Politics

On Monday, Japan’s Foreign Ministry announced plans to provide an 82.64 billion yen loan for Iraq for repairs and upgrades to the country’s energy industry. In dollar terms, the loan comes out to US$707.53 million. In 2003, Japan pledged the US that it would make $3.5 billion in loans to Iraq. The Ministry of Trade and Economy has said that 30% of that amount has been earmarked for other projects.

A South Korean government official has said that the 6 party talks would most likely resume sometime during the week of December 18. North Korea, which is angry over the US-led blocking of its financial institutions, has boycotted the talks for over a year now. Japanese officials, however, worry that the talks may be restarting too soon and stress that they do not want to come to the table unless North Korea is “ready to compromise.”

On Monday, however, the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, or Chongryon, announced that it did not want to see Japan take part in the talks. In an editorial in the Rodong Sinmun, the North Korean position was given as such:

Japan is nothing but an impostor, and is not qualified to take part in the six-party talks. Even if they do come to the meetings, nothing useful will come of them, with Japan making it difficult to solve the issue and wasting time by bringing to the table irrelevant issues.

Chongryon is referring to Japan’s insistence upon using the six-party talks as a framework for discussing the abduction of Japanese nationals to North Korea in the 1970s and early 1980s. Western critics, including Gerald Curtis, the Burgess Professor of Political Science at Columbia University, have also remarked publicly that Japan’s intransigence on the abduction issue is starting to look like a political maneuver intended to whip up nationalistic sentiment at home, and that this is having a detrimental effect upon making any progress in the six-party talks.

On Friday, US House member and Holocaust survivor Tom Lantos continued to speak about Japan’s issues with history. In reference to Yasukuni Shrine and Asian women who were forced into sexual servitude by the Japanese military during the war, Lantos said, “I think it would be in Japan’s interest to put the past behind it…I don’t think it’s helpful to hide or try not to deal with the ugly chapters in any nation’s history.”

The international press has started picking up on the dwindling popularity of prime minister Shinzo Abe. Last week, in an article entitled “How Abe Lost His Groove,” Time magazine asserts that Abe’s reforms to date have been well out of step with public desires and expectations.

The Australian notes that when Mr Abe allowed the 11 so-called ‘postal rebels’ back into the LDP, “[Abe] seemed to treat the readmission question as an internal LDP matter, neglecting to explain himself to the electorate.”

The China Post has also picked up on Abe’s decline in popularity, with a quote from Iwao Osaka, an assistant professor at the University of Tokyo. Osaka says, “Abe wants to change the emphasis from economic reform to security issues. He wants to increase the number of ’soldiers’ under his command so he can revise the constitution.”

The Japan Times has published a piece entitles “Politics at the Grass Roots” which gives a fascinating insight into the life of Jane Singer Mizuguchi, the American wife of independent Kyoto Prefectural Assembly Member Hiroshi Mizuguchi.

Business and the Economy

On Monday, Swedish retailing giant H&M, Europe’s largest fashion retailer, announced plans to open its first store in the Japanese market. H&M intends to make its debut in Tokyo’s trendy Harajuku district sometime in 2008 and will be looking for other store locations in the coming months.

Although Japan is presently the forth largest direct foreign investor to India, prime minister Shinzo Abe would like to improve upon that figure. To date, much of Japan’s investment in India has been in the sectors of transportation, telecommunications, fuel and chemicals. Talking to Indian reporters in Tokyo, The prime minister said:

I would like to take the bilateral relationship of India and Japan to the new higher level of strategic partnership and thereby we can enhance and expand the bilateral relationship in a very dramatic manner. I am confident it will lead to the bright future of both our countries

There are currently only 15 Japanese firms operating in India, and Abe would like to improve upon this. Two of the likely Japanese investors mentioned by NDTV in India are George Hara and Masayoshi Son.

In the editorial comment to our November 27 edition of TPR News, we protested that the Japanese govenrment’s annualized economic figures appeared to be pulled out of thin air rather than having any basis in reality. On Friday, December 8, the government acknowledged that it had overstated economic growth by greater than 200% for the July-September quarter, and revised its annualized growth rate from 2.0% to .8%. Once again, speculation is rife that the Bank of Japan may hold off on any further interest rate hikes.

Despite the downward revision of growth figures, on Friday finance minister Koji Omi announced that “The economy is in a solid condition. There’s no change in the overall trend.”

Although last week brought mixed reports on the state of Japan’s economy, this week’s early news looks to be decidedly more negative. With domestic demand in Japan shrinking, Richard Jerram, the chief economist in Tokyo at Macquarie Securities states simply, “One issue is what on earth is happening to consumption. Weak data has certainly scared a lot of people.”

Mr Jerram would be best advised to peruse a recent report from Bloomberg which tells us that as of the end of October, Japan’s average wage remained unchanged over the past year, at 277,990 yen ($2,410) per month. During that same year’s time, the average wage had also increased at an annual rate by about 10,000 yen, or about $116. This borders on editorial comment, but might just be plain common sense: people are not able to spend more if they do not make more.

Society

On Friday, the Justice Ministry ordered an Iranian family of four to leave Japan. Amineh Khalil, his wife and two daughters have been residing in Japan since 1990, and the two daughters have lived virtually their entire lives in Japan. Despite this, Khalil had been staying in Japan without a valid visa. The family’s supporters had submitted a petition with 10,000 signitures asking the Ministry of Justice to make an exception in this case. The petition, and Khalil’s claim, have been rejected. They have until January 12 to leave the country and return to Iran.

Many thanks to Japan Probe for providing us with this fine story: The Wall Street Journal has recently published a piece on Japanese author Haruki Murakami and his decision to deal with the uglier aspects of Japanese history in his works. It’s a fascinating read, and unlike most WSJ publications, does not require one to have a subscription in order to enjoy.

The Last Word…

Over the past few weeks, it’s been difficult to determine exactly which of the current cabinet ministers has kept up with the worst performance. Education Minister Ibuki Bunmei has proven himself incompetent on a weekly basis. Foreign Minister Taro Aso has spoken of building a Japanese-led “arc of freedom and prosperity” across eastern and central Asia, with the stated goal of securing natural resources for Japan through “active assistance in these regions.” The Prime Minister himself sees his popularity ratings tumble as he refuses to listen to the voters (although we’re pretty sure he can get away with that in the long run). Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki and LDP security panel chairman Taku Yamasaki have not looked good either.

None, however, approach the level of incompetence and dangerous bumbling that Defense Agency Chief Fumio Kyuma has reached. Now, I know what you’re thinking, “He’s the Defense Agency Chief - he’s not a minister since the Defense Agency is an agency and not a ministry.” And you’re right.

However, the Defense Agency will become a ministry from as early as next month. And they are going to need someone in charge who is not a laughing stock. What has he done that is so bad? Here is an excerpt of a recent Japan Times piece by Yoshida Reiji concerning Kyuma’s remarks on Japan’s involvement in the Iraq war:

In an embarrassing overnight flip-flop, Defense Agency chief Fumio Kyuma withdrew Friday his previous remarks that the government did not officially support the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, but that former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi did so only in a private capacity.

Kyuma’s remarks caused a stir, particularly because he heads the Defense Agency, which still has an Air Self-Defense Force unit deployed in the region to provide airlift support for U.S.-led multinational forces and United Nations staff working in the war-torn country.

During a foreign and defense committee session of the Upper House on Thursday, Kyuma said Koizumi expressed support for the war only at news conferences, and that this was not the official position of the government.

But Kyuma admitted Friday that he “did not have enough knowledge” of the government stance on the Iraq war, acknowledging that the Cabinet officially adopted a unified view supporting the U.S.-led war.

“In that sense, Koizumi’s view (expressed) during the news conferences was an official view,” Kyuma told reporters after his earlier remarks made headlines in Friday’s morning newspapers.

Kyuma has also made it clear that he does not personally support the Iraq war. His own opinions aside, we at TPR call for Mr Kyuma’s immediate resignation or firing. This country does not need, nor have time for, defense leaders who claim that they do not have enough knowledge of their own government’s stance on a war that they are meant to be leading on behalf of the nation’s citizens and taxpayers.

With the formation of a new Defense Ministry, it is time for some new blood and new leadership. Mr Kyuma is the product of seniority and LDP factions. We do not have faith that someone who makes such remarks will be able to lead such a crucial ministerial post. Japan is at a crossroads, and Mr Abe needs to choose: the future or the past. Proper diplomatic relations with skilled ministers, or the same old same old. It’s up to you, Mr Abe. And so is your opinion rating.

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