A national controversy had ignited in 1988 when Nagasaki’s outspoken mayor, Motoshima Hitoshi, broke a cultural taboo and publicly held Emperor Hirohito accountable for his role in the war. Right-wing militarists working to rearm Japan were irate, and in 1990, one of them attempted to assassinate Motoshima by shooting him in the back. The mayor survived, and crowds in Nagasaki rose up in protest over the violence against him.
