In response to public and online criticism that the government shouldn’t pay for ceremonies for Japan’s longest-serving but most divisive premier, the Japanese government announced on Friday that it would hold a state funeral for former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on September 27.
Abe, who served as Japan’s prime minister for more than eight years across two terms and was incredibly influential within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) even after leaving office, was fatally shot two weeks ago during a campaign event.
The shooting death of former prime minister Shinzo Abe, the longest-serving leader in modern Japanese history, on Friday, while he was running for a parliamentary seat, shocked a nation where weapons are strictly regulated and political violence is practically unimaginable.
Around five and a half hours after the shooting in the city of Nara, Abe, 67, was declared dead. Police detained a 41-year-old guy after discovering a handmade gun in his possession.
