TOKYO (REUTERS, AFP) – Mourners streamed into a temple in Tokyo to honour Japan’s slain former premier Shinzo Abe on Monday (July 11), with hundreds attending a private wake late in the day and a private funeral scheduled for Tuesday (July 12).
Among those who came to the wake at Zojo-ji temple were Japan’s current Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, and US Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel.
There were also former prime ministers and representatives of the emperor.
Then, there was Mr Abe’s 60-year-old wife, Akie, who was seen crying, her eyes shut tight, as she sat in the front seat of the hearse that carried her husband’s body to the temple.
A line of black sedan cars, including several with diplomatic plates, dropped off mourners, some mopping their brows as they queued beneath the steps leading to the temple in the sultry heat.
A part of the temple – the main centre of worship for the Jodo-shu Chinzei sect Buddhism in the Kanto region of eastern Japan – was set aside where members of the public could light incense sticks, lay flowers and pay their last respects.
“I feel so sad that a prime minister who dedicated himself for Japan died this way,” said Mr Naoya Okamoto, a 28-year old who works in construction. “He was the prime minister who demonstrated to the world a strong Japan once again.”
Inside the temple, a “tsuya” – a ceremony to send off the dead – was performed.
Prayers were recited, and close family and guests made incense offerings.
Ms Yellen, in Japan to discuss economic sanctions on Russia, was among those who placed incense in Mr Abe’s honour.
She walked into the temple amid a throng of mourners mostly dressed in black suits and ties.
“There is a profound sense of sorrow at his loss,” Ms Yellen told reporters outside the temple.
“Prime Minister Abe was a visionary leader, and he strengthened Japan. I know that his legacy will live on and result in a more prosperous Japan,” she added.
A funeral for Mr Abe, who resigned in 2020 and was Japan’s longest-serving premier, is scheduled for Tuesday (July 12) for his political colleagues.
Larger ceremonies are expected at a later date in Tokyo and Mr Abe’s hometown in Yamaguchi prefecture. Plans for a state funeral have not been announced.
Mr Abe’s shooting shocked a nation where political violence and gun crime are rare.
The suspected killer, identified by police as 41-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami, believed Mr Abe had promoted a religious group to which his mother made a “huge donation”.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an unscheduled trip to Tokyo earlier in the day to offer condolences on behalf of President Joe Biden.
Washington’s top diplomat hailed Mr Abe as a “man of vision”.
“I shared with our Japanese colleagues the sense of loss, the sense of shock that we all feel – connected people feel – at this horrific tragedy,” said Mr Blinken.
“But mostly, I came at the president’s behest because more than allies, we’re friends, and when a friend is hurting, other friends show up,” he added.
Mr Abe “did more than anyone to elevate the relationship between the United States and Japan to new heights”, said Mr Blinken.
“We will do everything we can to help our friends carry the burden of this loss,” he said.
He called Mr Abe “a man of vision with the ability to realise that vision”.
He handed Mr Kishida letters from Mr Biden for Mr Abe’s family.
The Japanese government announced on Monday it would honour Mr Abe with the nation’s highest decoration, the Collar of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum, making him the fourth prime minister of post-war Japan to receive the honour.
Around the region, tributes for Mr Abe have flowed.
There were condolence messages at the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association office in Taipei, while Taiwanese flags at government buildings and public schools flew at half-staff.
In Australia, the Sydney Opera House lit up to resemble the Japanese flag.
South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin visited a memorial for Mr Abe on Monday arranged by the Japanese Embassy in Seoul.
