Thursday, December 08, 2005
interesting news about Japanese politics
According to the news in Asahi shimbun, Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi approached the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) for the grand coalition after the general election in 9/11. (About this election, see also my entry in 9/12)
If this report is true, it is quite interesting. Since it has the simple majority in the Lower House, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) does not need to cooperate with the DPJ. Given its supremacy in the Diet, Koizumi's intention of this offer may be to reshuffle whole picture of Japanese politics.
Koizumi might have sought to introduce the two- partcy system in a different way from current LDP-DPJ framework. Indeed, both the LDP and the DPJ have wide range of politicians from liberals to conservatives, and it has been argued for long time that Japan needs political realignment. Conceivably, Koizumi wanted to make a pure conservative party by the alignment with conservatives of the DPJ. Catalysts of this political reorganization would be issues of consituitional amendment and raising consumers tax.
The new leader of the DPJ, Seiji Maehara, did not take up the offer. I think he should have accepted it in terms of Japanese whole politics. Maehara's position is not so different from Koizumi's. Actually, the DPJ currently has trouble with having difference from the LDP.
Koizumi's offer indicates that he did not take the circumstance of his party seriously. On the other hand, Maehara could not think beyond his party. This reported episode imply very interesting diffrence such as between Koizmi's character and Maehara's, confident leader and relatively weak leader, experienced leader and young leader, and so on. Koizumi, who seems to evaluate Maehara highly, might have tested young Maehara's political resolution.
If this report is true, it is quite interesting. Since it has the simple majority in the Lower House, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) does not need to cooperate with the DPJ. Given its supremacy in the Diet, Koizumi's intention of this offer may be to reshuffle whole picture of Japanese politics.
Koizumi might have sought to introduce the two- partcy system in a different way from current LDP-DPJ framework. Indeed, both the LDP and the DPJ have wide range of politicians from liberals to conservatives, and it has been argued for long time that Japan needs political realignment. Conceivably, Koizumi wanted to make a pure conservative party by the alignment with conservatives of the DPJ. Catalysts of this political reorganization would be issues of consituitional amendment and raising consumers tax.
The new leader of the DPJ, Seiji Maehara, did not take up the offer. I think he should have accepted it in terms of Japanese whole politics. Maehara's position is not so different from Koizumi's. Actually, the DPJ currently has trouble with having difference from the LDP.
Koizumi's offer indicates that he did not take the circumstance of his party seriously. On the other hand, Maehara could not think beyond his party. This reported episode imply very interesting diffrence such as between Koizmi's character and Maehara's, confident leader and relatively weak leader, experienced leader and young leader, and so on. Koizumi, who seems to evaluate Maehara highly, might have tested young Maehara's political resolution.
