOKYO -- Japan's assassinated hawkish former leader, Shinzo Abe, was given a rare state funeral Tuesday that was full of military pomp and surrounded by throngs of mourners as well as by widespread protests, with thousands taking to the streets in opposition.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the publicly financed ceremony was a well-deserved honor for Japan's longest-serving modern political leader, but it has deeply split public opinion.

The event was attended by U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, Japanese Crown Prince Akishino and other foreign and Japanese dignitaries.

It began with Abe's widow, Akie Abe, dressed in a black formal kimono, walking slowly behind Kishida into the funeral venue while carrying an urn in a wooden box wrapped in a purple cloth with gold stripes. Soldiers in white uniforms took Abe's ashes and placed them on a pedestal.


Attendants stood while a military band played the Kimigayo national anthem, then observed a moment of silence before a video was shown praising Abe's life in politics.

Kishida, in a 12-minute eulogy, praised Abe as a politician with a clear vision for post-World War II economic growth who promoted national security, the development of Japan and the world and a "free and open Indo-Pacific" as a counter to China's rise.

"You were a person who should have lived much longer," Kishida said as he looked up at an enlarged photo of Abe. "I had a firm belief that you would contribute as a compass showing the future direction of Japan and the rest of the world for 10 or 20 more years."

Kishida said Abe will be remembered not just as the nation's longest-serving leader but for what he achieved and he pledged to carry on Abe's policies.


Abe was cremated in July days after he was assassinated while giving a campaign speech on a street in Nara, a city in western Japan.

Tokyo was under high security for the state funeral, especially near the venue, the Budokan martial arts hall.

At a protest in downtown Tokyo, thousands of people marched toward the hall, some banging drums and many shouting or holding banners and signs stating their opposition.


"Shinzo Abe has not done a single thing for regular people," participant Kaoru Mano said.

Japan's main political opposition parties boycotted the funeral, which critics say was a reminder of how prewar imperialist governments used state funerals to fan nationalism.

The government maintains that the ceremony was not meant to force anyone to honor Abe. But the decision to give him the rare honor, which was made without parliamentary debate or approval, the high cost and other controversies have led to anger about the event.

Outside the Budokan hall, thousands of people lined up for several blocks to lay flowers in a nearby park.


In what some see as an attempt to further justify the honor for Abe, Kishida has held meetings this week with visiting foreign leaders in what he calls "funeral diplomacy." The talks are meant to strengthen ties as Japan faces regional and global challenges, including threats from China, Russia and North Korea.

He was to meet about 40 foreign leaders through today, though no Group of Seven leaders are attending.

Information for this article was contributed by Chisato Tanaka, Yuri Kageyama and Chris Megerian of The Associated Press.

  photo  Police officers surround protesters against a state funeral for Japan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in Tokyo Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2022. A tense Japan prepared Tuesday for the rare and controversial state funeral for assassinated Abe, the longest-serving leader in his nation's modern history and one of the most divisive. (Minoru Iwasaki/Kyodo News via AP)
 
 



 Gallery: Funeral for Japan's Shinzo Abe



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