ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Japanese man sets himself on fire in apparent protest at former PM's state funeral

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks during a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo, Aug. 28, 2020. (Franck Robichon/Pool Photo via AP) Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks during a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo, Aug. 28, 2020. (Franck Robichon/Pool Photo via AP)
Share
TOKYO -

A man set himself on fire near the Japanese prime minister's office on Wednesday in an apparent protest at the government's decision to hold a state funeral for former premier Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated earlier this year, media reported.

The man was taken to hospital suffering burns to his entire body, while a police officer who tried to extinguish the flames was also injured.

The man, in his 70s, was unconscious when first found but later told police that he had deliberately doused himself in oil, media said. A letter about Abe's state funeral and the words "I strongly oppose it," was found nearby.

Police declined to confirm the incident, which took place on what would have been Abe's 68th birthday.

"I have heard that police found a man who had suffered burns near government offices, and I'm aware that police are investigating," chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a news conference.

Abe, Japan's longest serving premier who stepped down in 2020 citing ill health, was gunned down at a campaign rally on July 8. His state funeral is set for Sept. 27, with some 6,000 people from Japan and overseas set to take part.

Opposition to the event has been growing due to revelations after Abe's killing of links between the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), of which he was a powerful member, and the controversial Unification Church. The suspect in Abe's death has said the church bankrupted his mother and he felt the former prime minister supported it.

Links to the Unification Church, founded in South Korea in the 1950s, have grown into a huge problem for current Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and the LDP since they emerged following Abe's killing. The LDP earlier this month said a survey showed nearly half of 379 LDP lawmakers had some form of interaction with the church.

Public sentiment was narrowly in favour of a state funeral at the time it was announced, shortly after Abe's death, but opinion has shifted sharply.

Numerous polls show a majority of Japanese now oppose the ceremony, helping to send Kishida's support plummeting. A poll by the Mainichi Daily conducted at the weekend showed his support at 29%, down six percentage points from late August -- a level that analysts say makes it difficult for a prime minister to have enough support to carry out his agenda.

Support for the LDP fell 6 points to 23%, the Mainichi said.

Kishida has defended his decision repeatedly, but a vast majority of voters remain unconvinced, also questioning the need to hold such an expensive ceremony at a time of growing economic pain for ordinary citizens.

The latest government cost estimate is 1.65 billion yen (US$12 million), which includes security and receptions.

In 2014, two men set themselves on fire in separate incidents in protest at Japan's shift away from postwar pacifism under Abe's administration. One of the men died.

(Reporting by Mariko Katsumura, Kaori Kaneko and Elaine Lies; writing by Elaine Lies; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Richard Pullin)

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.

Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.

The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.

Emergency crews in northern Ontario found the bodies of four people inside a home where a fire broke out Thursday night.

Local Spotlight

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.