Chinese residents in Japan mourn Japanese boy fatally stabbed in Shenzhen

TOKYO — About 50 Chinese residents in Japan and others held a vigil here on Sept. 19 for a boy who was stabbed to death on his way to a Japanese school in China.

Shocked by the Sept. 18 incident in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, Chinese residents hurriedly organized the event in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward. Participants observed a moment of silence with candles in their hands and shared their thoughts with each other.

A 52-year-old woman who runs a travel agency in Tokyo said, “I can’t stop crying when I think about how the boy’s mother must feel. I feel so sorry. I wonder how such an incident could have happened.” The woman said she came to Japan with her child 10 years ago.

A teary-eyed Tokyo business owner, 25, addressed the participants, “This incident is extremely regrettable and painful for me as a Chinese living in Japan. It is the second incident of violence against a Japanese school this year. I think it is because of the education (in China) that does not respect foreigners.”

A stand for flower offerings was set up in a room of the building where the event was held, and participants laid flowers there one after another.

The stabbing occurred on the morning of Sept. 18. A child of Japanese nationality who was heading to school with his parent was attacked by a man with a knife on a street about 200 meters away from the school, and died the following day. Although police have detained a 44-year-old man as a suspect, they have not revealed the details of the situation or the motive.

(Japanese original by Tetsuro Hatakeyama, Foreign News Department)