Japan minister quits over execution remark, PM delays trip

By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has delayed his departure for three upcoming summits in Southeast Asia to sack and replace his justice minister, who was widely criticized over a remark he made about capital punishment. Justice Minister Yasuhiro Hanashi told reporters he submitted his resignation on Friday. That was two days after he commented at a meeting that his low-profile job only made the noon news when he approved death penalties in the morning. The remark sparked criticism from the opposition as well as within governing party, which is already mired in a controversy over its decades-long ties to the Unification Church. The South Korea-based church is accused in Japan of improper recruitment and brainwashing of adherents into making huge donations.