Minister Yasuhiro Hanashi presented his resignation letter to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Friday.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida He postponed his departure for three summits in Southeast Asia to dismiss and replace the justice minister, who was widely criticized for his impromptu remarks on approving the death penalty.
Justice Minister Yasuhiro Hanashi told reporters on Friday that he submitted his resignation to Kishida two days after he said he only made the noon news when he used the “hanko” stamp to endorse his low-profile job at a party meeting. death sentences in the morning.
These words soon sparked criticism from both the opposition and the inside. Kishida’s ruling partyalready entangled in controversy over Decades of ties with the Unification ChurchA South Korean-based religious group has been accused of inappropriate recruitment in Japan and persuading its adherents to make large financial donations.
At least two members of Kishida’s scandal-prone cabinet are also facing allegations of accounting misconduct.
“I used the term capital punishment carelessly, as an example,” which made people and ministry officials “feel uncomfortable,” Hanashi said.
“I have decided to resign to apologize to the public and express my determination to restart my political career,” he said.
Hanashi said he had spoken to Kishida over the past two days about his possible resignation and was advised to do his best to apologize and explain his insensitive comments.
“I apologize for the media reports that gave the impression that I was underestimating my responsibility, and I take my word back,” he said on Thursday.
He made another apology earlier on Friday and denied his intention to resign. But media reports later revealed that he had made similar statements at other meetings over the past three months.
Japan exposed to international criticism for continuing to use the death penalty.
Kishida, who has an ambivalent reputation, denied that Hanashi had taken her comments lightly. He later told reporters that he accepted Hanashi’s resignation because he had “carelessly said” undermining trust in the justice system.
Kishida said he has appointed former Secretary of Agriculture Ken Saito, a Harvard-educated former trade minister bureaucrat, to replace Hanashi.
Scandal forced Kishida to postpone her departure to take on a nine-day trip. Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Cambodia20-person group meeting on the Indonesian island of Bali and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Bangkok.
Hanashi, a member of Kishida’s own faction in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, has only three months in office and is the second minister to be sacked since the prime minister replaced his cabinet in August in an unsuccessful attempt to reverse his falling popularity.
Last month, Daishiro Yamagiwa resigned from his post as economy minister after coming under criticism for not disclosing his ties to the Unification Church.
The ruling party’s links with the Unification Church Appeared after the July assassination Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. His ties to the church date back to Abe’s grandfather, former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi, who supported the religious group’s anti-communist stance and helped it take root in Japan.
A police investigation into Abe’s assassination also shed light on issues affecting family members of church followers, including poverty and neglect. Investigators told who Tetsuya Yamagami is. Accused of fatally shooting Abe On July 8, he wanted to kill the leader of the Unification Church, which he initially blamed for his family’s financial collapse.
His mother, a devoted follower of Yamagami donated 100 million yen ($720,461) went to church and bankrupted his family.
