Ex Japanese PM Tsutomu Hata passes away

Former Japanese Prime Minister Tsutomu Hata died of natural causes at his home in Tokyo on Monday at the age of 82.

Hata was firstly elected to the lower house in 1969 from a constituency in Nagano Prefecture. He went on to be re-elected 13 times.

Between April and June 1994 he headed a coalition government while he was leading the defunct Japan Renewal Party.

Hata held a number of cabinet portfolios in his career under Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) governments including those of agriculture and fisheries minister and finance minister.

Along with former political heavyweight Ichiro Ozawa and other lawmakers, Hata left the LDP to form a new party in 1993.

Hata served as foreign minister in the anti-LDP coalition government established that year with Morihiro Hosokawa at the helm.

He succeeded Hosokawa as prime minister the following year, although Hata and his cabinet resigned en masse after just 64 days in power.

Prior to entering politics, Hata graduated from Seijo University in Tokyo and worked for a bus company.

Yuichiro Hata, his son, is currently an upper house lawmaker with the main opposition Democratic Party.