A month has passed since Nagasaki Mayor Itcho Ito was assassinated and residents are still puzzled as to why two mayors of a city that promotes peace have been shot in the recent past.
"The shock of seeing the mayor of Nagasaki, a pacifist mayor in the sense that Nagasaki makes peace its mission, shot in public was very great, particularly as his predecessor was also shot," said a municipal official in his 50s who declined to be named.
Ito was shot twice in the back on the evening of April 17 while campaigning for a fourth term as mayor. He died of blood loss the following morning without regaining consciousness. The shooter, Tetsuya Shiroo, was arrested at the scene. He has already been indicted.