Scandal thrusts Japan's colourful First Lady Akie Abe into spotlight
Japan's First Lady Akie Abe is a freewheeling, flamenco-dancing socialite who once described herself as the "opposition" to husband Shinzo and is now embroiled in a scandal that threatens his career.
Published: 23rd March 2018 09:04 AM | Last Updated: 23rd March 2018 09:04 AM | A+A A-
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's wife Akie Abe | AP Photo
TOKYO: Japan's First Lady Akie Abe is a freewheeling, flamenco-dancing socialite who once described herself as the "opposition" to husband Shinzo and is now embroiled in a scandal that threatens his career.
The 55-year-old scion of a major confectionery firm has been thrust into the spotlight amid a favouritism and cover-up affair that has battered the prime minister's popularity.
Japan's emboldened opposition parties have called for Akie Abe to appear in parliament to explain her links with a nationalist school operator at the centre of the cronyism scandal.
The operator, who at one point named her the honorary principal of his new school, snapped up state-owned land at a price well below market value, with the opposition claiming his ties to the Abe family helped grease the deal.
The scandal flared further when it emerged that finance ministry documents regarding sale had been altered, including deleting her name.
The attention is probably not what Akie Abe expected when she vowed to raise the profile of the prime minister's wife following a series of predecessors who shunned the limelight.
While Abe fends off political pressure to resign, his wife has continued her active presence on social media, posting images and comments on her Instagram and Facebook accounts.
Her social media activity once landed her in hot water when she stunned followers by posting an image of a shirtless man with the word "Akie" and an arrow mark written on his chest. The post was quickly deleted.
- 'Opposition camp' -
Politically speaking, Abe benefits from a relatively weak opposition. But this is apparently not the case at home, with Akie once describing herself as the "opposition camp in the family".
She has frequently acted in opposition to her husband's policies, openly supporting an anti-nuclear campaign as the government bids to get reactors back in operation following years of shutdown due to the 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis.
She has visited Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, which honours millions of Japan's war dead as well as several senior figures convicted of war crimes after World War II.
Her husband has been forced to stay away from the shrine after running into fierce criticism from war-time adversaries China and South Korea after visiting it in 2013.
