The ruling Liberal Democratic Party seems to have decided to go back to wisdom and solidity after the youth and charisma of Shinzo Abe failed. It has elected old hand Yasuo Fukuda as the new Japanese prime Minister. Fukuda’s first job will be to clear the mess left behind by Abe.
First of all he will have to set things right about the loss of 50 million pensioners’ social security records by the health and welfare ministry. This was the issue which cost the party dearly in the elections for the Upper House.
The LDP has lost ground in rural Japan. Fukuda wants to increase spending on costly public projects to woo back village votes. It is another matter that doing so will necessitate increase in sales tax and further inflate the country’s massive deficit.
On foreign affairs Fukuda wants to soothe nerves of countries, which had suffered Japanese aggression during the Second World War, and are angry about a Japanese prime minister paying respects to tombs of Japanese war criminals. Fukuda has tried to make amends by not visiting the Yasukuni war shrine in Tokyo. He also wants to improve relations with N. Korea, China [It had not liked Abe’s nationalist rhetoric and calls for a stronger Japanese military] and the USA.
The resurgent opposition Democratic Party, which has tasted blood after thrashing the LDP in the Upper House elections, is calling for elections for the Lower House of Diet. Fukuda will have to step gingerly. Technically he has till 2009, when Abe’s term would have ended, to turn things around. But if public support for the LDP falls further [Abe had ratings of 30%] elections for the lower House will have to be called earlier.
The aggressive DPJ [Democratic Party of Japan] is tightening the screws. Its leader Ichiro Ozawa wants to kill the anti-terrorism passed in Abe’s term. The law provides for Japanese ships refueling US warships in the Indian Ocean. This is Japan’s contribution for protecting Afghanistan. Fukuda wants to talk the matter over with Ozawa.
Fukuda has other problems too. Japan’s population is falling owing to a falling death-rate coupled with a low birth-rate. Also he will have to make Japanese industries more productive if the country is to retain its dominant economic status in the world.
WP
