The terrorist who threw explosives at Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Wakayama, Japan, was reportedly dissatisfied with Japan’s electoral system. As the candidacy itself was impossible due to lack of nomination qualifications, local media in Japan analyzed that the possibility that complaints about this could have been carried out as a crime cannot be ruled out.
Ryuji Kimura (24), an unemployed person from Kawanishi City, Hyogo Prefecture, who was arrested on charges of obstruction of business, filed a lawsuit for damages against the state in the Kobe District Court in July of last year, saying that it was unfair that he could not run for the House of Councillors election due to reasons such as age. The Yomiuri Shimbun reported on the 18th that the claim was dismissed after filing.
According to litigation records obtained by Yomiuri, Kimura filed a lawsuit against the Kobeji Law in June of last year to the effect that the state’s restrictions on the qualifications of candidates for election were unconstitutional.
The purpose of the lawsuit is that he tried to run for the upper house (Senate) election, where votes were counted on July 10 last year, but he did not meet the criteria for the right to be elected (30 years old or older) under the Public Official Election Act, and he was unable to prepare a deposit of 3 million yen (approximately 30 million won). It was argued that such a provision violated the Constitution, which regulates equality under the law.
Kimura demanded damages of 100,000 yen (approximately 1 million won) from the state, claiming that he suffered mental pain due to the restrictions on his candidacy. She proceeded with a ‘lawsuit alone’ without appointing a lawyer who is a legal representative.
In November of last year, the first trial court dismissed the claim, saying that the age requirements and the deposit system under the Public Official Election Act were reasonable. Dissatisfied with the ruling, suspect Kimura appealed to the Osaka High Court, and a verdict was scheduled for May this year.
Yomiuri reported that Kimura “appears to have had strong dissatisfaction with the electoral system.” It is probable that the Kimura suspect committed a terrorist attack targeting Prime Minister Kishida out of dissatisfaction with the current election system, while maintaining the right to remain silent throughout the investigative agency’s investigation and the motive and circumstances of the crime are not clearly revealed.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.