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WORLD NEWS Saturday 9 July 2022
Japan’s tight gun laws add to shock over Abe’s assassination

By YURI KAGEYAMA relatively light security is
Associated Press the norm, even for former
TOKYO (AP) — The assassi- prime ministers.
nation of former Prime Min- The last high-profile shoot-
ister Shinzo Abe in broad ing occurred in 2019, when
daylight Friday shocked a former gang member
a world that has come to was shot at a karaoke ven-
associate Japan with rela- ue in Tokyo.
tively low crime and strict Under Japanese law, pos-
gun control. session of firearms is illegal
Japan’s longest-serving without a special license.
prime minister, Abe was Importing them is also ille-
shot in the back while cam- gal. The same rules apply
paigning in the city of Nara to some kinds of knives and
for parliamentary candi- certain other weapons, like
dates. He died at a hos- crossbows.
pital, two days before the People who wish to own
election. firearms must go through
The suspect apparently a stringent background
circumvented the nation’s check, including clear-
ultra-tight gun regulations ance by a doctor, and
by building his own weap- declare information about
on. Police said the 15-inch family members. They must
(40-centimeter) device was also pass tests to show they
obviously homemade, and know how to use guns cor-
one expert compared it to rectly. Those who pass and
a muzzle-loading gun. Au- purchase a weapon must
thorities confiscated similar Tetsuya Yamagami, center, holding a weapon, is detained near the site of gunshots in Nara, also buy a special locking
western Japan Friday, July 8, 2022.
weapons when they raided Associated Press system for it at the same
the suspect’s nearby one- time.
room apartment. clubs, and Japanese po- gang-related. “This serves as a wake-up Passing those hurdles will
The motive of the man, lice are armed, but gun The densely populated call that gun violence can allow a license holder to
who was taken into custo- ownership rights have been capital of Tokyo had zero happen in Japan, and se- shoot at clay targets. Hunt-
dy at the scene, remained a distant issue for decades. gun incidents, injuries or curity to protect Japanese ing requires an additional
unclear. Even police rarely resort to deaths during that same politicians must be re-ex- license.
Fatal gun violence is virtual- firing their pistols. year, although 61 guns amined,” Kawamoto said. The weapon used in the at-
ly unheard of in Japan, and With a population of 125 were seized there. “To assume this kind of at- tack on Abe was probably
most Japanese go through million, the country had “Japanese people are in a tack will never happen a “craft-made” firearm,
life without ever handling, just 10 gun-related criminal state of shock,” said Shiro would be a big mistake.” according to N.R. Jenzen-
or even seeing, a real gun. cases last year, resulting in Kawamoto, professor at Abe’s security team may Jones, the director of Ar-
Stabbings are more com- a single death and four in- the College of Risk Man- face serious questions. But mament Research Servic-
mon in killings. juries, according to police. agement at Nihon Univer- because such attacks are es, a specialist arms investi-
Major universities have rifle Eight of those cases were sity in Tokyo. extraordinary in Japan, gations firm.q

EU, Morocco renew migration deal

after Spanish border deaths

By RENATA BRITO and TARIK sub-Saharan migrants and sion said it would enhance
EL-BARAKAH asylum-seekers attempted police cooperation with
Associated Press to storm through a border Morocco, including with
RABAT, Morocco (AP) — post and scale a border joint investigations.
The European Commission fence into Melilla. In addi- Mustafa Baitas, a spokes-
vowed Friday to step up its tion to the deaths, some man for the Moroccan gov-
work with Morocco to fight 200 Moroccan and Spanish ernment, said Thursday the
human smugglers who are law enforcement officers events at the Nador-Mellila
using “new, extremely vio- and more than 70 civilians border were “planned and
lent methods” — a move were injured. orchestrated” in a way that Riot police officers cordon off the area after migrants arrive on
that comes two weeks af- “We have discussed how was not typical of other at- Spanish soil and crossing the fences separating the Spanish
ter 23 people died at the we can further cooperate tempts to storm the border enclave of Melilla from Morocco in Melilla, Spain, Friday, June
border between Morocco on fighting the smugglers, into Spain. 24, 2022. Associated Press
and the Spanish enclave preventing such violent At the time, Moroccan au-
of Melilla. EU Commissioner and dangerous situation as thorities said the migrants use of force. Morocco’s Hu- the fact-finding commis-
for Home Affairs Ylva Jo- we saw two weeks ago,” had died as a result of a man Rights Association says sion set up by the Moroc-
hansson and Spanish In- Johansson said in a video stampede. But several hu- 27 migrants died, four more can National Human Rights
terior Minister Fernando message after the meet- man rights organizations than Morrocan authorities Council,” the EU Commis-
Grande-Marlaska met with ing. There were no further have called for an indepen- have reported. Many of the sion statement said. Span-
Morocco’s Interior Minister details on what exactly the dent investigation into the victims were believed to be ish prosecutors also an-
Abdelouafi Laftit in Rabat new, violent methods be- deaths and condemned Sudanese, it tweeted. nounced last week they
to discuss the events of ing used by smugglers were authorities on both sides “The Commissioner and the had launched an investi-
June 24, when hundreds of but the European Commis- of the border for excessive two ministers welcomed gation into June 24. q