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Hiroyasu Koga

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Hiroyasu Koga
Japanese name
Kanji古賀こが浩靖ひろやす
Born (1947-08-15) 15 August 1947 (age 77)
Takikawa, Hokkaido, Japan
Other names
  • Furu-Koga
  • Hiroyasu Arechi (荒地あれち浩靖ひろやす)
EducationKanagawa University
Known forRole of kaishakunin (介錯かいしゃく人じん) in the 1970 Mishima Incident

Hiroyasu Koga (Japanese: 古賀こが浩靖ひろやす Koga Hiroyasu, born 15 August 1947) is a former Tatenokai member and kaishakunin responsible for the decapitations of Yukio Mishima and Masakatsu Morita during their seppuku on November 25, 1970. He studied law at Kanagawa University and intended to become a lawyer.

Koga, known by the nickname Furu-Koga (distinguishing him from another Tatenokai member named Masayoshi Koga who was in turn nicknamed Chibi-Koga, 小しょう賀が), was a skilled practitioner of kendo (swordsmanship). It was originally planned that Mishima would be decapitated by Masakatsu Morita, the Tatenokai's student leader; however, Morita was not trained in the sword and failed, at which point Koga stepped in to complete it. Koga then decapitated Morita as part of Morita's own seppuku.[1]

Koga and two other participating Tatenokai members (Masayoshi Koga and Masahiro Ogawa) went on trial on March 24, 1971,[2] facing charges of bodily injury, violence, illegal possession of firearms and swords,[3] and assisting a suicide.[4] They were convicted and sentenced to four years' penal servitude, and were released in 1974, a few months early.[5]

As of 2005, it was believed that he was a practising Shinto priest at a shrine on Shikoku.[6] However, an alternative belief is that he never became a Shinto priest, instead becoming the head of the Hokkaido branch of Seicho no Ie and was renamed Hiroyasu Arechi. It is further posited that he now resides in Kumamoto.[7]

References

  1. ^ Stokes, Henry Scott (2000). The Life and Death of Yukio Mishima. Lantham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 30–32. ISBN 978-0815410744. Retrieved November 10, 2014.
  2. ^ "Warrior code goes on trial". The Age. AAP-Reuter. 24 March 1971. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  3. ^ "3 Survivors Of 'Pact' Charged". Gadsden Times. AP. 27 November 1970. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  4. ^ Axelbank, Albert (6 January 1971). "Japan's Patriot: Suicidal Author in 'Hero' Status". Sarasota Journal. NANA. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  5. ^ "Japan has freed for good behavior..." Nashua Telegraph. 7 October 1974. p. 2.
  6. ^ Sheridan, Michael (27 March 2005). "Briton let author commit hara-kiri". Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 12 December 2013.
  7. ^ Phillips, Brian (5 November 2014). "The Sea of Crises". Grantland.
  • Koga, Masayoshi; Koga, Hiroyasu; Ogawa, Masahiro; Date, Munekatsu (1972). 裁判さいばん記錄きろく三島みしま由紀夫ゆきお事件じけん (Saiban kiroku Mishima Yukio jiken) [Court Transcript of the Yukio Mishima Incident] (in Japanese).
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