THE JAPANESE OUTRAGE.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LII, Issue 143, 19 May 1932, Page 6

THE JAPANESE OUTRAGE.

The assassination of Mr Ki Inukai, Prime Minister of Japan, which was conceived and executed by young officers belonging to the navy and army, is a another instance of the cheapness in -which life is held in Oriental countries. Japan has a dark record of political crimes, and the murder of Mr Inukai, a frail old man past the allotted span, is one of the most brutal of the lot. The officers who planned his removal are said to belong to a secret society, whose members are dissatisfied .with the present form of government and capitalist influence. Japanese-like, they _ are said to have cut off their little finger tips to prove their devotion to the cause.' Such an insensate crime is, apart from its horrible nature, an act of the greatest stupidity. Mr Inukai had committed no offence against his nation. His character was above reproach, and he was moderate in his outlook and policy. It would appear, therefore, that he was far too conservative for the younger faction -who encompassed his end. There has been much Communist activity in Japan in recent months, but there is no suggestion that the deed was of their planning. It appears to have originated from the political ununrest which hardly ever ceases in Japan. Mr Inukai had only held office since last December, when the Wakatsuki Cabinet fell in opposing the proposal of its. Minister for Home Affairs (Mr Adachi) that the Minseito and Seiyukai Parties should form a coalition. ..The Minseito hold 251 seats and the Seiyukai 171 in the Lower House of the Diet, and the former attribute their strong position to Mr Adachi’s management of the 1930 elections. He was thus a strong personality in his party. The new Government, under Mr Inukai, restored the embargo upon the export of gold, adopted most of the Budget of the former Finance Minister, and decided to meet the deficit in the finances by borrowing, substituting spending for retrenchment. His policy appears to have given satisfaction and, his violent death, like all political crimes, is greatly deplored. Japan’s close association with Great Britain sends a feeling of sympathy throughout British countries for the bereaved.