This tragic incident is absolutely horrifying. Measures to protect children must be quickly devised.
An assailant used knives to stab 19 people, including elementary school students waiting for a school bus, in a residential area of Tama Ward, Kawasaki. Two people -- a female sixth-grade student and a father of a student -- died in the rampage. Soon after this brutal attack that took less than a minute, the 51-year-old male suspect committed suicide at the scene.
The suspect approached a line of children from behind and slashed them with knives without uttering a word. Many of these children were in the lower grades of elementary school, so it was hard for them to quickly flee. It is impossible not to feel anger at this despicable method of attack.
A line of children waiting at a school bus stop is a familiar sight in urban areas. Hearing about this incident would have sent shivers down the spine of many parents, guardians and school officials.
The alleged perpetrator was completely unknown to the school, so this appears to have been a randomly targeted crime. The fact that the suspect possessed several knives suggests he had a strong intention to commit murder.
Were there any signs this stabbing spree was about to happen? Why did the assailant strike at that particular place? The suspect has died, but the police should, as much as possible, clarify his motive and the events that led up to the brutal attack. The results of the police investigation should be released in some form so society as a whole can learn from this incident.
Several dozen children who were in the vicinity saw a gruesome sight with their own eyes. The emotional scars left by this attack are a concern. The elementary school will provide care for the students with the help of counselors dispatched from affiliated junior high and high schools. The Kawasaki city government and the Kanagawa prefectural government, which will dispatch support teams, should do everything possible to assist the school.
School routes problematic
After the attack, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe instructed relevant Cabinet ministers to devise extensive safety measures for children going to and from school. However, completely protecting children from criminals will not be easy.
Safety measures taken by schools themselves have been strengthened since the 2001 stabbing rampage that killed and injured many children at Ikeda Elementary School attached to Osaka Kyoiku University in Osaka Prefecture. Nearly 100 percent of schools have devised school security plans and the installation of security cameras has become more widespread. Schools these days also practice responding to an intruder on their premises.
Ensuring the safety of children on routes to and from school has frequently become a problem. In 2017, a Vietnamese girl on her way to an elementary school in Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, was murdered. In May 2018 as well, a girl was murdered on her way home from school in Niigata. This prompted the Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry to again call on schools to review routes students use to go to and from school.
Ensuring children are not left alone is the foundation of safety measures for students commuting to and from school. Having students walk in groups and using school buses are ways to protect children. However, in the Kawasaki incident, a group of students waiting for a bus was attacked. This can only be described as an unexpected situation.
It will be necessary to make a range of steady efforts, such as stationing security guards, in addition to teachers, in places where groups of children assemble.
Schools and the police also need to help prevent crimes from happening by sharing information about suspicious people and other details.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, May 30, 2019)
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