introduction
Like the United States and South Korea, Japan is also a country where politicians are prone to assassination, and the most recent one was the assassination in Nara at around 11:30 a.m. on July 8, 2022.
Before Shinzo Abe, there were even more Japanese prime ministers who were assassinated, and even the attack of the prime minister in Japan became a tradition. Here are a few Japanese prime ministers who have been assassinated.
1. Hirofumi Ito
Hirobumi Ito has a very important position in Japan's modern history, he is the founder and promoter of Japan's modernization, and he pushed Japan to become strong, but he is also an important representative of Japanese militarism, supporting Japan's invasion of other countries and slaughtering people in other countries.
In 1909, Ito traveled to northeastern China to negotiate with the Russian finance minister to divide the sphere of influence between Japan and Russia in the Far East.
But at the Harbin railway station, while Ito Hirobumi was inspecting the guard of honor, North Korean patriot Ahn Chong-geun suddenly rushed out and attacked him, firing several shots and killing the important Japanese figure on the spot.
2. Kei Hara
Hara Kei was the 19th Prime Minister of Japan, he broke the politics of the Sacho feudal lord, was the first prime minister of Japan from a civilian background, organized Japan's first political party cabinet, put chains on the military department, and signed the Washington Naval Treaty during his term of office When China was forced to sign the Nine-Power Treaty, Yuan Jing offered some goodwill to China, and also opposed the signing of Article 21, believing that this would stimulate Chinese nationalism, undermine Sino-Japanese relations, and support Sun Yat-sen's revolutionary cause.
It should have done more, and was seen by modern people as an opportunity and the last opportunity for Japan to turn around in the twenties, perhaps to bid Japan farewell to war, but because of its various actions, the army, the common people, the conservative forces, and the aristocratic faction of former political enemies were all disappointed in Hara Kei himself and the cabinet, and finally the conflict intensified, and he was assassinated at Tokyo Station by a railway station employee named Koichi Nakaoka.
3. Yuyuki Kashiguchi
Yuyuki Hamaguchi is the 27th Prime Minister of Japan and is known as the "Lion Prime Minister" and "Wine Hero". After graduating from the University of Tokyo, he was the president of the People's Party at the time, and during his tenure, Japan's first fair general election was held, and the People's Party won a resounding victory.
During his reign, because of the forced implementation of the gold standard and the reduction of military spending by 100 million, and at the same time offended the Japanese military and business circles, he signed the "London Naval Treaty" with foreign countries to limit Japan's armaments, so he was hated by the navy and was assassinated in 1931.
4. Dog breeding
Japan's 29th Prime Minister Inukai Takeshi was also assassinated, this Japanese political giant born in Okayama Prefecture, was born as a journalist in his early years, and later entered the political circles, became a member of the House of Representatives during the Meiji period, and was a veteran figure in Japanese politics, witnessing the changes of the Meiji, Taisho, and Showa eras. He also supported Mr. Sun Yat-sen in establishing the Alliance, and even the name Sun Yat-sen was chosen by him, of course, his purpose was not particularly bright.
However, for Japan, he is indeed an important political figure, and has made indelible contributions to Japan's modernization process, such as protecting the constitution and spending most of his life criticizing feudal politics, and for example, he wants to control the scale of the war of aggression against China, wants to take the Northeast after the September 18 Incident, and advocates disarmament, etc., which caused great dissatisfaction among the military department, and was said to be a Chinese spy, and was finally shot and killed by the militants (military cadets) of the military department (that is, "heavenly punishment").
5, Keisuke Okada
Keisuke Okada, the 31st Prime Minister of Japan, participated in the Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War, and was a senior naval officer. On February 26, 1936, the military ministry launched the "February 26 Mutiny", and Keisuke Okada was assassinated but narrowly escaped, but his cabinet also fell, marking the complete failure of the efforts of the constitutionalists and the navy to control the military department.
The 226 incident became a turning point in Japanese history, and from then on, the Japanese military began to embark on the road of domination.
When we see this, we can't help but ask, why are Japan's political leaders so easily assassinated? It can be said that it is almost commonplace, and the Chinese scholar Ma Guochuan has an explanation for this phenomenon:
"First of all, it is a unique cultural phenomenon that may have something to do with the samurai culture in Japan. Samurai culture influences the way the Japanese think, and they seem to think that if you get rid of this person, the problem will be solved. ”
The frequent assassinations of Japanese prime ministers may not be a simple accident, but are closely linked to Japan's history. Japan's political system has undergone many changes, and the power struggle is fierce, and the prime minister, as the country's top leader, has often become the focus of contention among various political forces. Against this background, many of the assassinations of the prime minister were extreme manifestations of political struggle.
Japan is an island nation with a diverse and unique history and a diverse and unique culture. Looking back at the history of Japan, we can see that the assassination of the prime minister did not exist in isolation. Behind these events, there are multiple factors such as politics, culture, and society in Japan.
Japan's samurai class originated in 646 from the Taika Revolution, which was a centralized state centered on the emperor by imitating China's institutional model.
Although Japan nationalized the land of the common people through centralized power, the central government gradually declined after many years, and the nobles (daimyo) in various parts of Japan gathered a large amount of land and established estates through various means. The manor needed to be protected from robbery, and the Japanese aristocracy began to hire bodyguards, or arm their own family members, domestic servants, and langdang, and these bodyguards later became samurai.
As the number of samurai increased, samurai families began to emerge and grew, and then various events continued to strengthen themselves and plunder political power.
Finally, in 1192, after a long period of war and strife, it finally ushered in a turning point. The establishment of the Kamakura shogunate in the seaside city of Kamakura by the military commander Minamoto Yoritomo became the beginning of the shogunate regime in Japan and also announced the official entry of the samurai class into the historical stage of Japan.
This changed the course of Japan's history and shaped its cultural traditions. Since then, the samurai class has become the backbone of Japanese society, and their spirit and beliefs have become the core of Japanese culture.
As the number of samurai increased, the requirements for samurai in society also increased, and many norms of samurai were gradually formed.
From the history of the formation of the samurai, it can be seen that the spirit of bushido was originally loyal to the lord of the manor or to the individual or family of the separatist power, rather than to the state, which is a very obvious feudal system, and the so-called vassals of my vassals are not my vassals. In modern times, after the Meiji Restoration, the Japanese rulers tried to reverse the samurai spirit into loyalty to the country rather than to the individual, although they also achieved great results, such as the so-called bushido, but the frequent occurrence of the next Keshang incident shows that loyalty to the small community is still the reality that the Japanese bushido spirit is difficult to change, and it is always a small family spirit.
The emphasis on the concepts of loyalty and honor has also influenced the phenomenon of assassination of prime ministers to a certain extent. In Japanese tradition, loyalty is seen as a noble quality, and the words and deeds of the prime minister, as the representative of the country, are often the focus of public attention. When the Prime Minister's decisions or actions are deemed to be contrary to the interests of the country or the expectations of the people, extreme individuals or groups may resort to extreme measures to express dissatisfaction or protest.
"There is nothing new under the sun. "All the incomprehensible events of modern times can actually be answered from history.
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