Japan's ruling party secures strong win after Shinzo Abe assassination

Japans ruling party and partners won enough votes to form a supermajority in an upper house election held just days after the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe local media said MondayThe expremiers ruling Liberal Democratic Party LDP and its coalition partner Komeito strengthened their hold by winning more than 75 of the 125 upper house seats up for grabs according to national news outletsThe parties are part of what is now a twothirds supermajority willing to amend the countrys pacifist constitution thereby strengthening its military role on the global stage a longtime Abe goalEven before the former prime ministers murder the LDP and Komeito were expected to cement their majority though the final number of seats will be scrutinised for signs of whether the attack bolstered support for themI think it is significant we were able to complete the elections Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told NHK adding he wants to tackle the pandemic Ukrainerelated issues and inflationKishida had insisted the election proceed despite the assassination saying we must never allow violence to suppress speechConceding defeat Kenta Izumi leader of the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party which was projected to have lost several seats said it was clear voters did not want to switch from the LDP and entrust us with running the government according to Kyodo NewsAlso Read Shinzo Abe assassination Lesserknown facts about former Japanese PMDespite the murder turnout for the election remained low at only 52 percent national outlets reportedAbe was gunned down at close range on Friday in the western region of Nara and died of blood loss at a local hospital His body was brought to his family home in Tokyo on SaturdayThe assassination rattled the nation and sent shockwaves around the world prompting an outpouring of sympathy even from nations with which the hawkish Abe had sometimes difficult relations such as China and South KoreaThe man accused of his murder 41yearold Tetsuya Yamagami is in custody and has told investigators he targeted Abe because he believed the politician was linked to an unnamed organisationLocal media have described the organisation as religious and said Yamagamis family had suffered financial trouble as a result of his mothers donations to the groupHe also reportedly visited the western region of Okayama on Thursday with the intent of killing Abe at a different event but backed out because participants had to submit their names and addressesAdditionally Yamagami admitted to police to testfiring guns at a facility connected to the religious group beforehand according to media No bigger regret With little violent crime and tough gun laws security at Japanese campaign events can be relaxed though in the wake of Abes murder measures were beefed up for Kishidas remaining appearancesSecurity at polling stations on Sunday remained normal however with 79yearold Takao Sueki saying he was voting with an eye on international instability including Russias invasion of UkraineWatching the world now I think every day about how Japan will manage with the situation he told AFPThis is a democratic country and I despise the use of violence to eliminate someone he added when asked about Abes murderI strongly believe that if people have disagreements they should dispute them with dialoguePolice have promised a thorough investigation into what the head of the Nara regional police called problems with guarding and safety measures for AbeIn all the years since I became a police officer in 1995 there is no greater remorse no bigger regret than this chief Tomoaki Onizuka tearfully told reporters on Saturday evening Wake funeral planned Abes office told AFP that a wake would be held on Monday night with a funeral for family and close friends only on Tuesday Local media said both were expected to be held at Tokyos Zojoji TempleUS Secretary of State Antony Blinken who was in Asia for meetings arrived in Tokyo on Monday to see Kishida and offer condolences in personAbe was the scion of a political family and became the countrys youngest postwar prime minister when he took power for the first time in 2006 aged 52His hawkish nationalist views were divisive particularly his desire to reform Japans pacifist constitution to recognise the countrys military and he weathered a series of scandals including allegations of cronyismBut he was lauded by others for his economic strategy dubbed Abenomics and his efforts to put Japan firmly on the world stage including by cultivating close ties with Bidens predecessor Donald TrumpKishida 64 was once described as among Abes favoured successors and holds a solid majority in parliament with KomeitoBut he faces significant policy headwinds including rising prices and energy shortages particularly after an early summer heatwave that led to a power crunchKishida is expected to reshuffle his cabinet in the coming monthsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated 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