Japan Politics 101

Recently Ichiro Ozawa, leader of the opposition DPJ (Democratic Party of Japan), was forced to step down in the wake of a funding scandal. Yesterday his successor was selected - not by ordinary party members (which would in fact be democratic) but by its diet members who number a little over 200. The contenders were Yukio Hatoyama (right hand man of the ousted Ozawa) and Katsuya Okada (popular and said to have a "clean image"). In an article in Friday's Japan Times, a day before the election, the following was written:

"While Okada is favored in national opinion polls and is gaining support from the anti-Ozawa faction, Hatoyama reportedly has the backing of Ozawa and his followers, placing Okada at a likely disadvantage."

In other words, what the people want is less important than what the party bigwigs - even disgraced ones - want. Not only did this tell us how the voting would go, it revealed much about the way of politics in this country. The governing party, the LDP (Liberal Democratic Party, which is in fact neither) has been in power by itself or in coalitions almost continuously for more than fifty years. The DPJ styles itself as the party of "change".

Hatoyama, by the way, is the grandson of a former prime minister.

Oh, the photo of passing cars was taken in the Nagatacho - Akasaka area, near the diet building and Prime Minister's residence. The water changes but the river stays the same, year after year.

Prospect

Quaff

Artery

Closing Time

Wet Cobbles

Bird's Eye View - Ginza

Cat's Eye View

Self-Portrait, Walled

Yes There is Some Lens Flare

Space Saving Ideas

Eloquent testimony to the high cost of land in Central Tokyo.

Countdown

The frequently questionable Yomiuri Shimbun published its list of the 10 biggest news stories for Japan in 2008. What was #1? The random attack in Akihabara in which a young man murdered 7 people and sent 10 others to the hospital? The Nikkei's plunge to its lowest level since the bubble amid an overall economic meltdown? The sudden resignation of the prime minister? Or perhaps his successor's refusal (citing the aforementioned economy as an excuse) to schedule elections as planned, despite his anemic 20% approval rating? How about Japan's Nobel Prize winners for Physics?
As it happened, none of the above were deemed worthy. The "winner" was the poisoned gyoza story, which dominated the news cycles during the early part of 2008. Though the number of people who claimed to feel ill was well above a thousand, it was only ever proven that 10 were poisoned. Among these 9 were hospitalized and nobody died. Biggest story of the year?
Ikasumi would have chosen the Akihabara tragedy, and then perhaps the economy. But the former only ranked 5th and the latter 8th on the Yomiuri's list. The Akibahara case was, alas, just the most bloody example in a recent trend of violent crimes (often random) by Japanese. But perhaps it is easier to emphasize threats from outside than to ask tough questions about what is happening to one's own country and countrymen.

Underside

Rendezvous