Shinzo Abe and the revival of Japan

Few post-war Japanese leaders have been as important as Shinzo Abe, the retired prime minister who was assassinated on Friday at the age of 67. Many will describe his legacy as « controversial », which is true. But Abe’s gift to his country was to stir up the kind of controversy Japan needed, when the country needed it.

When Abe came to power for the second time in late 2012, Japan seemed adrift. Its economic miracle was long gone, the optimism of the Junichiro Koizumi era in the early 2000s was gone, the traumas of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami were still fresh. Abe brought back national energy and confidence in Japanese politics and government.