Japan: Public support for Shinzo Abe rises despite ex-justice minister's arrest

The approval rating for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his cabinet has risen by 9 per cent despite the controversy around the arrest of his former justice minister. Japanese authorities arrested former justice minister Katsuyuki Kawai on suspicion of buying votes in a 2019 upper house election.

Katsuyuki Kawai resigned in October 2019 as Japan's justice minister over a separate scandal also involving his wife, in which they allegedly tried to offer money to politicians to secure a seat in the upper house of the parliament. In a televised address, Abe apologised for appointing Kawai as a justice minister and said that he would present a full explanation about the scandal to the people of Japan.

According to a poll by the Mainichi Shimbun daily, the latest rebound of support from the public comes after the government lifted restrictions on domestic travel. In the previous survey conducted after the resignation of a senior prosecutor, the approval rating had dipped to 27 per cent, which is often considered as a danger sign for the government.

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Domestic travel curb lifted

During a meeting of the Novel Coronavirus Response Headquarters on June 18, Abe had announced that the social and economic activities will be brought up to the next level in Japan, lifting restrictions on cross-prefectural travels. He also expressed that the government’s intent is to coordinate with the countries where the level of COVID-19 infections is kept stable, like Vietnam, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand.

Japan has reported nearly 18,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus with 952 deaths, comparatively way lesser than other major economies. However, the World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned of a "new and dangerous phase" of the pandemic.

During a media briefing on June 19, the WHO Director-General said that the pandemic still poses a major threat even countries are eager to open up their societies and economies. According to the latest report, almost nine million coronavirus cases have been confirmed worldwide with more than 467,000 deaths, overwhelming the health care facilities across the globe.

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(Image: Twitter / @JPN_PMO)