Nagasaki Mayor Itoh dies after being shot

Nagasaki City Mayor Itoh Iccho was shot by a gangster in Nagasaki City at around 7:50 p.m. on April 17. He died at a hospital before dawn on April 18.

   Immediately after the incident, Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo issued the following statement:

   At the news that Nagasaki City Mayor Itoh Iccho was shot during his mayoral election campaign and is now in a critical condition, I express my severe condemnation of the person who committed this dreadful act.

   This act is a violent attack against freedom and democracy in Japan and must not be condoned.

   Sincerely wishing for Mayor Itoh’s recovery, I strongly urge the authorities concerned to thoroughly investigate this incident and take the necessary steps to effectively prevent such assassination attempts from recurring.

- Akahata, April 18, 2007