NAGASAKI MAYOR'S MURDER: SHARP REACTIONS; MEDIA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TOKYO 001714

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV JA
SUBJECT: NAGASAKI MAYOR'S MURDER: SHARP REACTIONS; MEDIA
SPECULATES ON POLITICAL MOTIVES



1. (SBU) Summary. Japan's leaders and media characterized
the April 17 assassination of three-term Nagasaki Mayor Itcho
Ito in the midst of his reelection campaign as a threat to
Japan's political system. Most reports highlighted PM Abe's
description of the killing as a "challenge to democracy."
Several newspapers drew parallels to previous attacks on
politicians, many involving political motives. Kyodo News
Service was careful to point out that the jury is still out
on the reasons for this particular attack. The killer,
Tetsuya Shiroo, is a ranking member of a small criminal gang
with ties to Japan's largest organized crime syndicate. He
is reported to have filed numerous complaints with the city
after his vehicle was damaged at a municipal construction
site in 2003. Press reports also speculate that Shiroo's
gang may have been involved in trying to gain bids on city
construction projects. According to Japan's election laws,
any potential replacement candidate for Mayor Ito must file
by 5:00 p.m. on April 19 in order to stand for election on
April 22. Otherwise, the mayoral race will become a contest
between two unknown independents and a former Communist Party
city assembly member. End Summary.


2. (SBU) The Japanese media gave wide coverage on April 18 to
the shooting of Nagasaki Mayor Itcho Ito a day earlier,
focusing on the organized crime affiliation of his killer and
the threat to the Japanese political system that the shooting
represents. Mayor Ito, 61, was shot twice in the back at
close range on the evening of April 17, in what is being
called an "ambush" shooting at the entrance of his reelection
campaign office, beside Nagasaki's central train station. He
died in the early hours of April 18. The National Police
Agency announced shortly thereafter that they would tighten
security for all candidates in the April 22 unified local
elections.


3. (SBU) An Asahi report, noting that the killing took place
less than one week before the April 22 elections, called the
shooting a "threat to Japanese politics," and compared it to
the stabbing of Japan Socialist Party Chairman Asanuma in the
middle of a campaign speech in 1960. The Yomiuri Shimbun
compared the shooting to attacks by right-wing extremists on
ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) politicians Shin
Kanemaru and Koichi Kato. The media are also drawing
parallels with the 1990 shooting of Nagasaki Mayor Motoshima,
noting that the attack on Motoshima was clearly the result of
political motives, namely, as a reaction to Motoshima's
statements assigning war guilt to Emperor Hirohito.


4. (SBU) The newspapers were full of comments from
politicians of all political parties decrying the attack as
an attack on the political system. Prime Minister Abe called
the attack a "challenge to democracy." LDP Secretary General
Hidenao Nakagawa promised to "resolutely defend freedom of
political thought." Former LDP Secretary General Koichi
Kato, whose home was burned down by a member of a right-wing
nationalist organization in August 2006, was quoted at length
in several different newspapers warning against allowing
these sorts of attacks to keep politicians from voicing their
opinions. Defense Minister Fumio Kyuma elevated the rhetoric
a step further, calling the attack a "terrorist incident."
Kyuma, who represents Nagasaki in the Lower House, is
reported to have been close to Mayor Ito.


5. (SBU) Kyodo News Service took a more neutral tone, saying
it is too early to know whether or not there were political
motives behind the shooting. The killer, Tetsuya Shiroo, 59,
is described as a leading member of the Suishin-kai organized
crime family, a small group affiliated with Yamaguchi-gumi,
Japan's largest organized crime syndicate. In statements to
the police, Shiroo is said to have confessed to shooting
Mayor Ito over a dispute with the city concerning bids on
public works projects. Kyodo cites statements from
acquaintances of Shiroo claiming that he had also filed
complaints with the city in 2003 over damage sustained to his
vehicle at a municipal construction site. The Kyodo report
said Shiroo had visited the city office more than 30 times
since 2003 demanding compensation.


TOKYO 00001714 002 OF 002



6. (SBU) There is much speculation in the press on the LDP's
next steps for the Nagasaki mayoral race on April 22.
According to Japan's elections law, a candidate who dies
during the campaign period can be replaced up to three days
prior to the election, providing there are more than two
candidates. In the Nagasaki mayoral race, a Japan Communist
Party (JCP) candidate and two independents are already
registered, so any replacement candidate for Ito must file by
5:00 p.m. on April 19. Ito, who was known as a strong
antinuclear advocate and opponent of U.S. Navy ship visits,
was seeking his fourth term. He was running without party
affiliation. Defense Minister Kyuma, quoted in an Asahi
article, predicted that the JCP candidate, Seiichi Yamamoto,
71, a former city assemblyman, is certain to beat the two
independent candidates, a university lecturer and
stay-at-home mother.


7. (SBU) According to reporting from Consulate Fukuoka, the
shooting has created political chaos in Nagasaki. A local
LDP chapter official told the Consulate that Defense Minister
Kyuma would travel to Nagasaki on April 18 to meet with
senior local leaders to discuss possible candidates. The LDP
will need to work with the opposition Democratic Party of
Japan (DPJ) and local labor unions to find a consensus
candidate, according to the LDP official. Wire services
reported late in the day on April 18 that Ito's son-in-law,
Makoto Yokoo, a reporter for the Nishi Nihon Shimbun, would
shortly announce his candidacy.
SCHIEFFER