Global Courant 2023-04-16 17:11:57
WAKAYAMA, Japan (AP) — Once Tsutomu Konishi noticed an object flying over his head and landed nearby Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at a campaign event in this fishing port, he and a group of other fishermen swarmed the man whom officials later identified as a suspect in the attack.
While a security guard covered the object with a bulletproof briefcase, one of the fishermen grabbed the man from behind by the neck, another pushed his head down and Konishi clung to his leg. They held the man down while policemen pulled him to the ground.
Moments later on Saturday there was an explosion, the crowd fled in panic as officers dragged away the suspect, a man in a silver backpack.
The team effort of the fishermen in this tight-knit community has caused quite a stir on Japanese social media, leading many to wonder if they were plainclothes police officers.
Senior members of the fishing community say they and the police were fully prepared to welcome the prime minister on his first visit to the area, but there has been criticism from some who say security measures could have been stricter, especially after the national debate that followed the assassination of former leader Shinzo Abe last July.
“I never thought a crime like this would ever happen in my hometown, which is a pretty small fishing area,” Konishi, 41, said in an interview on Sunday as he sipped a jug of coffee in the port of Saikazaki. day off while police continued their investigation at the port facility. “I’m still shocked and stunned,” he said of what happened to Kishida.
Perfect security can be difficult, but “at a time when Japan’s serving prime minister was visiting, we might have needed a metal detector,” Konishi said.
Police arrested 24-year-old Ryuji Nakamura on suspicion of throwing a metal tube explosive at Kishida.
A Wakayama Prefectural Police detective, speaking on condition of anonymity due to department rules, said Kishida had been safely evacuated before the explosion. Only one person, a police officer, was injured, his arm severed from fragments of the possible tube bomb, which failed to fully detonate.
Story continues
Police sent a special explosives counter team to the suspect’s home in Hyogo Prefecture to search for evidence of bomb-making. Officials have shown a sense of urgency to demonstrate their commitment to security ahead of nationwide local elections later this month. Japan is also hosting a series of Group of Seven meetings ahead of the May 19-21 leadership summit in Hiroshima. Diplomats arrived on Sunday for the meeting of G-7 foreign ministers in Karuizawa.
Public security expert Isao Itabashi said on NHK TV that the latest attack should be taken seriously because the loss of the prime minister could cripple the country’s administrative functions and “potentially erode international confidence in Japan “.
Itabashi also said the attack raised questions about how election campaigns should be conducted. Monitoring top politicians in campaigns is logistically difficult, and balancing tight security with free elections is also difficult, he said.
Masaki Nishide, a 55-year-old fisherman from Saikazaki, said most of the people at Saturday’s event were residents and supporters of the local candidate. He said the young man with the silver backpack stood out.
“People here all dress like me, and no one wears a backpack; it was just him,” said Nishide, dressed in a tracksuit and red rubber boots. “If I was in charge of security, I would have asked for a bag check.”
Kiyotaka Hamada, 70, a senior member of the local fishermen’s association, said he felt something against his shoulder just as he heard the bang and ran away. The police took his jacket to see if he had been hit by a possible fragment of the explosive device. “I just want to ask the suspect why he had to come here to cause trouble,” he said.
Hamada and other fishermen are also concerned about the expected loss of income on the days they are unable to work while port facilities are closed for the investigation.
“We made such an effort throughout the village to welcome the prime minister here on his first ever visit,” said Hamada. “Now we can’t even go out to sea.”
