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The Japanese government announced on Friday that the state funeral for former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will be held on September 27, amid street protests and criticism on social media that the state should not fund ceremonies for Japan’s longest-serving prime minister.
Abe, who was Japan’s longest-serving prime minister and held sway in the Liberal Democratic Party even after leaving office, was shot two weeks ago during a political campaign.
The government decided that a state funeral would be held on September 27 at the Nippon Budokan indoor arena in central Tokyo, according to Reuters.
“We decided this, as stated before, because Abe was the longest-serving prime minister, during which he demonstrated leadership skills unlike others and bore great responsibility in solving a number of serious domestic and international problems.”the chief cabinet secretary said at a press conference on Friday.
The funeral will be fully paid for from the state budget reserve.
The last state funeral of a former prime minister that was paid for entirely with state money was in 1967, and funerals thereafter were partly paid for by the state and partly by the PLD.
The current plan is causing problems, with hundreds of people recently gathering outside the prime minister’s office in Tokyo to protest the decision.
Only 49 percent supported the idea of a state funeral in a recent public opinion poll by Japan’s public broadcaster NHK.
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