Iccho Itoh
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- In this Japanese name, the family name is Itoh.
| Iccho Itoh (伊藤一長?) | |
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| In office May 1, 1995 – April 18, 2007 |
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| Preceded by | Hitoshi Motoshima |
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| Succeeded by | Tomihisa Taue |
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| Born | August 23, 1945 Nagato, Japan |
| Died | April 18, 2007 Nagasaki, Japan |
| Political party | Liberal Democratic Party[1] |
| Alma mater | Waseda University |
Iccho Itoh (伊藤 一長 Itō Itchō?, August 23, 1945 – April 18, 2007), born Kazunaga Itoh (伊藤 一長 Itō Kazunaga?), was the mayor of the Japanese city of Nagasaki; he first took office in 1995. He was a graduate from Waseda University, and majored in political science.
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[edit] Career
He served as a member of the city assembly and later the prefectural assembly before he was elected as the mayor.[2] As the mayor of the city where an atomic bomb was dropped just two weeks before his birth, he made a speech at the International Court of Justice in the Hague on November 7, 1995 and stressed that the use of nuclear weapons is a violation of international law.[3]
[edit] Assassination
On April 17, 2007, while campaigning for re-election for his fourth term, he was shot twice in the back at point-blank range in front of his campaign office outside the Nagasaki train station.[2] Itoh was taken to the Nagasaki University Hospital, where he died early the next morning due to loss of blood.[4] Police arrested Tetsuya Shiroo on suspicion of the murder after he was detained by Itoh's entourage following the shooting. Shiroo is believed to have connections to the Yamaguchi-gumi, an organized crime group. [2] As for the motive, "Shiroo reportedly clashed with Nagasaki city officials in 2003 after his car was damaged when he drove into a hole at the construction site."[5] There are also rumours that it is related to city construction projects.[6] The Nagasaki district court sentenced Shiroo to death on May 26, 2008.[7]
A new mayoral election was held on April 22, 2007. Makoto Yokoo (橫尾 誠 Yokoo Makoto?), Itoh's son-in-law, and Tomihisa Taue (田上 富久 Taue Tomihisa?), a city official, filed for candidacy.[8] Taue was elected.[9]
Itoh was the second mayor of Nagasaki to be shot; his immediate predecessor Hitoshi Motoshima (本島 等 Motoshima Hitoshi?) was shot in 1990, but survived.
[edit] Name
His first name was originally pronounced Kazunaga with kun-yomi, but he elected to use more euphonious on-yomi form of Itchō for his mayoralty.[10]
Itoh's name was romanized as Itcho Ito by Mainichi Shimbun [11], Reuters [12], and Al-Jazeera [13]. CNN used the Iccho Ito romanization [14]. Asahi Shimbun used Iccho Itoh [15]. Itoh spelled his name as Iccho Itoh in his English letter to George W. Bush. [16]
[edit] References
- ^ Nagasaki mayor is shot and killed - International Herald Tribune
- ^ a b c Kyodo News (2007-04-18). Nagasaki Mayor Ito dies after being shot by gangster; police raid suspect's home. Japan Today. Retrieved on 2007-04-18.
- ^ World Court excerpts. Retrieved on 2007-04-18.
- ^ George Nishiyama (2007-04-17). Mayor of Japanese city dies after being shot. Reuters. Retrieved on 2007-04-18.
- ^ Nagasaki mayor is shot and killed. Retrieved on 2007-04-19.
- ^ 明報新聞網
- ^ Gangster convicted, sentenced to death in Japanese mayor shooting. International Herald Tribune (2008-05-26). Retrieved on 2008-05-26.
- ^ Kyodo News (2007-04-19). Funeral held for slain Nagasaki mayor, son-in-law runs for election. Retrieved on 2007-04-19.
- ^ ""Ex-city official defeats murdered mayor's son-in-law in Nagasaki election"", Mainichi Daily News, 2007-04-23.
- ^ わたしのプロフィール (Nagasaki City Website) (Japanese). Retrieved on 2007-04-19.
- ^ "Nagasaki mayor dies after being shot by gangster" Mainichi Daily News 19 April 2007
- ^ George Nishiyama (2007-04-17). Mayor of Japanese city dies after being shot. Reuters. Retrieved on 2007-04-18.
- ^ "Japanese mayor shot dead" Al-Jazeera .net 18 April 2007
- ^ "Murdered mayor sparks Japanese fears" CNN 18 April 2007
- ^ "Nagasaki Mayor Itoh dies after being shot by gang member" The Asahi Shimbun 18 April 2007
- ^ Protest against a Nuclear Test conducted by the United States of America (2006-08-31). Retrieved on 2007-04-24.
