A man, believed to be an activist against Japan's exercise of the rights to collective self-defense, burned himself to death in Hibiya Park in Chiyoda Ward in Tokyo, according to local media Wednesday.
The case was the second self-immolation in a move to oppose the cabinet bill that Japanese government and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe approved in July to allow the Japanese Self-Defense Forces to be able to use collective self-defense rights.
Local police said that they considered the case to be a suicide, adding the man left a protest note and a camera that was used to record the scene of his self-immolation, according to the Japan Times.
The note was addressed to Abe and chiefs of both chambers of the Diet, stating opposition to the bill that granted Japan to use the collective self-defense rights, according to Japan's public broadcaster NHK.
Police received an emergency call reporting a fire witnessed in the park around 7 p.m. Tuesday, adding officers and firefighters put out the fire and took the man to a hospital but he was pronounced dead, NHK quoted local police as saying early Wednesday.
In July, a man also burned himself near Shinjuku Station in protest against Abe's decision to give green light to exercise the collective self-defense rights that are considered against Japan's war-renouncing constitution.
Over 1000, including some opposition parties' leaders, gathered in front of the Diet building Tuesday night to oppose a series of military policies that include the Special Secrecy Law and the collective defense, introduced by Abe since he took office in late 2012.
According to a recent poll, support rate for the Abe's cabinet hit the lowest level since it was launched in December 2012 to about 44 percent, while disapproval rate for it was up 4 percentage points to 38 percent. Endi
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