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Editor’s NoteBy Rui Faro Saraiva PhD Candidate at Osaka School of International Public Policy

Many expected Japan would go t h r o u g h d e e p c h a n g e s a n d t ransformat ion af ter 3/11 t r ip le catastrophes. Foreign perceptions may regard Japan as a more conservative society, but in fact although changes may take more time to take place here, indeed Japan has proved to be a dynamic society prone to innovation and transformations. If we consider the post Fukushima period, the recent protests and demonstrations against nuclear energy are changing the relationship between civil society and

the political elite, underlining and strengthening democratic values in Japan. Another important development is embodied in the findings resulting from a report released last week by the Diet's Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission backing what many members of the public have long believed: the events at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant was "a profoundly man-made disaster — that could have and should have been foreseen and prevented". Critical

thinking and the exercise of freedom of expression are thriving in Japan. If anyone doubts if Japan is a real democracy nowadays, I invite the reader to walk around Kasumigaseki, the neighborhood where the main governmental building are in Tokyo. These streets breathe political activism and debate over different points of view. Being the beacon of democracy in Asia may represent an important soft power asset for Japan, considering the current challenges it faces.

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Photo of the week: Protesters carry anti-nuclear placards during a march in Tokyo, July 16, 2012. (AP)

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Massive rally held against nuke power

“Tens of thousands of people opposed to nuclear power gathered for a rally--believed to be the largest ant inuc lear protest s ince the Fukushima nuclear crisis started in March 2011--at Yoyogi Park in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, on Monday. According to the organizer, 170,000 people took part in the protest. The Metropolitan Police Department put the figure at about 75,000. Calling out, ‘Protect our children's future,’ the protesters filled the venue and even spilled out to some nearby streets. The meeting began just before noon in stifling hot conditions. Wri ter Kenzaburo Oe, a core organizer of the event, addressed the crowd through a microphone. ‘I believe we'll be able to break free from the fear and indignity caused by the existence of nuclear power plants, and to live freely," he said. Musician Ryuichi Sakamoto said: ‘We should never jeopardize this beautiful land of Japan and the lives of our children, who are the future of this country, just for the sake of electricity.’”

(Yomiuri)

GSDF engineers to leave Haiti in 2013

“Ground Sel f-Defense Force engineers will be withdrawn from a U.N. reconstruction mission in Haiti, which was devastated by a strong earthquake in January 2010, Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said Tuesday. The GSDF engineers will terminate their activities by around mid-October and complete withdrawal by the end of March 2013, Fujimura said. The need for emergency reconstruction support measures, including those provided by GSDF personnel, has been reduced, Fujimura said..”

(Yomiuri)

White paper rings alarm over China

“The forthcoming white paper on defense warns that China's military is playing a stronger role in decision-making in Chinese foreign policy due to changes in its relationship to the Communist Party in recent years, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned. The 2012 white paper, which has yet to be approved by the Cabinet, is the first to include such an analysis on China, raising greater alarm over the country than it has previously, according to the outline. The paper cites international analyses on increasingly complex relat ions between the party leadership and the People's Liberation Army, as well as the rising influence of the military regarding foreign policy decisions. The paper underscores concerns that Ch ina's dec is ion-making processes are becoming increasingly opaque with the military's rise, a development it says poses a crisis management issue that merits due attention. To support these concerns, the paper cites data showing that China's defense spending has ballooned about 30-fold in 24 years. I t a l s o n o t e s t h a t C h i n a ' s development of aircraft carriers is in full swing and that naval ships have been appearing more frequently in the Pacific Ocean, including waters around Japan. The analysis said China is trying to improve its marine deployment capabilities.”

(Yomiuri)

Japan's energy future too important to be left to experimental polling

method

“Once upon a time, in ancient Athens, state policy was decided not by elected representatives, but by a great assembly of all eligible citizens. Five hundred of these citizens were also chosen by lot for the Bouletai, or c o u n c i l , w h i c h s p e n t t i m e deliberating the issues facing Athens and drawing up bi l ls for the assembly's consideration. In the modern world, a small-scale version of this selection by lot and the group

deliberation that was such an i m p o r t a n t p a r t o f A t h e n i a n democracy is being resurrected by U.S. academics in the form of deliberative polls. In a deliberative poll, respondents are chosen at random to answer questions on relevant issues, just as in a regular opinion poll. Unlike a regular poll, however, the process doesn't stop there. Respondents are invited to a weekend event where they are given detailed information about the issues at hand, hold discussions with experts and politicians, and debate various points of view. At the end of the weekend, the respondents are asked the same survey questions again. Deliberative polls have been attracting attention in Japan as well. Specifically, deliberative polling is set to be used to help choose between one of three options presented by the government for Japan's energy future -- a weighty issue in the wake of last year's meltdowns at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant. Though the government is aiming to make a final decision by the end of August this year, this is no simple three-option choice. The issue is complicated, with questions such as what percentage of Japan's energy output should be nuclear intertwined with future electricity prices and carbon dioxide emissions. This must all be considered very carefully, and in this light, the turn to deliberative polling seems abrupt.”

(Mainichi Daily News)

U.S. deputy defense chief to visit Japan

“U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter was to visit Japan and three other Asian countries for 10 days beginning Tuesday, a Pentagon spokesman said. In Japan, Carter is scheduled to meet with Defense Minister Satoshi Morimoto and other officials to seek their acceptance of the U.S. plan to deploy controversial Osprey aircraft to the marine corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture, informed sources said.

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meetings that the tilt-rotor plane is safe and useful, they said. Carter's Asian tour, which includes visits to Thailand, India and South Korea, is aimed at laying the groundwork for the United States to implement programs under its new military strategies focusing on Asia. At the talks in Japan, he is also expected to discuss the planned transfer of U.S. marines in Okinawa Prefecture t o G u a m , b i l a t e r a l d e f e n s e cooperation and regional situations, the sources said.”

(Yomiuri)

Japan Feels a North Asia Squeeze

“Southeast Asian countries butted heads with China in Phnom Penh last week over the South China Sea, but a potentially more dangerous game is being played out in North Asia—at both ends of the Japanese archipelago. Tokyo is facing renewed tension with China and Russia over long-disputed islands. Japan's dispute with China over the Senkaku Islands (known to the Chinese as Diaoyutai) has heated up in recent weeks. The islands, which have been administered by Japan since 1972, straddle vast undersea natural gas and oil fields and are a key fishing ground. The catalyst for the latest tensions was provided by firebrand Tokyo mayor Shintaro Ishihara, who proposed in April to buy the Senkaku Islands from their private owners. This forced Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda to follow this month with a p l edge to have the na t i ona l government purchase the islands. Foreign Minister Koichiro Genba reiterated this position, telling the Chinese that Tokyo was in the process of ‘nationalizing’ them. The Chinese reaction was swift, with the foreign ministry stating that it would not allow Tokyo to buy Chinese territory.”

(Wall Street Journal)

Japan's low-profile military steps up during flood rescue

“Japan’s once low-profile Self-Defense Force (SDF), or army, has been at the forefront of the rescue operation after record rainfalls caused flooding that has left some 25 dead and seven more missing. These latest rescue efforts, combined with the SDF's response to last year's devastating earthquake and tsunami, are shining a more positive light on Japan’s military than it has seen in decades. (…) According to the p ro toco ls o f Japan’s pac i fis t constitution, effectively imposed on the defeated country by the United States after World War II, the SDF had to be officially invited by local authorities to aid in rescue efforts. After the Kobe earthquake that killed nearly 6,500 people in 1995, it took four days for the SDF to be sent in – attracting widespread criticism and handing Japan's yakuza mafia a publicity coup by allowing them to be seen delivering food and supplies before the national government. However, after the March tsunami, then Prime Minister Naoto Kan quickly dispatched 100,000 troops to the disaster areas”

(The Christian Science Monitor)

Japan ambassador returns to Beijing amid territorial spat

“Japan's ambassador to China returned to Beijing on Monday after Tokyo summoned him over the weekend to discuss the escalating tension over a group of islands that both countries claim. Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba denied that the summoning of the ambassador, Uichiro Niwa, was meant as a protest to Beijing after Chinese patrol boats entered disputed waters near the islands, a ministry spokesman said. The squabble over the islands, located near rich fishing grounds and potentially large oil and gas reserves, threatens to damage relat ions be tween As i a ' s two b i gges t economies.”

(Reuters)

Japan offers glimpse of history in MacArthur's office

“For six years US General Douglas MacArthur was lord of all he surveyed as supreme commander of the Allied forces in occupied Japan, gazing o v e r To k y o f r o m a b u i l d i n g requisitioned from an insurance

"Even the sweltering summer heat can't keep the crowds from Kyoto's annual Gion Festival, as some 50,000 revelers packed the streets on July 15, 20,000 more than last year." (AJW Asahi)

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company. Now, more than 60 years after Japan began governing itself again, his office is being opened to the public, just as he left it. (…) From the office, MacArthur oversaw the transformation of a country that waged a brutal war of acquisition across Asia into a peaceable nation that would become the economic powerhouse of the late 20th century. And it was from the bureau that he ordered the re-writing of Japan's constitution, in the process stripping the emperor -- in whose name that war was waged -- of his divine status and casting him as a figurehead in a democratic nation. (…) The office overlooks the vast Imperial Palace where Emperor Hirohito lived in luxury in the heart of Tokyo, an area that had been spared the Allied bombs of the aerial campaign. As well as the fact that the building was intact, the site's choice would have owed much to the occupiers' understanding of the importance of symbolism in Japan -- something that finds no better expression than a w ide l y -d i s t r i bu ted p i c tu re o f MacArthur standing beside the emperor.”

(AFP)

Japanese culture alive and thriving in Brazil

“Backed by its gastronomy, martial arts, music and manga culture, Brazil's small but influential Japanese community is wielding soft power to assert ethnic pride and preserve century-old ties. Japanese Brazilians are among the most successful and we l l - i n tegra ted o f the South American giant's communities but keep in touch with their roots through events like the annual Festival of Japan, which wrapped up Sunday in Sao Paulo. A record 190,000 people, half of them non-Japanese, turned up for the three-day celebration, according to the event's organizer K E N R E N , t h e F e d e r a t i o n o f Associations of Japanese Provinces. Sponsored by top Japanese brands such as Honda, Mitsubishi and

Toyota as well as by leading Brazilian bank Bradesco, the festival was a ma jor success, accord ing to coordinator Erika Yamauti. ”

(The Bangkok Post)

Japanese Pop Culture Event Hits Sydney

“Warring factions from some of the galaxy's biggest battles have put their weapons down and gathered in cen t r a l Sydney to ce l eb ra te Japanese pop culture. The Sydney Convention Centre on Saturday hosted SMASH, a manga and anime conven t i on whe re cos tumed devotees of Japanese pop culture came together. (…) Among the almost 6,000 attendees were a myriad of characters from some of the world's most popular manga and anime shows but there was a strong showing from fan favourites such as Naruto, Bleach and One Piece. The fervour of the fans was obvious and many had made their own costumes, pieced together over several years of dedicated collecting. ”

(Yahoo News)

Deregulation: Is Japan Ready to Embrace Takenaka-Nomics Again?

“Japan is ready to re-embrace deregulation and in doing so could quickly achieve growth of up to 4%, says Keio University Prof. Heizo Takenaka, known as the economics czar of the free-marketeering Koizumi administration.   In the six years since deregulation advocate Junichiro Koizumi stepped down from the premiership, Japan has partially rolled back his signature postal privatization reforms and voted in a party favor ing handouts over deregulation. But the tide is turning, says Mr. Takenaka, who believes the nat ion is poised to return to deregulation, possibly under the leadership of popular Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto. Mr. Takenaka notes that even the ruling party is starting

to espouse growth strategy ideas that are not a million miles from what he would recommend himself. (…)But Mr. Takenaka slammed the current debate over the sales tax, indicating that on this point the DPJ i s b e y o n d r e d e m p t i o n . H e characterized the planned hike as simply a way for the DPJ to fill the extra hole in government finances resulting from its own additional spending on populist programs since coming to power.”

(JRT – Wall Street Journal)

BANGLADESH: Japan Screens A Sympathetic Version of Itself

“Film releases are, more often than not , meant for enter ta inment purposes. This time however, Japan and Bangladesh have teamed up for the release of a documentary, and their purposes transcend mere amusement. On Friday, July 6th, the J a p a n e s e A m b a s s a d o r t o Bangladesh, Shiro Sadoshima, launched the DVD release of the documentary “Japani Bodhu” (The Japanese Wife) at a public library in Dhaka. The Daily Star reported on M o n d a y, J u l y 9 t h t h a t t h e documentary chronicles the story of a “Dhaka-born Bengali” woman, Horiprobha Basu Mall ick, who married a Japanese man, Wemon Takeda. Mallick later became the first female from the Indian subcontinent to write a book on Japan. The book, which is based on her experiences as she travelled to Japan with her husband in 1912, was released from Dhaka in 1915. Following the 67 m i n u t e s c r e e n i n g o f t h e d o c u m e n t a r y, A m b a s s a d o r Sadoshima spoke about this year’s 40th anniversary of Japan and Bang ladesh ’s d ip lomacy and expressed hope in the documentary and its ability to strengthen the diplomatic relationship between the two countries.”

(The New Asian Media)

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THINK TANK FOCUS

The Japan-U.S. Partnership Toward a World Free of Nuclear Weapons

“"A world without nuclear weapons" if attained, would only be realized in the distant future, as President Obama himself admitted. Moreover, the process of global nuclear disarmament will be long and fraught with geopolitical uncertainties and unpredictable strategic risks. For obvious reasons, the Japanese are second to none in wishing for the elimination of nuclear weapons. However, given the security environment surrounding the country, particularly North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile development and the growth of Chinese military power, ensuring Japan’s security during the process of advancing toward the long-term goal of a nuclear-free world is as important as the goal itself. (…) Against this backdrop, the very fact that Japan commits itself to the Three Non-Nuclear Principles of “not possessing, not producing and not permitting entry into Japan of nuclear weapons” in spite of its capability to produce nuclear weapons is by itself a significant contribution to the cause of global nuclear disarmament, and it deserves international recognition. Nonetheless, it is also evident that the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, particularly the extended deterrence the United States provides to Japan under the treaty, makes Japan’s commitment to the Three Non-Nuclear Principles possible. (…) he Japanese government, too, has been pursuing the elimination of nuclear weapons while relying on

American extended deterrence in coping with possible nuclear threats. Tokyo has also been hesitant to engage in consultations with Washington on the strategic question of how to ensure the effective functioning of American extended deterrence. It had gone further in promising the Japanese people that it would strictly apply the Non-Nuclear Principles to the entry of U.S. vessels and aircraft at a time when non-strategic nuclear weapons were reportedly aboard some of them. Such a line of policy taken by the Japanese government did not cause serious problems during the Cold War, when the U.S.-Soviet confrontation set the tone for military tensions around Japan, deterrence was assured by the concept of mutually assured destruction between U.S. and Soviet nuclear forces, and nuclear disarmament efforts focused on strategic arms control negotiations between Washington and Moscow. Even the question of how to increase the Japanese people’s confidence in American extended deterrence had remained a marginal issue for both Tokyo and Washington. Japanese security perceptions have changed since then in favor of stronger defense and closer alliance with the United States. The changes have become conspicuous particularly since North Korea shot a Taepodong missile over Japan in 1998 and the cases of abduction by North Korean agents of Japanese citizens became public knowledge in 2002. Moreover, exposed to growing threats from North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile development, Japanese public opinion has become increasingly

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sensitive to the perceived uncertainty concerning American commitment to the strategy of extended deterrence. Yet, anti-nuclear sentiment still prevails over strategic considerations within a broad spectrum of Japanese political and public opinion. This is largely due to the fact that Japan, protected by American extended deterrence, has long been spared exposure to strategic challenges. But, given the deterioration of the strategic environment surrounding the country, Japan must take a new comprehensive approach toward the questions regarding nuclear weapons, in which deterrence against nuclear threats and promotion of nuclear disarmament must be pursued in a mutually compatible manner rather than separately. To this end, it is necessary for Japan to be engaged more positively than ever in cooperation with the United States on deterrence strategy. Given all these, the time has come for Tokyo and Washington to expand cooperation into the hitherto little explored dimensions of alliance cooperation; engaging in consultations on deterrence strategy, including nuclear deterrence, and strengthening defense cooperation, which will form the basis for deterrence strategy. Such consultations would hopefully help strengthen the Japanese public’s confidence in American commitment to the alliance.”

(Bryce Wakefield (ed.)/ Yukio Satoh – Wilson Center)

The Okinawa Factor in the Japan-US Alliance

“The Security Treaty between Japan and the United States was signed in September 1951, written to come into effect simultaneously with the San Francisco Peace Treaty that ended the Allied Occupation of Japan after World War II. The bilateral security relationship forged at that time has been called one of the most stable alliances in the world.Far from losing its raison d'être after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold

War, it has taken on increased significance, evolving from a bilateral relationship to one of the pillars of peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. Yet the alliance is built on an arrangement that was problematical from the beginning and that remains a serious source of tension and instability: the high concentration of US bases in Okinawa. In late April 2012, the foreign and defense ministers of Japan and the United States signed a joint statement setting forth Washington's commitment to redeploy approximately 9,000 US marines from Okinawa Prefecture to locations outside of Japan and to return all or part of six US military installations in the same prefecture. One might imagine that the people of Okinawa, who have long chafed under their disproportionate burden, would rejoice at the prospect of a reduction in troop strength and the full or partial return of several bases. (…) For the people of Ok inawa, the Apr i l agreement was a disappointment because it made it clear that the relocation of MCAS Futenma had been placed on the back burner. If a helicopter were to crash near the air base (such things have happened in the past) in the middle of densely populated Ginowan, hostility toward the US forces in Japan, and toward the Japan-US alliance itself, would rise to new heights, not merely in Okinawa but throughout the nation. Yet this alliance is more important to East Asia than ever before, given China's growing power in the region. Indeed, Defense Minister Satoshi Morimoto, appointed during Noda's recent cabinet reshuffle, has stated repeatedly that the US military's continued access to its bases in Japan is of great importance to the security of Northeast Asia. Today as in the past, the Okinawa problem threatens to undercut the very foundations of the Japan-US security relationship. Yet rather than work to resolve the issue, both governments have left it to fester. It is not a situation to inspire confidence in the strength of the bilateral alliance.”

(Yajushiji Katsuyuki – The Tokyo Foundation)

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Visit to Japan by H.E. Mr. Grigol Vashadze, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia [http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/event/2012/7/0717_03.html]

Assistance by the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security to the Project in Nicaragua [http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/announce/2012/7/0713_02.html]

Visit to Japan by The Right Honorable Utoni Nujoma, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Namibia[http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/event/2012/7/0717_01.html] Emergency Grant Aid for Sudanese Refugees Fled to the Republic of South Sudan [http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/announce/2012/7/0713_01.html]

Japan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers' Meeting [http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/announce/2012/7/0708_04.html]

Foreign Minister's Commendations for FY 2012[http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/event/2012/7/0712_01.html]

Statement by the Press Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, on the Adoption of the UN Security Council Resolution on the Situation in Mali[http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/announce/2012/7/0710_01.html]

J-SOFT POWER WEEKLY BRIEFEditor: Rui Faro Saraiva

Assistant Editor: Eduardo Passos

Assistant Editor: Seiko Sakuragi

Osaka, Japan • Editor’s mailbox: ruifarosaraiva@gmail.com

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J-SOFT POWER WEEKLY BRIEF covers news or other articles related with Soft Power in the context of the Japanese Foreign Policy. The opinions expressed are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of JFPO.

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