Experts in VIP Protection Sound Alarm Over Scene Examination of Former Prime Minister Abe and Prime Minister Kishida

Just nine months after former Prime Minister Abe was shot, on April 15, 2023, at a fishing port in Wakayama City, an incident occurred where explosives were thrown at Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during a campaign speech for a House of Representatives by-election. A police officer and a male member of the audience sustained minor injuries, but the Prime Minister was unharmed. Similar to the shooting incident involving former Prime Minister Abe, the perpetrator was apprehended on the spot and charged with attempted murder and violations of explosive substances regulations.

In the Kishida Prime Minister assassination attempt, the police had set up boundary lines such as cone bars between the audience and the protected person, Prime Minister Kishida. Additionally, they had parked emergency evacuation vehicles nearby and established restricted areas around these vehicles. Immediately after the incident occurred, police security personnel cleared the thrown explosive with their bags and feet, promptly evacuating the Prime Minister into an emergency evacuation vehicle.

Taking into account reflections from the shooting incident involving former Prime Minister Abe, it seems that the police also considered establishing a security zone and recognized the need for cover and evacuate measures.

How did Prime Minister Kishida’s administration handle this incident?

“For Mr. Kishida’s assault incident, there was considerable improvement compared to Mr. Abe’s time. They were able to quickly evacuate him into a car, and although I wondered about kicking explosives with their feet, the response was relatively swift. Perhaps during Mr. Abe’s time, they hadn’t actually anticipated being attacked, but that incident likely changed the police’s awareness, leading to a relatively quick response in Mr. Kishida’s case.”

Based on incidents where both the Prime Minister and former Prime Minister were attacked within a year, Mr. Osanai concluded as follows: 

“I don’t believe the police officers and SPs at the scene are at fault. They were likely doing their best with the tasks assigned to them. Certainly, during the attack on former Prime Minister Abe, the complete failure to execute the two basic emergency actions, ‘Cover & Evacuate,’ was a significant issue. However, skills such as crisis awareness, realistic threat assessment, and readiness in emergency response—both mentally and physically—are cultivated through education and training. Unless we fundamentally change this education and training, there is a possibility of similar incidents occurring again. It all depends on the education and training moving forward.”