Posts Tagged: politics

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26
Aug 11

A New Prime Minister

It seems like it wasn’t that long ago that I was discussing how Japan’s Prime Minister Hatoyama Yukio stepped down after only eight months to be replaced by Kan Naoto. Well, now, 15 months after Prime Minister Kan took power, he’s stepping down, too.  Take a look at what I wrote back then–it’s far more common for a political leader to step down in Japan than it is in the US. Japanese voters don’t even elect their Prime Minister directly. Instead, they elect their local representatives and those representative together elect the Prime Minister. Japanese culture, too, plays a large role.

“Taking one for the team” and taking personal blame so that the company (or in this case, the government) can move forward is much more likely to happen in Japan. Consider the fact that Hatoyama stepped down largely because he didn’t fulfill a campaign promise. (To close an American military base in Okinawa.) Well, in the time that Kan has been prime minister, Japan experienced one of the deadliest series of earthquakes and one of the most horrific tsunamis in all of Japanese history. While Kan can’t be blamed for an act of nature, there’s the failure of the nuclear power plants and leaking radiation to consider as well. These plants were built long before Kan’s time as prime minister, but there’s more to it. The disaster relief handling, the nuclear power plant disasters and the government’s response to the tragedies have been under the spotlight by upset citizens.

Much of the rest of the government pressured Kan into his resignation and offered to pass some of the bills he’s put forth in order to broker a deal with him to resign. Kan’s bills focus largely on finding clean, renewable sources of energy for the country so that Japan is less reliant on dangerous nuclear power.

Kan’s party, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) remains in power and will have the majority needed to elect a new prime minister from their party next week. The new prime minister will become Japan’s sixth prime minister in only five years.

Do you like the idea of the nation’s leader resigning to take the blame for failure of government, even if he alone is not responsible? Why or why not? Would you like your nation’s leader to change every few months or every year or so?

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24
Nov 10

North Korean Attack on South Korea and How It Affects Japan

This past Tuesday (November 23rd),  North Korea launched an artillery attack on a South Korean island, killing two military personnel and two civilians and wounding many others. North Korea claimed it was retaliation for a South Korean military drill that infringed on the North Korean border, but South Korean allies are claiming that the North Korean attack was premeditated and deliberate and that there was no such infringement on the part of South Korea.

How does this affect Japan? Along with South Korea and the USA, Japan is one of the primary targets of North Korea’s aggression. North Korea has before “tested” its missiles into the Pacific Ocean toward Japan, at least twice sending missiles that flew over Japan in 1998 and 2009. There are many reasons why North Korea chooses its enemies, mostly because they feel threatened by the other countries. Japan may be a target because of its alliance with South Korea and the USA, but also because of hostilities against Korea (which then included South Korea as well) during World War II.

Of course Japan is one of the first countries to step up to condemn these attacks on South Korea, with Prime Minister Kan calling the attack “an intolerable act of barbarism,” and pointing out that “we have been strongly condemning North Korea and this stance will stay unchanged.”

Kan went on to say when addressing the Japanese government, “I believe that the lives of Japanese people will not immediately be influenced. But to make sure that will not be the case, I’d like you all to make efforts.”1

Japan and the USA are currently pressuring China to step in and condemn the attacks, as China has some economic and political influence over North Korea. China has long remained reluctant to take an official stance on the North Korea vs. South Korea issue, however, and has possibly even leaned toward supporting North Korea in the past for political reasons. Meanwhile, South Korean and American troops stationed in South Korea are currently practicing military games in the region in order to show North Korea how prepared they are for a fight, should it come to that. So far, North Korea has not proclaimed war, merely citing retaliation for one perceived attack.

What do you think of this week’s attack on South Korea? Should China be made to step in? Should the UN? Can either have an impact on North Korea? What should Japan do?

1 “Kan, Lee to work closely following N Korean attack.” Japan Today. 24 November 2010. <http://www.japantoday.com/category/politics/view/japan-on-alert-after-n-korea-fires-shells-at-s-korea>.

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23
Jul 10

News of Immigrant Exploitation in Japan

The New York Times recently profiled a group of immigrants in Japan who are facing discrimination, unfair wages and unfair hours at their places of work in Japan. Asked to come to Japan under a “foreign trainee” program approved by the Japanese government, these foreign workers were told they’d earn a better wage than they could in their home countries and earn valuable technical skills in assembly factories. Instead, they’re being forced to work long hours in unsafe conditions for less than minimum wage. Some of them are mistreated by their fellow employees.

Because it’s an island nation, there aren’t as many immigrants to Japan as there are to other countries. But countries with poorer average wages for the majority or at least a large portion of citizens, such as China, the Philippines, and Brazil, are targeted by Japanese companies as sources of cheap labor for manufacturing and farming work. While some immigrant workers are treated fairly, mistreatment of foreign workers is prevalent enough that Japanese human rights activists are trying to address the problem.

Some immigrant workers are terrorized by their bosses and are told they’re not allowed to attend church (85% of Filipinos are Christian), they’re not allowed to get cell phones or do much besides work. Some report being physically assaulted by Japanese co-workers and bosses. One Chinese immigrant even reported that her Japanese boss told her Japanese co-workers not to go near her work station—where she was stationed every day—because of the danger of inhaling toxic chemicals during the manufacturing process.

The Chinese immigrant and several other Chinese immigrants who worked for that company are building a case with a Japanese lawyer against their former employer. Human rights activists are also helping other immigrants by investigating poor treatment, but there are likely more immigrants who are not being helped. There are about 190,000 immigrants in the “foreign trainee” program, although of course the majority are likely not mistreated. Nevertheless, the mistreatment is a growing concern, especially considering that these companies are receiving their workers through a government-sanctioned program.

Do you think the Japanese government is at fault for not keeping a closer eye on the companies that hire foreign workers through the program? What kind of steps could they take to make sure Japanese companies don’t take advantage of their workers?

Tabuchi, Hiroko. “Japan Training Program Is Said to Exploit Workers.” The New York Times. 21. July 2010. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/21/business/global/21apprentice.html?_r=1&src=mv>.

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9
Jun 10

Japan Has a New Prime Minister—After Only 8 Months

Last week was a busy week in Japanese politics news. Former Japanese Prime Minister Hatoyama Yukio—the very same whose fashion choices and somewhat strange behavior made headlines a few weeks ago—resigned on June 3rd, after winning the election and becoming Prime Minister just last year on September 16th.

Hatoyama was adamant after his approval ratings dropped that he has no intention of resigning. Yet just a few weeks later, he did exactly that. Granted, he didn’t resign over horrible fashion attire, no should anyone have expected him to. (The “his bad fashion shows he’s not in touch with the common Japanese citizen” argument notwithstanding.) The actual reason he gave had to do with his failure to close the U.S. military base on Okinawa, which he promised to do during his campaign. While one could argue that he hadn’t served long enough to enact this change, Hatoyama did sign an unpopular treaty in late May with U.S. President Obama to ensure the continued existence of the U.S. military presence in Okinawa. This was mostly due to increased tensions between Japan and North Korea and Hatoyama’s desire for U.S. aid if need be.

Besides the failure with Okinawa, Hatoyama was also accused of perhaps having knowledge of a money scandal involving a top member of his party, the Democratic Party of Japan (not quite the same as the U.S. party of the same name). Facing summer elections, Hatoyama’s party asked him to step down to increase their chances of performing favorably at the next election.

Hatoyama was replaced by Kan Naoto, Hatoyama’s former deputy. Kan is actually Japan’s seventh prime minister in a decade. Why so many changes? Hatoyama’s not the first to resign by any means; it’s a much more common occurrence in Japan than in countries like America, where only one president has resigned in history. The other part of the reason for so many changes in leadership is that the nation’s prime minister is not directly elected by the Japanese citizens. Instead, Japanese citizens vote for their representatives in the Japanese parliament (the Diet). In turn, the members of the Diet elect the prime minister. The more seats a party has, the more likely that party is going to win the position, for which they usually nominate their elected leader. However, this somewhat disconnected way of electing a prime minister does seem to lead fewer Japanese people to be passionately political than many people in other nations.

Do you think Hatoyama should have resigned as soon as he failed with one campaign promise? Do you think the Japanese system of electing a leader would work in your country? Why or why not?

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21
May 10

Japanese Prime Minister’s Fashion Faux Pas Makes International Headlines

If you didn’t know who Japan’s prime minister was before, you may by now. Last week, international headlines proclaimed that Hatoyama Yukio had worn a bizarre, multi-colored shirt to a barbeque at his home. Perhaps stranger than the fact that this made the news at all, let alone the international news, was that Hatoyama’s fashion faux pas had caused his approval rating to drop significantly, 33% to 24%1 in just one month.

This is not the first time the Japanese prime minister has decided to wear outfits that are a little bizarre. Japanese fashion critics go on to cite a heart-studded collared shirt over which the prime minister wore a pink blazer, mauve coats, and other multi-colored shirts. The prime minister and his wife are also known in the media for some odd behavior, such as a pigeon imitation the prime minister performed during an interview. There have also been interviews with his wife, Hatoyama Miyuki, in which she claims to have been abducted by aliens and taken to Venus twenty years ago. She also says she “eats” energy from the sun and is instructing her husband to do the same.

While some claim the odd behavior and fashion choices are just the eccentricities of an odd couple who never tried to hide who they were prior to Hatoyama’s election last autumn, the fact that this one bad shirt at a bbq was the one odd thing to inspire such a global discussion is actually fairly telling about what really caused the public opinion of Hatoyama to drop so quickly and so steeply. Hatoyama wore this shirt to a bbq hosted at his home that he called “The Real Hato Café,” as it was supposed to offer the public a chance to meet him, mingle with him, and see that he’s just an ordinary person like they are. Wearing such a bizarre shirt to the gathering, says Konishi Don, a Japanese fashion critic, shows that Hatoyama is actually quite out of touch with the rest of the country—at the very moment he was trying to show them that he’s just one of them. Says Konishi, “This shirt comes from the ‘80s or ‘90s. His ideas and philosophy are old. Japan is facing a crisis and we can’t overcome it with a prime minister like this.” 2

Hatoyama responded to the sudden drop in public approval by stating, “I take it seriously that my approval ratings are down significantly. But I’m not going to quit.” 3 Still, perhaps he’ll hire a fashion consultant—although if they’re unhappy with his policies, the public’s opinion is unlikely to go back up without serious political overhaul.

Did you see Hatoyama’s shirt? What did you think of it? Do you think it’s silly that his fashion choices have made international news? Do you agree with the idea that it shows that Hatoyama is out of touch? What do you think of the prime minister and his wife’s other examples of odd behavior?

1, 2, 3 Lah, Kyung. “Japan’s prime minister under fire for fashion choices.” CNN World. 12 May 2010. <http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/05/12/japan.hatoyama.fashion/index.html?eref=rss_world&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_world+%28RSS%3A+World%29>. 17 May 2010.

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5
May 10

Japan’s Golden Week, Part 2

Golden Week continues in Japan and we continue our coverage of the holidays. April 29th was the first day to feature a specific holiday. The next is May 3rd, which is Constitutional Amendment Day (kenpou kinenbi).

Constitutional Amendment Day was established in 1947 to honor the first day the country came under the laws of the Constitution of Japan, which was developed alongside the Allied Forces. The Constitution turned Japan into a liberal democracy. (It was previously a militaristic, imperialistic system.) It greatly lessened the role of the imperial family, making them more figureheads than policy makers, and also declared that the country would never again declare war. Instead, Japan would only defend itself if necessary, which is why the Japanese military is now called the “Japanese Self-Defense Forces.” The meaning behind the day is for Japanese citizens to reflect on democracy and government. It’s also the one day per year in which the National Diet Building (where the government—the House of Councillors and the House of Representatives—convenes) is open for public tours.

As discussed previously, the next holiday, Greenery Day, takes place on May 4th. Golden Week’s last national holiday is on May 5th —today! Children’s Day (kodomo no hi) is meant to celebrate children and their fun-loving, innocent personalities as well as to honor parents (particularly mothers) for raising them. It was originally known as Boys’ Day and was meant only to celebrate sons (as there is another holiday in March to celebrate daughters), but it was changed in 1948 to Children’s Day to celebrate all children.

An iconic symbol of Children’s Day is the koi (carp)-shaped koinobori flags. Households traditionally hang these flags from their rooftops, one for each of the parents and each of the children who live inside. Another tradition is to display a Kintarou (a fabled adventurous boy) doll and a kabuto (samurai helmet) inside the house, as these are symbols of healthy and strong boys. Today in Japan, many families are eating kashiwa-mochi (red bean rice cakes wrapped in oak leaves) and chimaki (sweetened rice paste in a bamboo or iris leaf) to celebrate.

Have you ever heard of Children’s Day or Constitutional Amendment Day? Do you think it’s fair that Boys’ Day was changed to Children’s Day when there’s still a Girls’ Day?

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3
May 10

Japan’s Golden Week, Part 1

This week, Japanese students and many Japanese businesspeople are sitting back, relaxing and enjoying their week off. The first week in May (actually April 29th to May 5th) is called “Golden Week” (ougon shuukan) in Japan because the close proximity of national and cultural holidays means that schools and many businesses close for 7 to 10 days. Of course, many shops remain open, public transportation continues to run, hospitals are still open, etc., so not every worker in Japan has the time off, but after the time around New Year’s, Golden Week is the second most important nation-wide vacation from school and work and the most popular time for travel.

What holidays make up this Golden Week? April 29th is Showa Day (Showa no hi). The day was the Showa Emperor (better known as Emperor Hirohito in the West)’s birthday and the birthday of the emperor is always a national holiday in Japan. (The current emperor’s birthday is in December.) This should no longer have been a holiday following the Showa Emperor’s death in 1988, but it was first changed to Greenery Day (midori no hi) immediately after his death to continue honoring him (read on for more information on Greenery Day). In 2007, Greenery Day was moved and replaced with Showa Day.

Showa Day, unlike Greenery Day, is not intended to honor the deceased emperor himself. Also, unlike Greenery Day, it publicly acknowledges that the Showa Emperor held his position during “turbulent times” in Japanese history. (The Showa Emperor was emperor during World War II in his youth and encouraged the country’s imperialistic war.) The day encourages Japanese citizens to reflect on that period in history and the way the country drastically changed before, during, and after the war. The Showa Emperor held his position until his death, meaning that during the Showa Era, he ruled during war time, depression, economic recovery and the transformation of Japan into a global industrial and economical leader.

Greenery Day, now May 4th, was originally intended to honor the Showa Emperor indirectly by honoring his love for nature and gardens. The day asks the Japanese citizens to honor nature and recognize all that nature provides, even in a technology-heavy world.

Come back Wednesday as Golden Week continues to learn more about the other holidays during this week.

Do you know any Japanese people who have off for Golden Week? Do you like the idea of Greenery Day or Showa Day better to recognize the late emperor’s birthday? Why?

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7
Apr 10

The Japanese Ministry Aims to Boost ‘Cool Japan’

According to The Yomiuri Shibun, the Japanese Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry recently revealed a plan to boost the “Cool Japan” culture internationally. What’s “Cool Japan”? Well, if you’re interested in this blog, you may already know and not realize it. “Cool Japan” is Japanese pop culture and other countries’ love for it, particularly Japanese food, fashion, anime/manga, and video games.

The Ministry’s strategy targets other parts of Asia, Europe, and North America. Currently, only 2% of these Japanese pop culture sales are actually made outside of the country. However, the “Cool Japan” industries employ over 2 million people in Japan and total about ¥45 trillion (about US$480 million) in sales annually, so adding to this total by focusing on foreign markets can boost employment and commerce in Japan considerably.

The proposal asks the Japan External Trade Organization and private Japanese consulting firms to provide assistance to companies that want to export their properties overseas, particularly small to midsize businesses that are struggling to get a foothold. Companies like Nintendo, for example, certainly won’t need the assistance, but they could still benefit from some of the proposed changes.

Japan’s largest book publisher, Kodansha, might have been ahead of the game. Long since one of the biggest manga publishers in Japan, multiple American manga publishers have licensed their work for North American publication over the past decade or so. Kodansha got a cut of the sales, but they largely left creative control over translation, presentation, and marketing to the American companies. This has led to a wide range of quality from title to title and publisher to publisher. Not so anymore, as Kodansha has stopped licensing its manga titles to American companies and let most of its licenses with American publishers expire in preparation for starting its own American division. This will employ more Japanese citizens, give Kodansha full profit over North American sales, and allow Kodansha better control over how their part of pop culture is presented outside of Japan. (However, they will still be distributed by an American company—Random House—and so are allowing some of their titles to continue publication with Del Rey, one of the top American publishers of manga.)

Another part of the Ministry’s strategy actually involves asking foreign creators to come to Japan to help create the “cool Japan” image that’s going to be exported. The Ministry hopes to accomplish this through a reform on the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law that will make issuing and keeping work visas easier for companies and immigrants.

Are you a fan of “Cool Japan”? What’s your favorite part of Japanese pop culture? Do you think it’s counterintuitive for the Ministry to want foreign creators to help them export the “Cool Japan” image? Why or why not?

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22
Mar 10

Partial Control of Okinawa Returned to Japan Next Week

In a historic moment next week on March 31st, the U.S. will return control of air space over Okinawa to Japan after more than six decades of American control. If you’re not familiar with the history of America and Okinawa, take a look at this earlier entry.

America first took over Okinawa in 1945 after the end of World War II as America watched over Japan’s reconstruction. Although control of the country was signed back over to Japan in 1972, 18% of the main island effectively remains American soil in the form of American military bases. Japan has sought more control of the territory for decades—Japanese lawmakers were even worried that the problems with Toyota cars in America would impede some of the current negotiations about surrendering rights to Okinawa (read more here)—so next week’s transfer of air rights is a monumental occasion for Japan.

The decision was originally reached in 2004 to be completed by 2007, but the transfer of air traffic control took some detours as negotiations were ongoing and transfer of the technical system, called the Kadena RAPCON, hit some setbacks, so in 2008, the new deadline of March 31, 2010 was arranged.

Currently, air traffic control towers on U.S. military bases handles all military and civilian flights into an area about 56-mile radius of the Kadena Air Base on the main island of Okinawa as well as air space over the nearby smaller island of Kume.

Civilian traffic into the Naha and Kume Island airports will be surrendered to Japanese control via the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry, but U.S. military traffic onto the base will remain under U.S. control. The civilian portion of the Kadena RAPCON system will now be known as the Naha Approach Control.

Negotiations between the U.S. and Japan continue over surrendering more land and control of Okinawa to Japan. However, Foreign Minister Okada Katsuya believes this is an important next step for finding a way for the American military to continue operations, albeit at a reduced capacity, in Okinawa. “Although there are various tasks related to U.S. forces in Japan,” stated Okada, “I would like to overcome each issue so that the Japan-U.S. security arrangements will be operated more smoothly and effectively.”1

Do you think that returning civilian air traffic control in Okinawa to Japan is a good idea? Why do you think the U.S. held on to control for so long?

1 Associated Press. “U.S. agrees with Japan to return Okinawa air control on March 31+.” Breitbart. 18 Mar. 2010. Breaking News. 20 March 2010. <http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9EH08D80&show_article=1>.

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12
Mar 10

Hiroshima

Hiroshima is the first place in the world with a civilian population where an atomic bomb was dropped and one of only two (the other being Nagasaki) places in the world where this has ever happened. The bomb, dropped by the Americans during World War II, killed somewhere between 90,000 and 200,000 in Hiroshima alone, about 70,000 of which died at the moment of impact and tens of thousands more died in the following months and years (thus the varying number, as it can be hard to pinpoint exactly who died as a result of the bomb) due to horrific injuries and the effects of radiation. The city has largely recovered since then, but there are still monuments and tributes to this vital event in global history, so Hiroshima makes an excellent tourist destination if you’re headed to Japan.

Hiroshima is about a 4 to 5 hours’ journey west of Tokyo (depending on whether or not you take the bullet train). Once you arrive in Hiroshima, you may want to head to Peace Memorial Park and the Genbaku Dome-Mae (A-Bomb Dome), which is just 15 minutes south of the JR station by trolley. This Genbaku Dome, which was built in 1915, was one of the last remaining buildings to survive the bombing—almost everything else you see was built after the war.

The Genbaku Dome remains largely as it was left after the bombing, with minor construction done occasionally to keep the dome from falling down. It is a World Heritage Site that is supposed to be preserved indefinitely.

Around the dome is the Peace Memorial Park, where you can see memorials dedicated to the victims and to the ideal of world peace. The entire park is about a mile in length and at the opposite end of the Genbaku Dome is the Peace Memorial Museum, where you can see artifacts, photographs and interviews of the attack and its victims. It can be a disturbing but educational experience.

Besides memorials to the attack, Hiroshima has a number of other sites of interest, including the Hiroshima Castle, which was actually destroyed during the bombing but was rebuilt to be virtually identical to the original 1589 castle during the reconstruction efforts. Not only is the castle visually stunning, but you can find a museum dedicated to the history of the city within.

Have you ever been to Hiroshima? What were some of your favorite stops? If you visit Japan, would you like to visit one of the sites of the atomic bombings? Why or why not?

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