Japan’s former prime minister, Shinzo Abe, who was shot and killed on Friday at the age of 67, was the longest-serving premier of Japan, known for his conservative agenda of restoring his country’s economy, military and national pride.
Abe, the grandson of another former prime minister, was elected to parliament in 1993 after the death of his father, a former foreign minister.
Born in Tokyo on September 21, 1954, Abe belonged to a prominent political family with significant economic influence throughout Japan in the period before and after the Second World War.
He attended Seikei Elementary School and Seikei Junior and Senior High School before studying public administration and graduating with a bachelor's degree in political science from Seikei University in 1977.
Abe was 52 years old when he first became prime minister in 2006, becoming the youngest person to take on the top role in the post-war era. His first term was turbulent, plagued by scandals and discord and capped by an abrupt resignation more than a year later.
After initially suggesting he was stepping down for political reasons, he acknowledged he was suffering an ailment later diagnosed as ulcerative colitis.
The debilitating bowel condition required months of treatment but was, according to Abe, eventually overcome with the help of new medication.
He would run again, and Japan's revolving prime ministerial door brought him back to office in 2012.
It ended a turbulent period in which prime ministers changed frequently, sometimes at the rate of one a year.
With Japan still staggering from the effects of the 2011 tsunami and subsequent nuclear disaster at Fukushima ― and a brief opposition government criticised for flip-flopping and incompetence ― Abe offered a seemingly safe pair of hands.
And he had a plan: Abenomics.
‘Abenomics’
The scheme to revive Japan's economy ― the world's third-biggest, but more than two decades into stagnation ― involved vast government spending, huge monetary easing and cutting red tape.
Abe also sought to boost the country's flagging birth rate by making workplaces more friendly to parents, particularly mothers.
He pushed through controversial consumption tax increases to help finance nurseries and plug gaps in Japan's overstretched social security system.
Abe's star waned further during the Covid pandemic, with his approach criticised as confused and slow, driving his approval ratings down to some of the lowest of his tenure.
Close relationship with Trump
On the international stage, Abe took a hard line on North Korea, but sought a peacemaker role between the United States and Iran.
He prioritised a close personal relationship with Donald Trump in an attempt to protect Japan's key alliance from the US president's "America First" mantra, and tried to mend ties with Russia and China.
But the results were mixed: Mr Trump was eager to force Japan to pay more for US troops stationed in the country, a deal with Russia on disputed northern islands stayed elusive and a plan to invite Xi Jinping for a state visit fell by the wayside.
Abe also pursued a hard line with South Korea over unresolved wartime disputes and continued to float plans to revise Japan's pacifist constitution.
Throughout his tenure, he weathered political storms including cronyism allegations that dented approval ratings but did little to affect his power, in part thanks to the weakness of the opposition.
Abe had been due to stay on until late 2021, giving him an opportunity to see out one final event in his historic tenure — the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
But in a shock announcement, he stepped down in August 2020, with a recurrence of ulcerative colitis ending his second term too.
Pivotal partner in the Middle East
Abe’s last visit to the Middle East was in 2020, shortly before his resignation, when he met the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman in an attempt to “help stabilise the region”, a week after the US killed top Iranian general Qassem Suleimani in Baghdad.
During Abe's visit to the UAE, he met Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed who at the time was Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.
"This is the fourth time I have visited the UAE and met with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed. The UAE plays a key and pivotal role in pursuing sustainable development, peace and stability in the Middle East," Abe said at the time.
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The Bio
Name: Lynn Davison
Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi
Children: She has one son, Casey, 28
Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite Author: CJ Sansom
Favourite holiday destination: Bali
Favourite food: A Sunday roast
Five famous companies founded by teens
There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate.
- Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc.
- Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway.
- Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
- Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
The bio
Job: Coder, website designer and chief executive, Trinet solutions
School: Year 8 pupil at Elite English School in Abu Hail, Deira
Role Models: Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk
Dream City: San Francisco
Hometown: Dubai
City of birth: Thiruvilla, Kerala
Results
6.30pm Madjani Stakes Rated Conditions (PA) I Dh160,000 I 1,900m I Winner: Mawahib, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
7.05pm Maiden Dh150,000 I 1,400m I Winner One Season, Antonio Fresu, Satish Seemar
7.40pm: Maiden Dh150,000 I 2,000m I Winner Street Of Dreams, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
8.15pm Dubai Creek Listed I Dh250,000 I 1,600m I Winner Heavy Metal, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer
8.50pm The Entisar Listed I Dh250,000 I 2,000m I Winner Etijaah, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson
9.25pm The Garhoud Listed I Dh250,000 I 1,200m I Winner Muarrab, Dane O’Neill, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
10pm Handicap I Dh160,000 I 1,600m I Winner Sea Skimmer, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
A new relationship with the old country
Treaty of Friendship between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates
The United kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates; Considering that the United Arab Emirates has assumed full responsibility as a sovereign and independent State; Determined that the long-standing and traditional relations of close friendship and cooperation between their peoples shall continue; Desiring to give expression to this intention in the form of a Treaty Friendship; Have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE 1 The relations between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates shall be governed by a spirit of close friendship. In recognition of this, the Contracting Parties, conscious of their common interest in the peace and stability of the region, shall: (a) consult together on matters of mutual concern in time of need; (b) settle all their disputes by peaceful means in conformity with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
ARTICLE 2 The Contracting Parties shall encourage education, scientific and cultural cooperation between the two States in accordance with arrangements to be agreed. Such arrangements shall cover among other things: (a) the promotion of mutual understanding of their respective cultures, civilisations and languages, the promotion of contacts among professional bodies, universities and cultural institutions; (c) the encouragement of technical, scientific and cultural exchanges.
ARTICLE 3 The Contracting Parties shall maintain the close relationship already existing between them in the field of trade and commerce. Representatives of the Contracting Parties shall meet from time to time to consider means by which such relations can be further developed and strengthened, including the possibility of concluding treaties or agreements on matters of mutual concern.
ARTICLE 4 This Treaty shall enter into force on today’s date and shall remain in force for a period of ten years. Unless twelve months before the expiry of the said period of ten years either Contracting Party shall have given notice to the other of its intention to terminate the Treaty, this Treaty shall remain in force thereafter until the expiry of twelve months from the date on which notice of such intention is given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned have signed this Treaty.
DONE in duplicate at Dubai the second day of December 1971AD, corresponding to the fifteenth day of Shawwal 1391H, in the English and Arabic languages, both texts being equally authoritative.
Signed
Geoffrey Arthur Sheikh Zayed
Result
Crystal Palace 0 Manchester City 2
Man City: Jesus (39), David Silva (41)
