Fusako Shigenobu

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Fusako Shigenobu (Japanese: 重信 房子, Hepburn: Shigenobu Fusako, born September 28, 1945) is a Japanese communist activist, writer, and the founder and leader of the now-disbanded militant group Japanese Red Army (JRA).^[1]

Born in Japan, Shigenobu became involved in New Left activism while attending night school at Meiji University in Tokyo.^[2] In 1969, she joined the Red Army Faction (RAF), a communist group that advocated immediate, armed revolution against the governments of the United States and Japan.^[3] Eventually becoming one of its senior leaders, Shigenobu played a significant role in establishing the International Relations Bureau for the organization.

In 1971, she helped found the JRA as an offshoot of the RAF. That same year, Shigenobu and the JRA relocated to the Middle East in an effort to start a world revolution, as well as to assist with the Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation while working in concert with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). During the 1970s and 1980s, members of the JRA took part in a number of violent incidents, including bombings, mass shootings, and hijackings. Although Shigenobu did not directly participate in these activities, during this time she attained international fame as the leader and public-facing spokesperson for the JRA.^[4]

Despite initially supporting armed resistance, in later years Shigenobu expressed remorse about her involvement with violent militancy, and focused on grassroots support for and solidarity with the Palestinian people.^[4][5] Throughout her years in hiding and later imprisonment, Shigenobu authored 10 books, including a book of poetry.

Following her arrest in 2000 after several years of hiding, Shigenobu was put on trial for passport forgery and alleged conspiracy involving an attempted hostage-taking operation at the French Embassy in The Hague in 1974.^[4] She was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2006 and released in 2022.