The Kotatsu Commentator

Moving Beyond "Do you Like?"

2011-05-31T19:48:00.001+09:00

Moving Beyond “Do you like?” (by Randy Poehlman)
May 31st, 2011 by Barbara.

Flickr: Eastnhuh
Getting students to express preference and to make choices is as easy as holding out a red pencil and a blue pencil and letting them choose, then providing practice and drills based on the language that facilitates that choice.

This is taken one step further with open ended questions like Which sport do you like? This essentially boils down to a vocabulary lesson with a few rotating structures and is a good way to teach sports related language or another common language from food to animals to school subjects.

Getting students to move beyond this to express meaningful opinions in the classroom is often a difficult proposition for both ESL teachers and students. Students need to have achieved a certain level of proficiency before they are comfortable moving past the “do you like?” stage. However, leading students through this transition can open them to critical thinking in a second language and can route them into a new way of expressing themselves and to interacting with the world around them.

Opening students to debate and exchanging unique, critical and more complex opinions can be done relatively easily over a few months, and when you spend the time building this skill, the reward in student language retention, self confidence and a whole host of positive factors will converge as you move forward.

Step 1: agree or disagree

Starting simple and going slow will improve the overall quality of the class and will allow students to naturally progress as they move forward. A good way to introduce this element into your class is to give students the initial push, I agree with Yuka and I disagree with Kentaro. Allow students to correct homework as a group and allow them to practice this initial language. Depending on cultural elements, the age of students, their social status and other factors this could go quickly, or could take some time to develop.

Step 2: justify disagreement

The next push is having them justify their disagreement. This will often happen naturally as students say, I disagree with Kentaro. The answer is C. At this point, the word “because” becomes very important. Teaching students the importance of the word “because” can be challenging at times, but once it is solidly embedded, it quickly becomes a cornerstone of their language and enables students to make all kinds of creative expressions. When students are comfortable using “because” on a regular basis, they will naturally start asking “Why?” and when students ask “Why?” independently, that is a major victory and a huge breakthrough. Supporting another student’s opinion with a secondary argument also goes hand-in-hand with this concept: I agree with Kentaro because the answer is A. It says so in the first sentence.

Step 3: build arguments

In the next stage, students are ready to explore elementary debating propositions. As always, start easy and progress slowly. This can be done by having them explore familiar concepts, presented as statements: Soccer is a boring sport. Video games are bad. Once students grasp this concept of trading ideas and supporting and disagreeing, they are ready for a subtly more complex proposition such as Should student’s have to wear uniforms?

At this point students are ready for the columns of, “Yes” and “No.” Allow them to build arguments and provide reasons for their positions. This is a good time to introduce note-taking into the mix. Have students write their opinions in answer the question in their notebooks.

Step 4: offer counter opinions

Following this, the project gets a little more difficult and may feel like pulling teeth at times. The students are first required to answer with their opinion on the statement: I think that students should wear uniforms so it is easy to see who is a student at that school. Then the same student has to offer a counter opinion as a follow up, which at times can be quite challenging: If students don’t have to wear uniforms, they can show their own style. This can be managed with engaging questions. This forces the student to examine the issue from two sides, in support of and in opposition to. After the student’s have all offered one opinion and then a counter opinion, have them select the best answer in it’s entirety and present it.

Step 5: agree and disagree (sit on the fence)

After students have become comfortable with presenting their desired position at the conclusion of the “debate” they can move into “fence-sitting,” where students simultaneously hold two opinions and say things like, Yes, children should have to go to bed before mid-night, because they need rest for the next day, but if I stayed up until 1 a.m. I could finish my Math homework.

Step 6: use the skills in a variety of contexts

At this point, you have students who are ready, willing and able to freely express themselves in a confident manner, and although the grammar and the vocabulary are lacking at times, they have the skills needed to contribute to and shape the debate. There are several directions you can explore at this point, including elementary experiments in democracy, business, debates on art, culture, or resource selection for their own learning. The potential to expand is endless.

My pilot class for this project is currently at this stage and I want to take the debate framework one step further before I open them up to more exciting projects: setting up a hypothetical debate. I call this the “what if” stage. Taking a proposed statement, making a decision and then dealing with the repercussions from that decision. In the coming weeks, I want to give them a question such as one most famously asked by Morgan Spurlock in Super Size Me: What would happen if I ate Mc Donald’s for one whole month?

When students have the ability and confidence to freely trade ideas and to expand on each other’s ideas and even challenge these ideas, they can set about building bridges. They can confidently move beyond “Do you like?” They can express why they like something, aspects they don’t like, advice to change the elements they don’t like and advice to improve on aspects they do like. They can even deal with the outcomes of the proposed changes and can fully explore the issues that will challenge them, as they deal with a new language.

Students Picking Pics

2011-05-22T14:13:00.001+09:00

Students Picking Pics (by Randy Poehlman)

When students are able to choose which images best represent the content of the lessons, they are instantly more engaged and they become far more active. Students can tailor the themes to their particular interests, or the general interests of their classmates, far better than a teacher can select relevant photography and illustrations. This bottom up learning style is particularly useful in encouraging visual students and passive students. It has the further benefit of allowing them ownership of opinions and sparks creativity.

This approach also benefits the teacher in several ways from my experience. The teacher is able to quickly learn about the concepts presented from the students’ perspective as they are the ones doing the selecting. The teacher is also able to bypass the learning materials they believe to be inadequate or out-dated. The number of relevant discussions and questions that come from this activity are numerous. Students learn concepts in less time and study more. Think about this logically from a student’s perspective. Are you more likely to study flashcards and workbooks that were created for you, by professional educators that you have never interacted with? Or, are you more likely to study lesson materials that you created with your classmates and with your teacher based on the framework of those same professional materials?

Practical advice

Open image search results with the computer facing away from the students so you can scan image results for inappropriate pictures before the students see the search results.
Be conscious of time and allow the students to make reasonable selections in a timely fashion. If their search goes on too long, they will ruin the team dynamic and disengage other students.

Students have a stronger attachment to the materials and the concepts that they have assisted in creating. When their parents ask them, “What did you in English class today?” they can smile and tell them that they found a picture of a dog in a cup, and perhaps even show them the picture/slide/ worksheet or flashcard they designed and made for the class. Review is also less time consuming and more productive if students can instantly identify with aspects of the lesson that they helped design. Of course, as a teacher you will be required to set achievable goals for the lesson and guide the students through this creative process, so that you can properly harness their creative insight and energy.

Additional ideas for this type of image selection and content creation teaching style:

If you have access to a digital camera, you can use students to pose for pictures and even allow other students to try their hand at photography. Then you can incorporate the photos of the posed students to illustrate concepts.
You can use a stronger class to design materials for a weaker class. This will allow the stronger class to gain confidence in their skills while assisting the weaker class in their development with age and interest appropriate materials.
Note: I am currently using a tablet computer with a built in camera for this type of lesson. I am using common presentation software. I am teaching small groups between the ages of 6-13. A standard laptop or a desktop would suffice and the concepts could be adapted for larger groups with a projector.

I have been teaching ESL for three years in Japan. I am currently working in Osaka, both developing and teaching extensive children’s programs. I am most interested in Bilingual studies, Immersion programs and Literacy development in young learners.

Japan’s eikaiwa industry in serious trouble after the bankruptcy of GEOS

2010-05-26T00:17:00.002+09:00

By JORDAN PEARSON

appearing on The Comment Factory at:
http://www.thecommentfactory.com/japans-eikaiwa-industry-in-serious-trouble-after-the-bankruptcy-of-geos-3015/

There once was a time when recent university graduates could escape to Japan to stave-off adulthood and responsibility for a few more years while making a decent living and paying off their student loans. The days of this glorious loophole in adult life are now all but over with the bankruptcy of Japan’s largest remaining language school, Geos, less than three years after the spectacular collapse of Japan’s biggest language school chain, Nova Corporation. This latest bankruptcy from an industry giant surely signals the final nail in the coffin of the large scale eikaiwa (English conversation school) industry.

It was deja vu all over again April 21st when Geos suddenly filed for bankruptcy, leaving staff and students in the lurch, with instructor’s salaries unpaid and students contracts unfulfilled in scenes reminiscent of Nova’s October, 2007 collapse (dubbed by the Japanese media at the time as “the largest consumer wipe-out since the end of the Pacific War”). In a surprise move, G.communication, the same company that stepped-in to pick over Nova’s carcass, announced that it would take over 70%, or 230, of Geos’s schools, and close the remaining 99, offering students and staff the chance to potentially continue at their respective branches, with a few catches.

While Geos’s bankruptcy hasn’t become quite the media spectacle in Japan that Nova’s was, the same hard luck stories of unpaid salaries and thousands of dollars lost abound, with the lessons of Nova apparently unlearned.

Despite widespread reports of Geos’s shakey financial situation, and the company closing its Australian operations in February, many seemed to have believed Geos’s lies that everything was still fine.

The Yomiuri shimbun reported on a “23-year-old American teacher” who complained angrily, “At yesterday’s meeting, the school manager told us that Geos’s financial condition was fine, but this morning we got an e-mail about the bankruptcy. We were lied to. If I don’t get paid, I can’t afford a flight back home.”

“Tommy,” writing on Japan’s social networking site, Mixi, said he “didn’t know [the bankruptcy] would happen. It was a complete surprise” and has found himself in a similar situation: “I will not get paid for the work I did in April. GEOS has no money, so they have no money to give me. I worked for free for one month. So, I have no money right now. Also, I was supposed to get a bonus when I finish with GEOS. I will now not get that money either… if I [recontract with G.communication] I will not get paid until May 15th. Also, that payment will be small. I have no money now, so I can’t wait for a small paycheck in the future. I need to make money quickly or starve.” (Which he apparently, in all seriousness, hopes to do by becomming a singer; his Mixi page also saying: “TO MUSICIANS: I have no job now. I can play any concert you want me to play. I [have] the free time to play any day – any time!”)

Students too, of course, lost out big in many cases from not paying attention to what happened at Nova and falling victim to Geos’s aggressive sales pitch. The Yomiuri shimbun also reported various tales of student-woe, ranging from a houswife in Chofu who “paid a year’s worth of lesson fees up front to send her son to GEOS” after losing money at Nova three years prior, to a man at the Jiyugaoka school who paid over 300,000 yen in February well aware of what happened at Nova but figuring the same thing wouldn’t happen with Geos. Other students reported losing comparable sums and regretting “having given in to GEOS’s pressure sales”.

The Mainichi Daily News reported on a “22-year-old female student at a closing Geos school in Sangenjaya in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo,” who had “just paid her entire yearly tuition” at Geos the month preceding bankruptcy. “She had previously paid her tuition on a monthly basis. However, around autumn of last year, the school started repeatedly recommending she pay her yearly tuition in a lump sum,” the paper reported. The student added “sadly,” “If they recommended the lump payment while knowing they would be going bankrupt, it’s depressing”. One could also argue criminal.

And like Nova with company president Saruhashi, it seems Geos’s financial problems were compounded by having a criminal dunce at the helm; founder and president Tsuneo Kusunoki in Geos’s case, who, much like Nova’s currently incarcerated “Monkey-Bridge” (as the former-president’s last name translates to in English), refuses to accept reality — even going as far as petitioning against the bankruptcy proceedings in the Tokyo District Court, potentially complicating and prolonging matters for all involved.

As reported in the Japan Times, Kusunoki has publicly stated: “The company’s board of directors did not reach a consensus on filing for bankruptcy, and the action was taken by one director and some employees… Although it has given the impression that the company filed for bankruptcy, it is actually not the company’s will.”

It seems everyone but Kusonoki (as his name is often intentionally misspelled, thus translating to “shit tree”) has dismissed this idea as ridiculous however. One poster on Let’s Japan explaining Kusonoki’s delusional attitude as a result of “30+ years of running a large company, surrounded by yes-men and never ever being questioned by anyone ever” having “unhinged the stupid bastard who is now completely detached from reality.”

“He’s been ousted…” continues the post, “but being the mad old git that he is, he’s unable to accept that his life’s work is not only worthless but has been leaking money like a Saudi on a gap year for a decade or more.”

Like any country in the world, lying pricks in positions of power are a yen a dozen in Japan, G.communications president, Hideo Sugimoto, claiming his company’s interest in Geos is purely altruisitc, stating in numerous interviews they bought-out Geos only to “protect the students”. He has said G.comm hopes to have Geos returned to profitablity within a year, which they did reasonably successfully operating a drastically reduced number of Nova branches, however, as Shawn Thir of Let’s Japan notes, “[u]nfortunately, that profitability will come in the form of cost-cutting measures which will likely be borne by instructors when they sign on to new working conditions once their three-month contracts are up.”

The future for Geos staff is obviously very uncertain — their contracts with G.comm expiring this July 31st — and like Thir says, probably not particularly bright, especially if this grim warning from an ex-Nova G.Comm employee is anything to go by: “You will NEVER feel comfortable working under G. Com…I gaurantee it. You will feel… you could be screwed over at a moments notice. G. Com has no problem breaking its contracts with its teachers and students…this company will lie its ass off to make a dollar.”

This is a pretty reasonable appraisal of G.Comm in my personal experience, thinking back to when Nova went bankrupt and G.Comm categorically promised to hire back EVERY former Nova employee in November 2007, but started backing-out on this too-good-to-be-true offer on December 24th and Christmas Day, 2007, with eventually about 50% of the instructors who hoped to recontract having their offers of employment rescinded as they were “no longer needed”. To be fair, many people I knew were stroking G.Comm in a similar fashion; using them to whip-in students, or making off with their 150,000yen “stand-by” offer, but one can’t help but feel the ex-Nova G.Comm emplyee above is right when they say that G.Comm is presently “making all these promises to GEOS teachers so they dont run off and G. Com has to hire and train new GEOS teachers…a system they dont know anything about yet… once the picture is more clear…expect alot of GEOS teachers to get axed…”

They also note that recontracting Geos instructors will most likely have to sign technically illegal contracts to keep their jobs: “Be prepared to sign the same contracts as NOVA teachers and you will find that you will receive a “regularity bonus” of 25,000yen if you dont miss any days during a pay period…its actually part of your monthly salary, its not a bonus at all…if you miss a day of work…you will be penalized and your regularity bonus is forfeited and a day of wages deducted from your salary…you could easily lose 40,000 yen for one day….so NEVER miss a day of work!! If you are late…you forfeit your regularity pay and a prorated deduction for the time you were late. ITS ILLEGAL and the labor ministry and labor union have both said this activity is illegal, but G. Com has brushed it off.”

Despite — or more likey because of — this, G.communications has now established itself as one of the major players in the eikaiwa market. But one can’t help but echo Shawn Thir’s question regarding the company’s latest purchase: “how much blood do they think they can realistically extract from the eikaiwa stone?” Indeed, with Geos’s bankruptcy coming so quickly after Nova’s collapse dominated headlines, and many unverified reports floating around that another major chain school, Aeon, is on the verge of bankruptcy, many are questioning the future of the eikaiwa industry at all.

A simple look at the numbers shows that large-scale eikaiwa operations are no longer viable, and Japan is no longer the attractive destination it was for recent university graduates and the lazy. The figures from METI show that as recently as February 2007, the overall number of students taking foreign language lessons was around 750,000. The number plummeted to approximately 360,000 by 2008, and according to Nikkei, the number of new students enrolling in 2009 “plunged 35.7%” further from even the post-Nova bankruptcy levels.

The global economic recession is generally cited as the major reason in the decline of students, but another major factor was the reduction of the government’s kyuufukukin allowance to help people find work. As noted on Let’s Japan, “It paid 40% of tuition fees up to 200 thousand yen”, but “In October 2007, the allowance was cut to 20% or a maximum of 100 thousand yen. Then came the collapse of Lehman Brothers which forced many households to cut education expenses from their budgets.”

Relating this to the larger schools business models, renowned entrepreneur and respected commentator on Japanese affairs, Randy Poehlman, offers the following similar summation:

“The business model for large chain schools is clearly broken… The demand for language lessons is constant, and the recent recession cited by many as a main factor in the failure of GEOS, is somewhat of a partial convenient truth. The reason these chains are failing is because they are based on signing up new students and renewing existing contracts in an environment where more and more consumers are unsure about the stability of the chain approach to learning English.”

Poehlman’s expert opinions are echoed by the blogosphere, “Adamu,” (who offers an excellent statistical analysis of the eikaiwa market at his site) adding:

“The problem is that these major players set up large-scale businesses that profited by essentially gouging customers – promising stellar results and pressuring them into long-term contracts only to give sub-standard lessons to people who may not have really been able to benefit from them in the first place. Now, a combination of factors… has come crashing down on Geos… the major operators seem to be offering more or less the same product as before – if anything, they are diluting the product with less value and more part-time teachers – and customers just aren’t as interested anymore.”

Shawn Thir’s analogy of the old eikaiwa giants to the “dinosaurs” is particularly apt:

“the collapse of Nova and Lehman Brothers can be seen as extinction events that changed everything. There are new rules in play and the model of large schools charging everything up front is going the way of the dinosaur, making space for the small, furry schools to thrive.”

And indeed, the general consensus regarding the future of smaller-scale eikaiwa operations is vastly more optimistic, Poehlman stating, “You are going to see a growth in smaller independent companies that are rooted in individual communities.” He predicts that: “As Japan continues to become more globalized the need for both children and adults to learn English is going to grow. Students should be looking towards smaller independent schools that are rooted in the community and do not expect students to pay for lessons a year in advance.”

The attractiveness of Japan to foreigners as a destination for working holidays or longer-term stays looks set to keep declining however, and even in my three years in the country it has changed dramatically. Stories like that of an employee for Tokyo-based Japan Advanced Labour Staff Services, who hasn’t recieved his final month’s salary from the company because they know he is scheduled to return to the U.S. soon and are betting he won’t have the time to go to the Labour Standards Office or hire a lawyer to try and actually get his pay, are becomming increasingly common. Overall, salaries, benefits and working conditions for eikaiwa and ALT (Assistant Language Teacher in schools) jobs have steadily gotten worse, with Japan’s somewhat indifferent attitude to all things non-Japanese showing through more and more.

For all the comic book geeks, anime fans, and anyone else with their heart set on coming to Japan, for whatever abberant reason they may have, there is only one half-decent option remaining in these dark days: come with the government’s JET programme, or don’t come at all.

China Executes Japanese Senior Citizen

2010-04-07T00:08:00.000+09:00

Today, Chinese authorities executed a Japanese man for drug smuggling. This marks the first execution of a Japanese national in China since the two countries normalized relations in 1972. Officials in Beijing also made Japanese politicians aware that they are scheduling three more executions of Japanese prisoners this week.

Mitsunobu Akano, a 65 year old was executed in the northeast Liaoning Province following his trial and subsequent appeal stemming from a 2006 arrest. The deceased was allegedly caught with 2.5kg of “stimulant drugs” at an airport in Dalian. He was attempting to bring the drugs from China to Japan. The attempted smuggling of the stimulants in question would have no impact on the Chinese population, as the drugs were destined for Japan. The drugs were of Chinese origin and Akano was heading back to Japan, thus the resulting “victims,” of this offense would have been citizens of Japan. The unfortunate part for Akano was that he was detected in China and prevented from taking his flight into the realm of a civilized, fist world nation.

“Beijing told Japan last week that it plans to execute three more Japanese drug smugglers this week - Teruo Takeda, 67, from Nagoya city; Hironori Ukai, 48, from Gifu prefecture; and Katsuo Mori, 67, of Fukushima prefecture.” (1)

The timing of these executions comes at a crucial point. Japan and the Democratic Party has begun to open up diplomatic avenues to the Chinese government, that were unrealistic a year ago under Liberal Democratic leadership. Wen Jiabao and his officials in China are demonstrating arrogance and subtle power sifts in this latest attempt to gain a little more power over Tokyo.

The lack-luster comments offered by Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, Deputy Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Justice Minister Kiko Chiba were factual, but lacked a necessary ounce of leadership. The three said in large part that it is unfortunate, but there is little they can do, because the issue is a matter of Chinese domestic legal process. The Japanese government should have been putting more pressure on the Chinese to curb today's execution and to suspend the other upcoming executions. If Japan wants to drive Asian politics they have to get a touch more courageous, especially with Chinese officials. Hatoyama should have come out in front of this story saying something to the effect of, “Yes, China will execute a 65 year old Japanese man for drug smuggling. His execution is to be followed by three more elderly Japanese citizens in the coming week. The Chinese judicial system is free to act with independence, but the world would really like to know how many executions are carried out in China annually?”

Amnesty International is handling the situation in a bit more of a confrontational manner, and last week urged China to account for all of the executions in the country. Chinese officials claim that they are executing less prisoners than they did before, but reducing your numbers from tens of thousands to thousands still leaves a lot of room for improvement.

Japan is Hypocritical on Abduction Issue

2010-03-14T22:33:00.000+09:00

Japanese persistence on holding North Korea accountable for the abduction of Japanese citizens in the 1970's and 1980's shows a remarkably hypocritical stance on the part of Japanese negotiators, and politicians. There are allegedly eight cases, involving 11 Japanese citizens who were abducted and believed to be in North Korea. There are currently thousands of children who have been abducted by Japanese citizens and remain in Japan despite the mounting pressure from countries including, Canada, France, the United States to name a few. These children, are for the most part, children born to unsuccessful international marriages.

The complacency of the average Japanese citizen has led to a public that is widely familiar with the plight of those handful of citizens who were snatched by North Korean spies. The population is generally extremely afraid of the threat from North Korea. However, the issue of children who are illegally brought to Japan and who are prevented from seeing their foreign parents remains largely hidden and under-reported in Japan.

The six party talks between North Korea, South Korea, China, Japan, Russia and the United States are an on-again, off-again affair aimed at the eventual denuclearization of North Korea. Japanese negotiators continue to insist that Pyongyang admits to sanctioning the abductions, while North Korea continues to insist that Japan not be a part of the talks.

The Japanese representatives need to drop this issue until they sign on to the Hague Convention, which deals with parental rights and child custody cases. Japan has not signed the 1980 convention despite promising rhetoric from the Democratic Party of Japan earlier this year. Japan remains the only first world country that endorses these abductions.

It is remarkable that Tokyo has the audacity to complain that North Korea abducted 11 of its citizens decades ago, while Japanese citizens are continuing to deny foreign parents the right to be part of their child's lives, after the relationship sours.

New Chinese Ambassador to Tokyo Will Improve Relations

2010-03-02T00:44:00.000+09:00

Cheng Yonghua kicked-off a new diplomatic mission to Tokyo this morning. The new Ambassador arrived on Sunday and will be busy from the beginning. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is planning on making an official state visit to Japan in the spring. The announcement of Cheng as Beijing's representative to Japan is expected, in some ways to bridge the divide between the two major economies of Asia.

Cheng is replacing previous Chinese Ambassador to Japan Cui Tiankai. Cheng is well versed in Japanese affairs, speaks the language fluently and has well-established business connections. He has spent nearly 15 years working for the diplomatic mission in Tokyo in the past. He was the deputy director-general of the department of Asian affairs at the Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry and a Minister at the Embassy. His most recent posting was overseeing the Embassy in South Korea and prior to that was head of the Malaysian mission.

The appointment is being viewed as a step forward in relations with China and Japan, because Cheng is expected to build suitable relations with Hatoyama's government. The post-election statements made by the Japanese Prime Minister in the fall of 2009, signaled to Jiabao's Beijing, that the time was ripe to develop a closer relationship with Japan. As the two governments work towards common goals and move further from tense relationships of the past, they have to move with caution. The growing relationship with China will cause continued problems with Japanese- American relations.

As America continues to maintain a great interest in Japanese relations and views Japan as the cornerstone to American influence in the East Asia Pacific region, Japan is finding itself a popular piece of real estate. China is seeking to boost relations with Tokyo and America is seeking to maintain a historically close relationship. The move that Jiabao is sending to Hatoyama with the appointment of Cheng is that China got the message about increasing relations with Korea and China and that they are slowly implementing a program that will meet both countries stated objectives.

Is the current Japanese government ready to be an international player? Is a move towards increased relations with China the correct step for Japan at this point? Are Japan and China capable of working together in a meaningful and functional way, for the benefit of both?

Of course, these questions are yet to be answered. In regards to Hatoyama, and the current government's readiness to become a true international source of power, I think that the Japanese government is making the right initial steps, to make the nation a touch more dynamic and global. Japan cannot continue to ignore the realities of Asia and the accumulated power of Japan, Korea and China. The three, when working together on issues and counter-balancing each others independent power in favour of a consensus can accomplish great things in the region. As a condition to this, China is certainly going to have to put pressure on North Korea to give up ambitious weapons programs and to make steps in the direction of normalcy. Japan will have to open domestic markets and allow Korean and Chinese companies more inroads in Japan.

In regards to the question about the move towards a closer relationship with Tokyo and Beijing. The move is definitely coming at the right time. With the financial meltdown caused in large part by the sluggish American economy, the Japanese, and the rest of the world are second guessing American capitalism and the free flow of credit backed by international investors. The appointment of a Japanese- friendly Ambassador by China is a seemingly small step towards improving relations, but these seemingly small steps are starting to add up, and there is little doubt that relations between China and Japan are growing closer.

Yes, China and Japan are capable of working together. The Democratic Party of Japan has been welcoming the growing ties and the Chinese have a lot to gain by winning Japanese hearts and minds. As China grows closer to Japan over time, they will be increasingly seen as a legitimate power in global affairs and Asian affairs specifically. Japan has much to gain from balancing relationships with China and America, because being well placed in the middle of two giants has its advantages.

The appointment of Cheng as the representative of Beijing in Tokyo will be another positive step in the direction of Japanese-Chinese relations and the ultimate out-come of such moves will bring about a net benefit for both Japan and China.

Japanese Police Getting Slightly More Proactive

2010-02-21T23:07:00.000+09:00

Police in Japan are remarkably reactive and don't spend much time or energy working on crime prevention. Besides stopping the occasional cyclist and verifying ownership of said bicycle, offering directions or taking a spin on their scooters, they remain very low-key, but they are a constant presence. The officers are largely relegated to their small community police boxes that are centrally located close to train stations all over the country. The policing approach has been one that is based on police officers maintaining a visible presence. “Patrols are the most important duty for community police officers in that the visible presence of police officers in their uniforms prevents crimes and gives community residents sense of security.” (1)

This type of policing is often a proactive approach, but the general disregard for blatant warning signs and growing unease has led to citizens in Japan, calling for an increased effort to stamp out the causes of crime.

The National Police Agency announced this week that they are enacting a set of regulations based on prevention of crime. The service is committing itself to the documentation of all tips, inquires and consultations. The move comes on the heals of public complaints over the way police officers handle tips from citizens. According to reports, the police had failed to follow-up on tips offered before crimes were committed.

“At present, some police officers do not leave documented records when people come in to report potential crimes, saying the reported incident didn't yet constitute a crime or that the matter was outside their jurisdiction.” (2)

This documentation initiative is a welcome step in community safety, and can only help one of the world's safest nations. If the strategy is adhered to and implemented effectively then the result will likely slightly lower an already low crime rate. It is a step in the right direction and should be followed with more moves towards an increased focus on crime prevention and a pro-active focus.

In many regards, the institution of policing in Japan is not focused on the study of criminology and addressing the underlying issues of crime. The nation is still under the guise of the evil foreigner committing all the crimes.

This is largely apparent in recent reporting on the hit-and-run case in Nagoya, involving suspects carrying Brazilian citizenship when headlines such as “3rd Brazilian arrested over fatal hit-and-run in Nagoya” and “Brazilian arrested over deadly hit-and-run in Nagoya,” were splashed everywhere in the Japanese media. The fact that the suspects were Brazilian had little to do with the story, but soon became the central issue. Only the latest example, where crime perpetrated by foreign residents in Japan is held out as the norm and throughly reported by the Japanese media.

Until Japanese society can begin to wrap its collective head around the fact that Japanese citizens commit the majority of crimes and that foreign citizens commit, per capita less crime than the domestic population, there is no sense in studying crime prevention techniques. Occasionally a foreign citizen will be apprehended and convicted of a crime, allowing the domestic population to breathe easy; “Oh another foreigner convicted, the crime rate is rising due to their transgressions.”

Under the new system all interactions with officers will be documented, no matter how minor, and they will be passed on to the relevant section so that it can be handled in an appropriate manner. Police chiefs will be in charge of enforcing the new measure, and if Japanese bureaucratic systems are any example, the new regulations will be religiously followed in every regard. The fact that the National Police Agency is at least paying lip-service to the issue and making small steps in the right direction is to be commended.

(1)http://www.npa.go.jp/english/seisaku1/JapaneseCommunityPolice.pdf
(2)http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20100219a2.html
(3)http://www2.ttcn.ne.jp/honkawa/2788d.html

Tweet Tweet; Hatoyama Gone Digital

2010-02-15T22:05:00.000+09:00

In a bid to capture the attention of a cell phone obsessed nation and in order to appeal to younger voters, Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has stolen from the political play book of successful American politicians including Barak Obama. Hatoyama's office recently launched his blog and a Twitter account to connect the Prime Minister with the public.

Hato Cafe, the blog started by the Hatoyama team features a small bird character, above duel speech bubbles and a green backdrop. The blog has been up and running for a little over two months and debuted during the lead-up to New Years. According to an article in January on Japan Trends the blog was designed by Yuji Tokuda and the Hatoyama team really thought out the layout and visual presentation of the blog before launching the project.(1)

Hatoyama has also been collecting followers on Twitter. As of writing Hatoyama has 307,813 followers and has posted 59 Tweets. He is apparently following nearly 37,000 Tweeters. His Twitter page can be accessed at http://twitter.com/hatoyamayukio. As a comparison Barak Obama has over 3 million followers.

The “Twitterscape” and the “blogsphere” are apparently the newest equivalent of Roosevelt's Fireside Chats. To think that only a few years ago the political communication buzzword was “town-hall meeting.” These staged overtly friendly political love sessions were most recently mastered by Bush Jr. The move to a more open line of communication coming out of the offices of world leaders has increased the profile of those politicians successfully harnessing the digital revolution.

Hatoyama has broken out into the digital realm with power and with panache, well sort of. His start into Twitter and blogs and generally increasing his on line persona has come later than it should have, but none-the-less, he is the first Japanese politician to embrace the new tools at his disposal in any notable manner. In the lead up to the last election many young voters and political commentators were wondering why Taro Aso, Hatoyama and the other candidates were not capitalizing on the success of the Obama electronic election model.

“US President Barack Obama's use of the Web helped catapult him into the White House but lawmakers in Japan have been slower to embrace the Internet, leaving many young voters feeling disconnected with the political process.” (2)

The Prime Minister's move to electronic communication tools is a positive step forward for the political process in Japan and as the Democratic Party of Japan finds their footing and begins ruling with new policies and new ideas, they are going to grow more effective over time. Hatoyama has followed up the release of his on line “Hato Cafe” with real interactive sessions at the official residence to discuss issues with a cross-section of people. His first session of “Real Hato Cafe” was held this past weekend and the focus of the discussions was child care and parental issues. In the promotional photos of the meeting the “Hato Cafe” duel speech bubble and bird logo is clearly visible at the head of the table. According to the Cabinet Public Relations Office web-site, “A total of ten people who are raising children were invited to the first Real Hato Cafe meeting to exchange views on child raising, among other matters. Real Hato Cafe meetings will continue to be held under various themes.” (3)

One thing remains certain, Hatoyama continues to find his own way to govern and his march towards new methods of communication have certainly been a step in the right direction.

(1) http://www.japantrends.com/yukio-hatoyamas-blog-and-twitter-japanese-politics-gets-digital/
(2) http://english.sina.com/technology/2009/0803/260457.html
(3) http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/hatoyama/actions/201002/14hatocafe_e.html

Yokozuna Asashoryu- Undisputed Champion

2010-02-07T01:36:00.000+09:00

The most talked about, despised and loved Sumo Wrestler of our era has opted for retirement. The Mongolian Powerhouse that has dominated Japan's National Sport since being promoted to the rank of Yokozuna in 2003 has given in to pressure to bow out of the sport as his latest controversy surfaces.

It is being widely reported that Asashoryu severely beat a fellow bar patron in a drunken rampage in the Nishi-Azabu district of Tokyo in January. This is only the latest scandal in a career that many Sumo spectators and reporters believe is a black eye on the sport itself. Asashoryu has received negative publicity for alleged match-fixing. He also cited injury and declined to participate in summer Sumo events in 2007 and returned to Mongolia. During his trip home, he was filmed playing in a charity soccer match. When the Yokozuna returned to Japan he was suspended from upcoming tournaments. This marking the first time an active Yokozuna had been suspended from a major tournament. He has also drawn negative publicity for fighting with Sumo off the dohyo, complaining about officiating, injuring wrestlers in training sessions and refusing to adopt Japanese Citizenship.

By focusing exclusively on Asashoryu's transgressions and by holding him out as a hot-head or a bully, the Sumo world is exposing itself to be filled with unrealistic expectations of a professional athlete in the modern age. Sure, his latest drunken escapades are not to be condoned entirely, nor are other allegations made against him. However, this routine chastising of a champion that has achieved so much is at times painful. Sumo is a little different from other sports, because it is steeped in tradition and codes of conduct and the allure of the sport rests partly in those attributes.

The simple fact that Asashoryu is Mongolian has hampered his reputation with fans who have openly called for him to, “Go back to Mongolia.” The Yokozuna is being treated differently because he is not Japanese, and he is not totally willing to bend his spirit to what the Sumo Association expects. His behavior might have been unbecoming to a man entrusted with the Yokozuna rank, but he is uniquely an individual and has brought the popularity of the sport to new audiences and as a whole leaves the business of Sumo better off for his presence in the role of champion.

"It's not only Asashoryu's problem. The root of the problem is the association's economic motive," said journalist Yorimasa Takeda, who accused Asashoryu of match-fixing in an article published in a weekly magazine in 2007. Despite his "bad guy" image, Asashoryu was a fan magnet and thus generated a lot of money for the sumo industry, which was behind the association's reluctance to punish him severely, Takeda said. (1)

Asashoryu's Accomplishments:
First Mongolian Yokozuna
In 2005 he became the first wrestler to win all six official tournaments in a single calender year
He won a total of 25 top division tournament championships
Third highest all time on wins behind Taiho and Chiyonofuji
Career record 669- 173- 76

As Asashoryu retires he should be remembered for; his strong personality, his warrior spirit, his good nature, his dominance of native Japanese wrestlers and his outstanding record.

(1) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20100206a1.html

Foreigners Shouldn't vote in Japan.

2010-01-31T12:52:00.000+09:00

The debate about opening the polls to long time residents of Japan, who are not citizens has been raging in Japan for months now. The current discussion is focused on whether Japan should adopt legislation to extend voting rights to Permanent Residents, who are not Japanese Citizens.

The proposed Foreigner's Suffrage bill has divided the government. The call for voting rights for long-time residents of Japan is in large part being pushed by the South Korean government. There are an estimated 400,000 Korean citizens currently holding Permanent Residency in Japan. Under current voting laws they are not allowed to cast ballots in elections. These Korean citizens are in large part fully integrated into Japanese society, speaking fluent Japanese, owning businesses and property. Many of them are third and fourth generation residents. Japanese Citizenship is based on lineage and these Koreans are kept in a pseudo-citizen category. Some of the Koreans who were Permanent Residents, have married Japanese spouses and have become naturalized citizens. Many of them are not currently Japanese Citizens.

It is my contention that in order to vote in any country, you should follow the legal avenues to become a citizen of such a country and not be voting from the outside in. Although these Korean citizens and a great deal of other nationalities currently reside in Japan on a full time, permanent basis they should not be voting in Japanese elections, be they local or national.

“The government should not be hasty in submitting a bill to the ordinary Diet session to grant local voting rights to permanent foreign residents in Japan, Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Kazuhiro Haraguchi said Saturday.” (1)
Haraguchi came out in support of the legislation back in the fall of 2009 and has since became a little more moderate on his stance as the above quote demonstrates. The Democrats have been attempting to open a more positive dialogue with Seoul on a variety of issues. The main focus of the DPJ has been to increase positive relations with the Asian community, and granting voting rights to non Japanese citizens seems to be another ploy to this end.

Prime Minister Hatoyama and Democratic Party of Japan Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa have been supporting the foreigner's suffrage bill and pushing for the proposed bill to make its way quickly through the necessary Diet sessions, so that it can be passed into law. The Democratic Party of Japan has been working towards Permanent Resident legislation since 1998, but due to staunch opposition from the Liberal Democrats they could not get the previous 12 bills through the house. (2)
Japan is often criticized by foreign residents as being slightly racist. Japanese citizens periodically look down on Korean Permanent Residents in Japan. Although granting voting rights to long time residents could alleviate some of these tensions, the vote specifically should only be granted to full fledged citizens of Japan.

(1)http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T100130005317.htm
(2)http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20091009a1.html

Unpaid Overtime is Killing McDonald's Managers

2010-01-21T01:39:00.000+09:00

Japan is notorious for the long hours of work that companies expect from their employees. This service overtime is unpaid overtime that a company expects and often demands from employees. Periodically this culture of unpaid overtime ends up killing otherwise healthy employees who cannot physically handle the stress and the hours involved. The Japanese have a word (karoshi) which translates to roughly “death from overwork.” The latest death by overwork scandal is levied against McDonald's and is winding its way through courts here in Japan.

Recently a 25 year old male, who was managing a store in Kawasaki city collapsed and died due to karoshi. According to a story on the Yomiuri Online, “he was working on November 07, 2009 from noon to the following day at 5 a.m. He then came back to work the same day (Nov. 8) at noon. Soon after he collapsed and died.” (1) The victim's mother is trying to get compensation for the death of her son, but this week she lost a local court decision to receive financial benefit. The January 18, 2010 ruling upheld a labour standard assessment committee's denial to pay compensation.

The latest victim of a ridiculous schedule for the international hamburger shop is by far not the only one. In addition to the deceased manager in Kawasaki, a manager in Saitama Prefecture launched a lawsuit against McDonald's nearly five years ago regarding unpaid overtime. Also, a female manager died from overwork, due to her schedule, managing a Yokohama McDonald's in 2007.

McDonald's Japan lost a lawsuit two years ago with a former manager, who collected roughly $70,000 (USD) in compensation for all his unpaid overtime. Hiroshi Takano had worked an estimated 60-80 hours per month of service overtime, in addition to his normal, paid working schedule. Furthermore, he was denied any paid holidays for 63 days. Takano also sought a further $30,000 (USD) in compensation for mental suffering, but that claim was rejected by the court which heard his case.(2)

“(In October of 2007) A store manager with hamburger chain McDonald's in Japan who died of a brain hemorrhage was a victim of "karoshi" or death by overwork, a regional labour office said.” reports an AFP story from October 2009.(3) This manager who collapsed and died was a 41 year-old woman who was overseeing a Yokohama branch. Her family subsequently launched a lawsuit to collect pension money after the labour bureau ruled that he death was a “Karoshi” death.

“According to the court, the average annual salary of McDonald's shop managers stood at ¥7.07 million ($70,700 USD) in 2005. But the salaries varied, with some 10 percent of managers receiving only ¥5.79 million ($57,900 USD), a level lower than the average annual salary of assistant shop managers, based on evaluations.”(2)

Japanese blogs, and social networking sites are increasingly filling up with comments and posts about the negative aspects of taking a management role for McDonald's. On line users of 2CH have been discussing the seemingly high salary of managers for McDonald's restaurants, but have been warning others about the possibility of literally being worked to death, and discussing negative health aspects.(3)

Many McDonald's managers estimate that they spend roughly 80 hours per month engaged in unpaid overtime. The fact that McDonald's has been expecting managers to work 80 hours unpaid overtime for the past number of years is astonishing. This policy has led to lawsuits and deaths, but still McDonald's Japan expects far too much out of their managers and their policies have obviously changed little. The company has been able to escape with little more than a slap on the hand, despite the fact that karoshi deaths continue to plague the corporate giant.

(1) Yomiuri Online (Translated into English) http://job.yomiuri.co.jp/news/ne_10012004.htm
(2) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20080129a3.html
(3)http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gwgGnPxcowg7_uyZJCFFGXnT1N6w
(4) http://natto.2ch.net/recruit/kako/982/982941629.html

Financial Irregularities threaten Hatoyama and Ozawa.

2010-01-16T19:31:00.000+09:00

Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa are under constant criticism by the Japanese media, regarding some allegedly sketchy financial deals and some questionable election funding. The continued probes are limiting the ability of the Democrats to govern effectively. As of Monday the DPJ will be beginning their first ordinary Diet session and will be under increased attack from the Liberal Democrats regarding the financial affairs of the both Hatoyama and Ozawa.

The Democrats have been battling with the problems for quite sometime now, and the subsequent investigations into some of the funding has led to arrests and ruined political careers inside the ruling party. Tomohiro Ishikawa a DPJ Lower House member was arrested on Friday in connection with financial irregularities, in connection with Ozawa's political funding. Ishikawa, is only the latest political victim of the Ozawa scandal. Two former Ozawa aides are facing the justice system over the 2004 Tokyo land deal when a reported ¥400 million changed hands without being registered. (1)

Currently, the members of the Democrat's coalition government are urging Ozawa to come clean on his financial dealings. According to an article on the front page of Saturday's edition of The Japan Times, the Secretaries General of both the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the Kokumin Shinto (People's New Party) are calling for an explanation from Ozawa. “I expect (Ozawa) to make efforts to dispel public doubts,” said SDP Secretary General Yasumasa Shigeno. (2)

Prime Minister Hatoyama's financial dealings are also under a cloud of suspicion, but the Prime Minister has demonstrated a better ability than Ozawa to rise above the criticism. Hatoyama's financial donations in the lead up to his campaign and election last summer are under scrutiny and will be viciously challenged by the Liberal Democrats in the coming months. Hatoyama faces questions arising from his list of campaign contributors. It has become apparent that the Prime Minister's secretary had attempted to spread Hatoyama's family donations to a larger base of individual contributors. Hatoyama's family is extremely wealthy, due to the fact that his maternal grandfather was the man behind Bridgestone Corp. The Prime Minister's secretary apparently took large family donations and attributed them to a broader base of individuals, thus appearing that Hatoyama had a broader support base than he actually did. Some of the listed contributors were in fact no longer physically able to make donations, as they currently reside in the grave-yard. “It was only with media reports that deceased people had been falsely listed in Hatoyama's political fund reports as funding donors, and subsequent accusations from a citizens' organization, that the murky flow of vast amounts of funds surrounding the prime minister came to light.,” (3) reported the Mainichi Daily News in December.

The funding issues surrounding two of the Democrat's biggest political names could possibly have negative consequences in the upcoming House of Councilors election slated for July. Both Hatoyama and Ozawa will have to successfully deflect growing criticism from the media, the Liberal Democrats, the public and coalition partners in order to take full control of the governance of Japan.

(1)http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20100116a1.html
(2)Kyodo. "Come Clean, DPJ's partners tell Ozawa." The Japan Times [Tokyo] Saturday, January 16th, 2010 , 3rd Edition, Front: A1.
(3)http://mdn.mainichi.jp/perspectives/news/20091225p2a00m0na014000c.html

International Parents on Edge in Japan

2010-01-12T01:19:00.000+09:00

A Tennessee man was arrested in Japan a few months ago for trying to “kidnap” his children. The arrest lead to international media attention. Christopher Savoie, was jailed for attempting to “snatch back his children from his estranged wife,” in September of 2009. (1) The case has put a human face on the problem of foreign nationals losing their rights to interact with their children after their estranged spouses return to Japan without the consent of the other parent.

The case attracted attention from both American and Japanese sources and left many parents involved in international marriages wondering what exactly their rights were. Japan has yet to sign a Hague Convention that would bring the country closer to respecting a child's right to have a relationship with both parents.

“The Hague Convention on international child abduction stipulates that if a parent from a broken international marriage takes a child out of his or her country of residence without the other's consent, the child must be returned to that country.”(2)

Japan has drawn fire from international groups, and diplomatic missions for the way it handles international child custody cases and as the government moves closer to signing the Hague Convention the result will make the process fair for both sides. Many of the disputes involve American and Japanese parents, and the Japanese Foreign Ministry is looking into signing the Convention. The ministry has convened a task force on the issue and are presently debating the merits of signing the agreement.

According to the Asahi Shimbun, 81 countries are currently signatories to the Convention which stems from 1980. Japan is now the only G7 member nation which still has not signed the agreement. (2) To say that the agreement should have been signed long ago, seems at this point a bit of an understatement.

Apparently, Japanese law-makers have been reluctant to sign on to the agreement fearing that abusive ex-spouses will jeopardize the children's safety, which is a legitimate concern in a small fraction of the growing number of cases involved. Japanese customs are also at stake. In Japan, when courts are deciding the future residences in custody cases, they almost aways grant custody to the spouse that can spend more time with the children, usually the woman.

The custody of children in cases of international divorce is a growing issue that needs to be addressed and dealt with according to international standards. In a globalized environment, states must act with good-will towards one another and provide assurances that international norms will be respected. Having said this, Japan needs to sign the Hague Convention without delay, and put an end to these lingering issues of custody and visitation.

According to the Assembly for French Overseas Nationals for Japan and other groups supporting divorced parents in Japan, roughly 10,000 duel citizenship children living in Japan are prevented from seeing their foreign parent. (3) This is clearly a problem that needs to be addressed. Recently US, Canadian, British and French diplomatic missions ave made the case to Tokyo.

Hopefully for the diplomatic well being of Japan, the newly elected Democratic Party of Japan will get behind the effort to push the issue through and get the Hague Convention signed. Current Foreign Minister, Katsuya Okada has implied that he is willing to study the manner. Michele Bond a consular affairs employee with the American Embassy in Tokyo said that she met officials at both the Foreign and Justice ministries who told her that the government is “very seriously and carefully considering signing” the Convention. (4) The previous statement however, dates back to May of 2009. At this point it looks like the government is drawing closer to signing, but the sooner the better, for many children and parents who are waiting to reunite.

(1)http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/10/15/japan.custody.battle/index.html
(2)http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY201001080120.html
(3)http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20091010f1.html
(4)http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20090522a4.html

Liberal Democrats forced to adapt

2010-01-09T17:59:00.000+09:00

The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) of Japan is an institution. The party had controlled the government of Japan for fifty years, relatively uninterrupted. However, with a bitter defeat in last year's election by the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), the once long serving party is in transition. The Liberal Democrats will not be returning to power, unless they restructure internally and provide some direction for the country.

The LDP had been guiding Japan's economy and foreign policy with a tried, tested and true philosophy that collapsed with the global economy a few years back, and most recently led to the embarrassing defeat in last summer's House of Representatives election. The loss was more of a referendum on the LDP leadership and ruling mentality, than it was a vote of confidence in the DPJ's ability. With voters disenfranchised, the polling numbers were drastically low, in an election that would re-shape the Japanese economy and global outlook. Voter turnout was estimated at roughly 50% in the election, but strong weather conditions and swine-flu (N1H1) apparently also kept voters from turning up. (1)

After so long, what went wrong for the Liberal Democrats?

Domestically, many news sources have attributed the fall of the LDP to the economic troubles that have recently rocked so many economies. This is no doubt a major factor in the defeat of the LDP. However, another reason that is less apparent was also at work when voters decided to hand the reigns to anyone other than the LDP. The Liberal Democrats had become a legacy party with a sense of entitlement, offering very few fresh ideas and little or no convincing arguments as to how they should, or even why they should fix the problems that had developed under their leadership. Rather, it was not only the economic plunges of the past few years that doomed the LDP, but it was also the lack of vision that the party displayed.

Kazuo Inamori, founder of Kyocera Corp, made the argument against Japan's virtual one party leadership in an October interview. Inamori believes that healthy debate and a government that shifts between parties is essential as Japan moves forward in the coming decade. "If government mismanagement provoked sharp criticism from the public and led to changes in power, political parties would naturally be imbued with a sense of tension, recognizing that only by delivering good government could they continue to rule."(2)

Current LDP President Sadakazu Tanigaki has to truly lead his party into a new era, in order to reaffirm the Liberal Democrats place as the institutional government of Japan. The recreation and transformation into a new and healthy party will take time and effort on the part of the LDP senior leadership. The party does have one strong advantage; they have the know-how and experience to govern. According to today's Japan Times, "Tanigaki has launched a council within the LDP to redefine the party's political ideals and devise strategies to retake power from the DPJ- led coalition." (3)

It is yet to be seen if this council can reshape the party or the policies in any meaningful way. There is serious doubt that the new party will be anything different than the same old Liberal Democrats in new clothes. The party needs to go shopping in the private sector and attract a few stars to the fold. It also needs to learn tough lessons from their only major source of competition, the DPJ. One such lesson is to take an increased interest in the Asian community and to continue to develop and foster closer relations with China. The future success of the LDP heavily rests on their ability to promote a few fresh ideas while balancing this change with the policies that have made them a success in the past. In the past the LDP has been conceived as a fairly good financial steward and must principally regain this perception. As a few fresh ideas, they could offer increased funding of Japanese defence and ring the patriotic bell, they could focus on popular environmental issues, diplomatically, they could support increasing relations with China and South Korea.

1) http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8228278.stm
(2) The Statement as written appears in Inamori, Kazuo. "Finally, a True Change of Government." Japan Echo Dec. 2009: pg. 11. The original Japanese version apparently comes from "Hatoyama Minshu yo, katte kabuto no o o shimeyo," Bungei Shunju, October 2009, pp.106-113.
(3) "LDP stumbles along the comeback trail." The Japan Times 9 Jan. 2010: A3.

Japanese Prime Minister engaged in delicate balancing act.

2010-01-06T13:35:00.000+09:00

The Japanese government is in the middle of a delicate balancing act. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and his coalition government are busy making inroads in a rising tide of Asian power, while preserving the close diplomatic relations with the empire that has helped provide their current prosperity.

The positive developments have been on the side of increasing the Japanese profile in Asian affairs, but many speculators and political junkies believe this move has come at the cost of Japanese/ American bilateral relations. Hatoyama had the opportunity to discuss Asian affairs with his counterparts, Primier Wen Jiabao of China, and President Lee Myung-bak of Korea at the second Japan-China-ROK trilateral summit meeting in October of 2009.

At the press conference following the summit, Wen Jiabao was the first to speak, "Through this summit, the future direction for Japan-China-ROK cooperation has become clearer, the content of that cooperation has been further enriched, and our determination is now firmer than ever before. I am convinced that the future of our trilateral cooperation will become even more attractive through the joint efforts of our three countries' leaders, governments, and citizens." (1)

Japanese relations with both South Korea and China have had a strained and difficult past, but recent agreements and moves by the three signals that they value each other, as a cornerstone in the development of a strong and prosperous Asia.

Hatoyama, speaking at an APEC conference in Singapore in November commented at great length about the growing relations with Asian countries. He has been increasingly forward in his hopes for Asian cooperation and growing diplomatic and economic relations. He has been a leading voice on developing a more powerful East Asian community. In Singapore the Prime Minister said the following regarding relations with China and South Korea, "We should be encouraged by the fact that the ASEAN countries, China, the Republic of Korea and others have begun to play a constructive role in the region and in the entire international community while working together to promote their economic development." Hatoyama then went on to say, "United States has been playing and will continue to play an important role in ensuring the peace and prosperity of Asia, including Japan." (2)

Hatoyama, shortly after being elected even suggested that an East Asian Union be created, based on the European model. Under the proposal, Hatoyama proposed the eventual introduction of a single currency for the Union, but noted the introduction of such a Union would take time.

Huo Jiangang, a scholar studying Japanese Relations at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, "(has) listed the Korean Peninsular nuclear issue, free-trade agreements and unified currency among numerous difficulties before such a community is initiated. He also told the China Daily the following during an interview in September of 2009, "It is also hard for China and Japan to trust each other due to different value systems and fierce competition."(3)

The focus on Asia has cost Hatoyama some political capital with Obama and Washington. Hatoyama has in the past few months been busy paying lip-service to his American commitments. Hatoyama has recently said that the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Japan-US security treaty should be viewed as an occasion to expand bilateral relations, according to an article in Tuesday's Japan Times newspaper.(4)

The current squabbling between Washington and Tokyo on the Futenma issue remains to be resolved and could hurt bilateral relations moving forward. According to a 2006 security agreement between Japan and the US, the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma located in Okinawa was scheduled to be moved Camp Schawb, also in Okinawa. However Hatoyama and his coalition government have reopened the issue, causing tensions in relations.

"The row over the base has underscored the Obama administration’s difficulties in finding common ground with Mr. Hatoyama’s slightly left-leaning Democratic Party government...Mr. Hatoyama has also seemed to pull away from Washington by allowing the Japanese Navy’s mission of refueling American warships in the Indian Ocean to end and telling Asian leaders that Japan has been overly reliant on the United States," writes Martin Fackler in a recent New York Times Article.(5)

As the Japanese government continues to examine the base issue in hopes of finding an amicable solution, officials have been stressing the importance of the US/ Japanese relationship. "Japan's diplomatic priority is to deepen its alliance with the United States, and resolving the disagreement with Washington over the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan is integral to this goal, Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada said in a policy speech Monday." (6)

As Japan moves to warmer relations with China and South Korea, they cannot cause serious and irreparable damage to their relationship with the current global superpower. It is obvious to many that the tide is shifting to a world increasingly run by Asian powers, but the shift will be a gradual one and will place Japan on a tight-rope for the near future. Japan has remained strong economically by being a relative mute power and Hatoyama's policy of strong statements and proposals on both sides of the fence will take a more balanced effort than he has currently provided. Domestically, Hatoyama can move away from American dominance, and remain popular at home. This of course will directly impact the defence of Japan and also could have economic consequences. Moving to a more pronounced role in Asian politics is dangerous long-term for Japan as the history of relations between Japan and China, and Japan and Korea suggests. One thing is clear; Hatoyama is engaged in a delicate balancing act, due to his Asian-centric statements and his countries commitments to American agreements.

(1)http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/hatoyama/statement/200910/10JCKkyoudou_e.html
(2)http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/hatoyama/statement/200911/15singapore_e.html
(3)http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2009-09/23/content_8724372.htm
(4)Hongo, Jun. "Budget to be government's top priority." The Japan Times 5 Jan. 2010: A2.
(5) http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/16/world/asia/16japan.html
(6) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20100106a3.html

Junk Producing China set to Surpass Japan in 2010

2010-01-03T23:26:00.000+09:00

China has cornered the market on economic growth. It seems that you can't read any business news without realizing the China is quickly becoming the second biggest economy globally. International Monetary Fund projections show that China is poised to steal away the second slot from Japan in 2010. This has large geo-political implications for both countries.

According to a recent Economic Times article the Chinese estimate on growth rate is 9.6% narrowing the gap with Japan. Chinese Gross domestic product (GDP) was pegged at $4.6 Trillion, while the World Bank estimates that Japan's current GDP is $4.9 Trillion. (1)

As China's economy continues to grow at a staggering rate it has had real business consequences for foreign firms trying to enter the domestic economy en masse, "The pace of growth is attracting more investment. Foreign direct investment climbed 32% in November to $7 billion from a year earlier. Luxury carmaker Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW) said last month that it will build a new factory worth 5 billion yuan in China to tap an auto market set to overtake the US as the world’s largest," (2)

However, the simple fact that China is out producing Japan, does not instantly transform into large scale benefits for the vast Chinese population. It is hard to pin down exact numbers on the amount of Chinese people who live in extreme poverty, but estimates are often in the low hundreds of millions, accounting for a substantial percentage of the total population, perhaps up to 30 percent. In contrast Japan's number of homeless people is currently pegged at 15,000 but could be as high as 30,000 according to some reports, roughly 0.02% of the total population. (The preceding comparison is based on extreme poverty in China vs. homelessness in Japan, as it was the easiest comparison to make because there is virtually no one in Japan living in extreme poverty, the sources are from various outlets.) The fact that China will become the second biggest economy will eventually help these Chinese poor, but it will take considerable time for the country to develop into a first world economic powerhouse. The same is true for India, whose economy is growing by leaps and bounds, but still has a great deal of people in poverty.
China also faces another major stumbling block, the country's industries and businesses are based on building the worlds products. I will test this, and now ask you a direct question; Can you name one internationally successful Chinese Brand?....

Despite visiting China, and spending a considerable amount of time in Asia in the past three years, I was hard pressed to do this myself when first asked the same question this summer by Newsweek. I now can think of roughly one multinational Chinese brand, Tsingtao Beer, developed by German settlers in 1903. (3) Apparently the one Chinese brand I can name was developed by people of a different country. This phenomenon continues today as a large amount of domestically available Chinese goods are nothing more than stolen technology and infringements on foreign held intellectual property. Chinese industry and government has done very little to protect the intellectual property and patents of businesses that are producing in China and making the GDP balloon year after year.

"China's weak protection for intellectual-property rights—the patents and ideas that are the solid core of any brand—makes it risky for companies to invest heavily in innovations that could make them famous worldwide but could easily be stolen by rivals at home. Finally, the recent string of product recalls—including poisonous pet food and faulty tires—has left consumers wary of made-in-China goods," Craig Simons Newsweek (4)

One blatant and laughable infringement was targeted against Canadian mobile manufacturer Research-In-Motion, makers of the highly popular Blackberry. As the Blackberry was gaining interest in China, a Chinese company, Unicom released the "Redberry," on the heals of Blackberry's debut.(5) Both subtle and not so subtle infringements are obvious products of an extensive economic espionage effort orchestrated by the Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS) and the technological collection bureau. The Chinese agents are well placed globally and target various industries in a growing number of countries. According to a recent book launched from Canada by authors Fabrice de Pierrebourg and Michel Juneau-Katsuya titled Nest of Spies, the Chinese threat works from a broad-based approach, with engineers, travelers and students providing information to central collection in China. That information is then passed on to Chinese Industry. This is another large factor in the internal growth of the domestic economy. If you don't have the technological know-how, any research and development departments and sub-par universities how do you acquire the technology that fuels growth? You could buy it, or as China continues to do, you can steal it from legitimate companies and nations, who educate the reverse engineers that China churns out.

Regarding Multinational Chinese brands, I named Tsingtao beer earlier, but upon second thought I was also vaguely familiar with Geely (a Chinese Auto Company) before recent announcements that the firm was buying Volvo from Ford.　My first interaction with Geely was by pure chance. I was handed a blue hat with Geely written across the front of it at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit a few years back. The visor of the hat was massive, and it quickly became a joke. That hat sat in the trunk of my Volkswagen for about a year. Now the name Geely has become famous in the West, in conjunction with moves to purchase Volvo. The Hummer brand was also recently snatched up by a Chinese manufacturing and heavy equipment firm. China might not have any brands of its own but it is sure buying up globally recognized auto brands in a move in the right direction.

However Japanese global giants Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Suzuki, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Isuzu, Kawasaki and Yamaha are still making automotive inroads largely due to the fact that the can make decent cars at fair prices. China might be cornering the market on the best price, for vehicles and a whole host of other products, but they are a long way away from offering decent and recognizable products.

Japan might be overtaken by China in 2010 as the second biggest economy based on GDP, but in all the areas that matter, China continues to be a third world country, producing the world's dollar store bargains.

(1)http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international-business/China-on-course-to-overtake-Japan/articleshow/5379542.cms
(2)http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international-business/China-may-become-second-largest-economy-in-2010/articleshow/5382123.cms
(3) http://www.tsingtaobeer.com/brewery/brewery.htm　
(4) http://www.newsweek.com/id/207381
(5) http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/blackberry-meet-chinas-redberry-800

Food Politics: Japan has the Right Idea

2010-01-01T20:01:00.000+09:00

Factory Farms are feeding millions of people globally with suspect sources of unsustainable beef, pork and chickens. These large scale producers of livestock in the United States and Canada have been jeopardizing the food supply. According to the www.sustainabletable.org a web-site devoted to changing the way we think about our food, the problems associated with factory farming include; excessive numbers of animals confined closely together, disregard for animal welfare, misuse of pharmaceuticals, mismanagement of animal waste, and socially irresponsible corporate ownership.

In the documentary film Food Inc, released in 2008, Robert Kenner takes the veil off North American factory food production and exposes the underlying and inherent problems associated with the disconnect between customers and consumers with the farmers and companies that increasingly supply their meat. The film and subsequent book make it very clear that the small group of companies that control the North American food production are unwilling to discuss their business to journalists or the media. These North American companies are beyond secretive, and have often resorted to lawsuits and thinly hidden threats if anyone associated with their business speaks publicly or cooperates in anyway with journalists or documentary film makers.

However, Japanese companies and government agencies have　been focusing on informing customers, in stark contradiction to North American producers. In June of 2003, the Japanese government passed legislation requiring traceability from the farm through retail sale. On Japanese beef there exists a 10 digit Individual Identification Number that each cow is assigned at birth (with an ear tag) and this number follows the cow through his life, slaughter and sale to the end customer. The process was put in place after the outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in the local Japanese cattle herd.
(http://www.oie.int/eng/traceability-2009/documents/speakers_presentation/4.5.Hirokawa.pdf)

As part of the traceability efforts, Japanese customers have access to various facts about the meat they purchase and consume. This information is available at the point of retail, in real time. Japanese corporations also helped lead the push on meat traceability and it was not something forced on them by government officials and regulators.
“The Aeon Company has developed one of the most comprehensive assurance systems for domestic Wagyu beef. Under this system, customers can enter a 10-digit code into a computer located in the meat sales area to obtain information about the beef they are purchasing (see Figure 1). The consumer can obtain a production record certificate that traces the meat back to the birth of the animal from which it was harvested, the BSE testing certificate, and a photograph of the livestock producer(s). This information is also accessible from the customer's home computer,” reports a 2003 article at the outset of the new traceability regulations. (http://www.card.iastate.edu/iowa_ag_review/fall_03/article2.aspx)

Currently, a Japanese customer can walk into a local grocery store equipped with a cell-phone and find out the following information about the piece of steak they are going to buy; birth date, sex, breed, location of cattle, transfer status, transfer date and the owners name and address courtesy of the following web-site, which surprisingly is available in both English and Japanese. The English web-site address is (www.id.nlbc.go.jp/english/). Many meat specialty shops will verbally provide customers this information as they interact with shop staff.

The Japanese traceability system ensures customers that their beef is safe, and with such free-flowing information, provides a model of success that North American consumers should be taking note of. Japanese food companies have been putting pictures of the farmers and producers of food supplies on packaging for years.

I recently noticed there was a picture on the label of my delicious pastry, as I opened it. It was then explained to me that this system helps Japanese customers feel connected with the producer or farmer. Further than that, it also logically affects the attitude of the farmer or producer. It makes the person directly responsible for the food known to the consumer who will eat the product. This in-turn makes the producer more responsible and lowers the chance for negligence. The information provided through a trace of the 10 digit Individual Identification Number provides the farmer’s name and address, having the same influence on his actions to act responsible.

North America needs to move in the direction Japan has regarding traceability of food sources, specifically meat. The big American food suppliers might be a touch more trust worthy if they were willing to offer all relevant information on animal products at the touch of a button.

On-line media consulted;

http://www.id.nlbc.go.jp/english/
http://www.card.iastate.edu/iowa_ag_review/fall_03/article2.aspx
http://www.oie.int/eng/traceability-2009/documents/speakers_presentation/4.5.Hirokawa.pdf
http://www.foodincmovie.com/about-the-film.php
www.sustainabletable.org

Hatoyama boxed in on Futenma Relocation

2009-12-31T02:13:00.000+09:00

Relocating the Futenma base has turned into a nightmare for Prime Minister Hatoyama, as he attempts to please his own political supporters and also offer reassurances to his American counterpart. Washington is increasingly stressing that the 2006 agreement over the base relocation be adhered to. According to the deal, the current Futenma operations would be transferred to Camp Schwab in Nago, Okinawa. Hatoyama's coalition government announced a while back that it would be reviewing this agreement.

The main issue is that protests in Okinawa over American military presence are swelling. Ozawa, with growing political clout is openly second guessing Hatoyama's weak stance in the face of American pressure. And to top it all off, the Social Democratic Party (SDP), a coalition partner in Hatoyama's government is insisting that the base be located outside of Japan. Hatoyama dismissed the SDP proposal of moving the base operations and personal to Guam earlier this week.

When Obama visited Japan in November it sparked protests of opposition in Okinawa over the US military presence on the South Island. Citizens came out in droves to call on their newly elected DPJ government to stand firm against Washington. The local mayor in Okinawa called on new Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama "to put an end to Okinawa's burden and ordeal".

One protester at the November rally, Yoshiko Yonamine, was quoted in a BBC article as saying "Okinawans voted for the new administration, thinking it would remove the base from the island. I don't want it to betray us."

According to an article in the Mainichi Daily News today, Ozawa is now proposing that the relocation be carried out from Futenma to Shimoji Island. "Ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) Secretary-General Ichiro Ozawa has proposed relocating U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to Shimoji Island in Okinawa Prefecture, ruling coalition sources said," reports the newspaper's online service. Ozawa apparently made the comment Tuesday, at a party celebrating year end.

"There are no regular flights to and from Shimoji Island Airport on Shimoji Island -- located about midway between Okinawa's main island and Taiwan -- and the airport has been mainly used by airlines for pilot training. Shimoji Island Airport had previously been named as a possible site for the relocation of Futenma," further reports the Mainichi Daily News.

The Japanese Foreign Service is in discussions with counterparts in Washington arranging a trip for Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada to visit the American Capital in the near future. The visit will focus on discussions relating to the base relocation. In the past week Okada has proposed a plan to reach a decision by May on where the base should be transferred. He conveyed this to American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The strong statements and the extensive coverage of Ozawa's proposals on the Futenma base issue are increasingly undermining the Prime Minister's authority. Furthermore, the mounting pressure from coalition members and America's insistence that the 2006 deal be followed, as well as public backlash, specifically in Okinawa, but also spread throughout the country has Hatoyama boxed in on the issue. He has little recourse of finding an amicable solution, but it is growing apparent that the relocation of Futenma will be a long drawn out process that will involve political tradeoffs here at home as well as concessions made to the Americans.

Pills and Weapons; Indian and Japanese Relations

2009-12-29T00:25:00.000+09:00

International relations are often bogged down with tireless debate over issues of free trade, moderately priced trade and expensive trade. As Hatoyama travels to India this week to meet Manmohan Singh, the Prime Minister of India, talks will center on trade: specifically on what India wants to trade and what Japan is unwilling to offer.

India wants to push Indian-made generic medication to a Japanese market. The talks on this issue have focused on reducing tariffs and essentially opening up a relatively closed market. Japanese drug makers are no doubt worried that an open market will collapse their profit margin, here in Japan. However, Japanese drug giant Takeda announced in early December that they are looking to enter a growing Indian market. The company is toying with the idea of making an acquisition to achieve this goal. Takeda has recently come under Government pressure in Japan to offer generic drugs in their portfolio. This news comes on the heals of Japanese firm Daiichi purchasing controlling interest in Ranbaxy last year for $4.6 billion.

"Domestic (Indian) drug makers like Cipla, Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Ranbaxy Laboratories are known for their ability to produce quality generic drugs at affordable prices," according to a recent article in Business Standard Online.
With Japanese pharmaceutical giants controlling the Indian producers of these generic drugs, the market is about to open in Japan. The pressure coming from the government to offer a wider selection of generic drugs means that Indian made medicine will become more prevalent in the coming years in pharmacies throughout the country.

However despite these private enterprise initiatives in the pharmaceutical industry the Japanese and Indian governments have been unable to close a free trade deal despite years of negotiations.

The problem rests in the fact that a fast growing Indian middle class is an attractive market for a range of Japanese businesses. If the domestic market opens here in Japan, so to will the Indian consumer market to Japanese goods. There is a great deal at steak for both countries and both economies, and some short term negative impacts on smaller drug producing firms domestically might smooth the way for a host of growth across the Japanese economy.

Hayotoma, has in the recent past met with Singh. The two spoke on the sidelines in October following an Association of Southeast Asian Nations conference in Thailand. Singh then pushed for increased relations on the exchange of Nuclear Technology between the two countries.

Japan’s Foreign Ministry has been hesitating on a Nuclear Energy deal with India, linked to India’s steadfast refusal to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Due to these apprehensions, Japan was reluctant to jump behind an Indian/American deal struck in 2008, which opened up the gates to an increased transfer of Nuclear Technology.　The waiver offered to New Delhi in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) last year reopened global atomic trade for India after nearly 35 years. Singh will likely argue increased exchanges in nuclear power technology, citing the NSG agreement in his approach. As Hatoyama’s position vis-à-vis nuclear proliferation remains constant, he is unlikely to give any ground on the issue. His nuclear mantra goes something like the following, “Japan is the only nation to have suffered an atomic attack, but we will study the issue in more depth.”

India, as one of a handful of Nuclear weapons harbouring nations is considered a likely nuclear flashpoint when contentious relations with neighbouring Pakistan are considered. Increased instability in Pakistan due to growing militancy has made for increased pressure to downgrade the nuclear weapons capacity of both nations. The Japanese Prime Minister is likely to delay any transfer of Nuclear Technology out of Japan and into India indefinitely. Rightfully So.

Spokesman Needed for the J-Bomb Campaign

2009-12-26T18:43:00.000+09:00

After Nuclear Weapons Tests from North Korea in the past couple of years, Japanese policy makers and politicians have been discussing the issue of arming the country with defensive nuclear weapons, an impressive and interesting discussion to say the least. Japan has held onto its pacifist constitution for far too long and in a time of growing instability, the only way to curb that instability is for the stable and legitimate first world nations to hold the ultimate deterrent.

Earlier this year a former Finance Minister and senior politician, Shoichi Nakagawa suggested that Japan should explore the defensive nuclear issue in more depth to curtail growing instability over the possession of weapons by Kim Jung Il's regime. Since this time Nakagawa's LDP government has been defeated in a general election in August and Nakagawa (age 56) has since died at his apartment in Tokyo. Apparently he had been dealing with alcoholism his entire life.

"North Korea has taken a step toward a system whereby it can shoot without prior notice. We have to discuss countermeasures," said Mr Nakagawa from his office in April. The disgraced Nakagawa stepped down as Finance Minister after appearing to be intoxicated at a G7 press conference in Rome.

Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has said that the Japanese constitution does not block the possession of defensive nuclear weapons. Abe went on further to reassure his U.S. and Chinese counterparts, back in 2006 that Japan would not exercise that option. His stance however, opens the debate regarding future Japanese Nuclear Weapons.

Now that the LDP government has been cast aside and Japanese voters have entrusted leadership to the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) and the coalition government the question is; who is leading the fight in Japan on the Nuclear Issue?

The DPJ under Hatoyama have exposed a secret pact with the United States that permitted American Nuclear Weapons to enter Japanese ports, spanning back several decades. This has jeopardized the three Non-Nuclear principles of Japan, and has essentially exposed the Three principals to in fact be reduced to Two principles; namely that Japan will not make or possess Nuclear Weapons. The third compromised principle was that the Japanese government would not permit Weapons in Japan, or its territory.

During the recent election, the DPJ campaigned on a principle of attempting to eradicate Nuclear Weapons in North-East Asia. However while campaigning Hatoyama,　"emphasized the importance of the US nuclear umbrella for Japan to protect itself against North Korea," claims Tomoko Kiyota in an article titled Japan's Non-nuclear Principles: Change in the Offing? "However, as soon as he realized that his remark had been taken to mean that he intended to change the non-nuclear principles, he was quick to deny the previous remark and said, “the principles are/will be maintained in the near future,” continued Kiyota in the article.

To put it bluntly, there is no credible figure in Japanese Politics at the moment who can come out punching and make the case for Japanese Nuclear Proliferation. The case needs to be made, and strongly by a senior politician who values the defence of Japan. The Chinese and North Korean capabilities threaten the nation and as a global leader Japan should take a proactive approach in eliminating their long held principles of non-proliferation and acquire a stockpile of Weapons. The move will not destabilize the region, any more than it has already been destabilized by the acquisition of Hiroshima payload weapons currently held by the DPRK. The introduction of a Japanese nuclear weapons program should be done over the course of some time and should be done in parallel with a program to beef-up the Japanese Self Defence Forces.

What do Pinocchio, Medvedav and Hatoyama have in common?

2009-12-23T23:52:00.000+09:00

Alright, that's easy even if you’re not familiar with politics. Pinocchio is the world's most famous puppet. Dmitry Medvedev now plays a close second to the Disney creation with his master, former President and still undisputed champion of modern Russia Iron Vlad Putin, calling all the shots. It is now clear that current Prime Minister of Japan Yukio Hatoyama is being led along by Party Kingpin Ichiro Ozawa, current DPJ Secretary General.

Hatoyama, with all the panache of a Kia car seat stumbles through awkward press conferences and is, to put it mildly, not terribly exciting. The media has begun to focus on the influence that Ozawa commands in government discussions and decisions. This week the DPJ has shifted their policy on a major election promise. A pledge that helped them claim a decisive victory in the August general election. Hatoyama promised to end surcharges on road-related taxes that amount to 2.5 trillion yen in annual government revenue. Now the policy is essentially a mute-point as Ozawa has called on the government to continue imposing the tax, and Hatoyama has backed this request. The change in policy highlights the growing instability of the ruling coalition. The DPJ campaigned heavily against the "policy flip-flops" of the former LDP party and now it seems they've both flipped and flopped on the one of the single biggest promises they had made to voters.

So what? The government has said one thing and done another. It happens everyday in politics. This may be true to us in the West, but Japanese Governments have to make efforts to honour their campaign promises or they will pay the price in voter trust. The DPJ upset the LDP, snatching up more than 70 per cent of the votes in the last election, but their most recent polling numbers are hovering at the 50 per cent level. Sharp drops like these have recently been seen by many Japanese Prime Ministers, including Taro Aso, Yasuo Fukuda and Shinzo Abe, who lasted roughly a year after such steep drops in popular support. Thus, Japan has lacked a popular and dynamic Prime Minister since the days of Koizumi.

Hatoyama, and his supporters are aware of the government’s image problem and leading Cabinet Ministers have been propping up Hatoyama to the media. Hirofumi Hirano, the Chief Cabinet Secretary has publicly stated that Hatoyama has made the final decision on the gasoline and vehicle related taxes. This political support alone will not help Hatoyama hold the reigns of the top office in Japan. He needs to distance himself from Ozawa's control to establish his own legitimacy or he will continue to be seen as a puppet. Hatoyama is trying to do such with the recent announcement and rejection of Ozawa's proposal to institute an income cap on the child-care allowance. However, this ploy has not passed the test according to political commentators in Japan. Minoru Morita, a political critic has commented that, "Hatoyama is clearly just the head clerk of the administration."

Japan Needs to Keep Funding Defence; The Price is Right

2009-12-22T03:09:00.000+09:00

Japan's defence minister Toshimi Kitazawa is operating with tightened purse strings. The government has recently announced that it will be suspending new funds for a joint missile defence system with the United States.

This move will push back the deployment of the new Patriot Advanced Capability -3 (PAC-3) surface to air interceptors until after April 2011, according to recent news reports. The move was made during the negotiations leading up to the 2010/11 defence spending guidelines. Prime Minister Hatoyama's government has also delayed an extensive scheduled review of defence policy guidelines.

"Hatoyama's Democratic Party of Japan and its left-leaning and pacifist coalition partners have signalled a shift from supporting military missions to humanitarian aid in a break with their more hawkish conservative predecessors," boasts a recent AFP article.

This break is problematic for the defence of Japan and their bi-lateral relations with the United States. After the recent change of government in Japan and Washington, the conditions were ripe to scale back spending. The sheepish economy also provides an adequate excuse for the government here to be weak on funding defence. However, the defence of Japan is not something the government should be scaling back finances for.

The United States continues to be, by far the largest spender of defence dollars in the world. Spending roughly 50 cents for every one dollar spent on defence globally. Allies of the United States are falling short on their share of the tab. Japan, compared to other allies is not doing horribly, spending USD 50 Billion a year, including outpouring a substantial amount of cash taking care of US base needs in the country. However, the protection offered by a exceedingly thin American Military is of huge benefit to the decision makers in Tokyo, and the public at large, and has been for the past six decades. The main benefit being that, the allies share a common goal in land and sea based interceptors against possible attacks stemming from proximity to North Korea. The other benefit being that the agreements allow Japan the international goodwill of not being a nuclear state, while maintaining a very close relationship to the ultimate weapon. These benefits come at a price, so when Japan scales back military spending and support for the American war efforts it strains the relationship. "The new government (of Japan) has scrapped a naval refuelling mission in the Indian Ocean that has supported the US-led campaign in Afghanistan and announced a review of a 2006 pact on relocating US bases in Japan," from the same AFP article quoted earlier.

Therefore, Japan's new government could tighten the purse strings on the defence forces and eventually be forced to carry more of the real costs associated with being a global heavyweight, as power increasingly shifts to Asia. On the other hand, Japan could maintain the status quo, keep up their end of the military agreements with the United States, subtly boost defence funding and thrive as they have in the past with a strong partner in the future.

"Secret" Nuclear Pact not that Surprising

2009-12-20T18:49:00.001+09:00

Often governments undertake politically unpopular, but necessary decisions. Keeping the voters in the dark and suppressing information that if known will cause them to loose favour, and face almost certain defeat at the polls. It is now widely alleged that a secret agreement was signed between the government of Japan and that of the United States to permit nuclear weapons in transit to pass through Japan without express knowledge being conveyed to the government in Tokyo.

Japan, the only victim of a nuclear weapons offensive, remains proud of its three main nonnuclear principles that are in theory, still in place; to not possess nuclear weapons, to not produce said weapons nor to permit the weapons in Japan. The policy is now being called into question with the upcoming political memoir that is to be published by Hajime Morita, a former House of Representatives member and foreign minister to the late Prime Minister Masayoshi Ohira. According to Morita's account he is able to confirm the agreement, stemming from his affirmation of the pact with a Washington counterpart in 1963.

According to the Japan Times, "The secret nuclear deal is believed to have been agreed on bilaterally when the Japanese U.S. security treaty was revised in 1960, even though the treaty officially requires Washington to hold prior consultations with Tokyo before bringing nuclear weapons into Japan." However Morita confirms in his upcoming book that in practice the consultations were done away with and no advance notice was given.

In late November of this year, Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada, "officially acknowledged the existence of a secret Japan-U.S. pact that allowed U.S. vessels carrying nuclear weapons to enter Japanese territory." The government has been constantly denying the agreement since its inception, claiming that no nuclear weapons were brought into Japanese territory.

Hatoyama, and the Democratic Party of Japan are obviously playing politics with this decades old agreement. The knowledge that in certain circumstances U.S nuclear weapons made port calls to American bases in Japan should not come as a surprise, but should be taken as expected behaviour. The long established Liberal Democratic Party made these agreements ages ago and the DPJ will gain political favour by shedding light on the lies offered by their adversaries.

"After the Hatoyama administration took over in September, the foreign ministry's investigative task force looked at 2,694 files related to the security agreement and 571 related to the return of Okinawa that were found in the ministry archives, as well as approximately 400 files that were found at the Japanese embassy in the U.S," according to the Mainichi Daily News.

Japan would have had little room to oppose this treaty as it was signed in 1960, by then U.S. Ambassador to Japan Douglas MacArthur II and then-Foreign Minister Aiichiro Fujiyama. After falling victim to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki roughly 13 years earlier, with a pro-American government and a heavy American presence in Japan with a constitution that reflected American values, it is of little wonder that such an agreement would be made. The more surprising news is that the American negotiators settled for such a weak agreement on this front. It would not be shocking if the inquiry revealed that nuclear weapons were permanently installed on American bases in Japan, given the proximity to Russia and the strategic location of Japan to many perceived threats of the day.

Ozawa tells Korea what they want to hear

2009-12-19T19:42:00.000+09:00

Politicians have a way of playing to crowds. To this end, Ichiro Ozawa is no different, and his latest comments to a Kookmin University audience in Seoul have marked a change in policy and diplomacy in the bilateral relationship between South Korea and Japan. Ozawa, political heavy weight and the current Secretary General of the Democratic Party of Japan told those gathered in Seoul that Japan must apologize for the “unfortunate period in modern history;” Thus referring to the Japanese rule of Korea from 1910 to 1945.

The tensions between Koreans and Japanese continue to this day and tensions often surface in relation to state visits to Yasukuni Shrine, in Tokyo by sitting Japanese Prime Ministers and Politicians. Koreans are particularly outraged because Japanese war criminals are enshrined at Yasukuni. Another tender spot in bi-lateral relations is the “comfort women” issue, surrounding treatment of Korean women by Japanese soldiers during the Second World War. The Japanese government continues to deny that it participated in orchestrated sexual slavery. Shinzo Abe, former Prime Minister stated in 2007, that, “there was no evidence to prove coercion.” Abe’s statements provoked negative reactions from Korea, and other Asian nations as well as Canada, the US and the Netherlands.

Current Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has in the past said that Japan should offer a formal apology to the comfort women and offer compensation to the victims of the scheme. This suggestion echoed by Ozawa in Korea this past weekend.
It is my contention that Japan should not offer such an apology and should show strength and pride when dealing with these international relations issues.

Successive Japanese governments have not been as strong a player globally as their economic might should suggest. The timid personalities that run Tokyo’s Diet have made the country a global backbencher. Of course, the Liberal Democratic Party, recently ousted by Hatoyama’s DPJ has been much of the problem in this apprehensive medley. The relative inexperience of the DPJ, or any party other than the LDP in governing Japan creates problems for Hatoyama and Ozawa as international spokesmen for Tokyo. The apologies should be less forthcoming, as they are offered by a new government, so close to the transfer of power from the entrenched LDP. Ozawa is riding the “International Friendship,” wave of Obama’s newness in international affairs and making good, by paying lip service to the Korea issue at a University in Seoul. Keep your apologies to yourself; even though they are likely to buy you political good-will, they are not your apologies to make.

North Korea Curbing Growing Tourist Demand

2009-12-19T19:33:00.000+09:00

According to reports coming out of Beijing foreigners who have been recently applying for visas to the DPRK are being told, “See you next year.” North Korea has for the time being, blocked foreigners from entering the people’s paradise. The move leaves this commentator thinking how many would be tourists will have to delay their plans to fall at the feet of statues of the great leaders Kim Il Sung or Kim Jung Il and weep their deep respective praises?

The true threat to global politics continues to be the lunacy of North Korea and their tried and tested method of agreeing to international discussions, milking foreign aid and then reneging on the agreements to pursue aggressive weapons programs. In a recent Foreign Affairs article Andrei Lankov argues that quick fixes and international agreements will not bring an end to the oppressive regime in Pyongyang, but rather it will be the strategy that won the original Cold War that will beat back Kimmies strangle hold on the fruit filled garden of North Korea. Not the glorious work of International Negotiators, Foreign Aid, or Military Strength but a good old fashioned Information Campaign.

The disparity of income levels between North and South Korea if known and accepted as truth in North Korea by the bulk of the cut off population would force the cracks to widen in an old and damp foundation and over time would force the building to come crashing down, as it did to a certain wall somewhere in Germany. Communisms chief weakness was that it could not compete with the material well being of capitalist societies. The free trade zone that boarders both Korea’s provides a seemingly mutual benefit, South Korean enterprise benefits from a cheap and disposable work force, while North Korea gets an infusion of cold hard cash. However, the obvious danger for the DPRK is that that work force gets to interact with their neighbors from the South, who in their possessions and actions demonstrate on a very real level how broken their paradise at home actually is.

Lankov also argues that accepting students into the international education network is a clever ploy to also further cut into the legitimacy of Kim Jung Il and his system of governance. Simply giving students or citizens of North Korea internet access and a television remote or a library card will allow them to learn about the world and how different it is from what they are taught.

There are murmurs that the border closing is due to an upcoming Kim Jung Il trip to China. Others insist that the closing is an attempt to block unrest over the economy. The North recently revalued its currency in an attempt to cut into illegal profit making by shady businesses inside North Korea. (Shady businesses in North Korea are simply profit making endeavors.)

Xi Jinping, the Chinese Vice President, and widely rumored to be the front runner to succeed current President Hu Jintao has recently commented on his trip to Japan, that “several agreements on important issues have been reached between the United States and North Korea.” It is widely hoped that six party talks will continue and that they will lead to the de-nuclearization of the DPRK. It seems like the International Community is getting back on the marry-go-round and that North Korea will hop off again at some point in the near future and hold the world hostage for more goodies.

Mossad taking the lead in containing Iranian ambitions

2009-12-19T19:29:00.000+09:00

Iranian ambitions are widening and causing alarm. With American troops committed to lengthy and un-winnable wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Madman in Tehran can continue to push the envelope without fear of being seriously challenged, or can he?
With the test launch of the revised Sejil 2 medium-range missile in Iran earlier this week, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad continues to send the wrong the signals to a global community growing impatient with the illegitimate government in Tehran. The new upgrades to the missile could carry it as far as Israel, and as the Jewish State has in the past, it might again be forced to take action to halt a growing nuclear ambition in Iran. In June of 1981, American made, Israeli fighter planes bombed and destroyed Iraq’s Osirak nuclear facility in a wonderful bit of stealth flying and tight maneuvers by Israeli pilots. According to Donald Neff in a Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, “Thus the deeper meaning of the attack was that it amounted to a declaration of war against the Arab world's efforts to enter the atomic age.”
Hopefully Israel is still willing to wage such a war, as the other powers who could have a real impact are committed to ineffective sanctions and political diplomacy. Israel is the only player that can effectively move against the aspirations of Tehran. Former Prime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon put the problem of defeating Iran's nuclear ambitions on the desk of Mossad chief Meir Dagan. The problem is thus in good hands, as the Israeli Agency is unrivaled in its clandestine activities. American, Israeli and other Western agencies are still actively pursuing the purchasing networks of Iran on nuclear activities. Recent purchasing schemes, through agents and straw companies have been uncovered in Taiwan, according to Yossi Melmen in an article titled; Israel, U.S. leading bid to thwart Iran nuke efforts in Far East, posted on Haaretz.com yesterday. So, while official policy continues to be sanctions, negotiations and abstract threats, the Intelligence Agencies are fighting the ground war on preventing a Nuclear Iran. Such Intelligence work was the main player in a more in-depth inspection of a plane that made an emergency stop for fuel this week in Bangkok. The weapons stashed on the flight were logged as oil drilling equipment, but Thai officials suspect the weapons cache to be bound for Iran, compliments of North Korea. An unnamed Thai official claims that, "Some of the components found are believed to be parts of unassembled Taepodong- 2 missiles." The North Korean missiles are widely believed to be a joint product between the DPRK and Iran.
"The Zionist regime (Israel) and its (western) backers cannot do a damn thing to stop Iran's nuclear work," Ahmadinejad said in a televised speech in the central city of Isfahan earlier in December. The continued gauntlets being thrown down by Tehran's rhetoric and its continued testing of offensive weapons as well as its relationships with global nuclear rogues threatens Israel and the global community at large and if pushed to a breaking point Ahmadinejad will be rather forcefully removed from power. Growing tensions over Iran's internal political scene has taken some of the international focus off the nuclear aspirations of the government and the spotlight needs to be refocused on the issue.
The United States government is down playing the testing of the Sejil 2 medium-range missile, calling it essentially old news, and that the capabilities of this weapon are similar to past missiles. However, White House spokesmen Mike Hammer has said, the test would "increase the seriousness and resolve of the international community to hold Iran accountable for its continued defiance of its international obligations on its nuclear program." It seems that for the time being the only considerable efforts being made to block the nuclear ambitions are being conducted in the shadows.