TOKYO: The Japanese government is considering holding a state funeral for former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was shot dead during a stump speech in the western city of Nara on July 8, at the Nippon Budokan hall in Tokyo on Sept. 27, government officials said Wednesday.

The cabinet of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is expected to approve the plan as early as Friday. The government plans to fully cover the cost of the funeral.

It will be the second state funeral for a former prime minister in the country’s post-World War II history, following the one for Shigeru Yoshida in 1967.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told a press conference that the government is in talks with the bereaved family and others on the date and location of the state funeral for Abe.

Matsuno disputed criticism from opposition lawmakers that the state funeral will force a political view about Abe on people. “Abe took on the heavy responsibility of being prime minister for eight years and eight months, the longest in Japan,” he said.

Funerals for former prime ministers have been co-hosted by the cabinet and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party since the one in 1980 for Masayoshi Ohira.

On Thursday, Kishida announced plans to hold a state funeral for Abe, the first in 55 years for a former prime minister. “We will show our commitment to upholding democracy without giving in to violence,” he said at the time.

Senior government officials and other dignitaries from around the world are expected to attend the state funeral for Abe.

JIJI Press