Japanese govt comments as Abe suspect charged

Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said on Friday that any act of violence during an election campaign is unforgivable under democracy as Japanese prosecutors formally charged the suspect in the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with murder.

The suspect, Tetsuya Yamagami, was arrested immediately after allegedly shooting Abe with a homemade gun as the former leader was making a campaign speech in July outside a train station in Nara in western Japan. Matsuno said that Japan, which will be the host of Group of Seven Summit in May, will gear up its security program with more active involvement of the National Policy Agency, especially when events take place in the countryside.