LDP - just gimme one more chance

自民党　改革断行演説会



Cycling through Tokyo’s Suginami ward yesterday, I discovered this over-the-top poster of three Liberal Democratic Party politicians looking like they’ve come down with 1970s disco night fever. It is advertising the public meeting of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s (LDP) “Ceaseless Reform Speeches” at the headquarters of the Party from noon, September 10, 2009.

It comes at a time when the LDP, led by the abysmally unpopular Taro Aso, is struggling to maintain its traditional hold on power in Japan. Sunday, July 12, was the day for the election of members to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and is being seen as an important indicator of how the LDP is doing nationwide.

This poster features the three speakers (from left)
-Katsuei Hirasawa, a policitian who graduated from Duke University in the US, has close connections with security/police and diplomatic circles, and who in 2007 helped found the LDP sub-committee for the Korean peninsula issue, aiming to normalize relations with North Korea. Having begun his working life in television, he is (apparently) skilled in handling the media (not that it shows here!), and has written several books.



Nobuteru Ishihara, the eldest son of the reactionary Governor of Tokyo, Shintaro Ishihara. He is presently at the center of the controversy surrounding the ShinGinko Tokyo Bank, founded under his initiative in 2005 with 100 billion yen of the metropolitan government's money, and which, due to allegedly sloppy practices, is now 101.6 billion yen in the red. When criticized for using his political clout to influence the fortunes of the bank, his father came to his rescue saying that “using political clout is a politician’s job”!

Ichiro Kamoshita is originally a Ph.D. in medicine, who joined the LDP in 1997 after being with the Japan New Party. It was reported in the Japan Communist Party’s organ, Akahata (“Red Flag”), in September 2003 that he received political donations from the National Financial Political Association (the lobbying organ of the loan-shark industry).

The title of the poster is “Building Japan’s tomorrow!,” but in the context of the LDP’s present fortunes, those John Travolta poses, rather than (I presume) pointing a digit in the direction of the new day, look more like they’re counting how many chances remain for them: one.


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Japan Visitor July Newsletter

ジャパンニュースレター

Subscribe to the Japan newsletter to receive all the latest news on our free Japan gifts, special offers and new competitions.

Take a look at July's Japan Visitor newsletter to see what you will receive in your mailbox.



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Taro Aso Calls August Election

麻生太郎

Taro Aso, the hapless and gaff-prone Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Prime Minister has called a snap election for August 30 following his party's resounding defeat in local Tokyo elections on Sunday.

The opposition Democratic Party (DJP) won 54 seats to the LDP's 34.

Aso is the 4th Prime Minister since the last general election in 2005 following Junichiro Koizumi, Shinzo Abe and Yasuo Fukuda.

The choice awaiting the Japanese electorate in August is between two conservative parties with similar agendas and backgrounds. One political commentator has likened Aso and his opponent, DJP leader Yukio Hatoyama, to "Tweedledee and Tweedledum."

Both are aged, wealthy scions of political dynasties, but with Aso's popularity ratings hovering around the 20% mark, it seems the Japanese public are ready to to give Tweedledum a chance this time around.

Yukio Hatoyama replaced Ichiro Ozawa as leader of the DJP earlier this year, after the latter became embroiled in a financing scandal.

Hatoyama, like Aso, is a super-rich, blue-blooded, hereditary politician and likewise a grandson of a former conservative party prime minister.

A graduate of Tokyo University, Hatoyama's grandfather Ichiro Hatoyama was a hawkish prime minister in the 1950s, Hatoyama's father Iichiro Hatoyama was Japan's foreign minister for a period in the 1970s. His brother Kunio Hatoyama is a leading LDP politician. Plus ça change.


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Japan This Week: 12 July 2009

今週の日本

Mound Provides Painful Challenge to Japanese Pitcher

New York Times

Inside His Exteriors

New York Times

Fuji cancellation threatens future of Formula One in Japan

Guardian

Japan to defy US with another bout of intervention

Times on Line

Details released on criteria to let illegal aliens stay

Japan Times

Le hit des mauvais vacanciers

Libération

'Rude' French are worst tourists [Japanese best]

BBC

Smile please! Japan's Rail Police

BBC

Full Frame: Walking through fire, literally

Global Post

World Cup qualifiers Japan seek Dutch courage

Yahoo Sports

Last week's Japan news


Japan Statistics

2,217,000 million foreigners were registered in Japan at the end of 2008. That is an increase of 50% in the last decade.

Chinese took the top spot with 655,000 residents (30%). Koreans came in second with 589,000. Brazilians totaled 313,000, Filipinos 211,000, and Peruvians 60,000.

Source: Kyodo News


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Hydrangea - Ajisai

アジサイ　紫陽花

The quintessential rainy season flower in Japan is the hydrangea - ajisai in Japanese.



Appearing in gardens and temples throughout Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu, the hydrangea is at its best in mid-June. The stems should be trimmed in the fall to ensure strong growth.



A number of temple and shrine gardens are well-known for their hydrangeas including Meigetsu-in in Kamakura, Fujimori Jinja Shrine in Fushimi in Kyoto and Tofukuji also in south east Kyoto.

The hydrangea is native to south and east Asia (China, Korea, Japan, the Himalaya region and Indonesia) as well as North and South America. There are over 70 species. The leaves are toxic if eaten and there have been a number of cases of Japanese restaurants serving the leaves as a garnish and unwittingly poisoning their customers!


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Falun Gong in Tokyo

法輪功



Walking through Tokyo’s Sumida ward last weekend, I happened upon a brass band parade livening up the gray, rain-soaked streets. I changed course and followed it out of curiosity, and soon discovered that it was a demonstration by the Falun Gong, a religious group famous for being outlawed in China.

The group uses the transliteration “Falun Dafa” rather than Falun Gong – a title that appeared on their banners and the backs of their jackets: “Falun Dafa is Good: Truthfulness, Forbearance, Benevolence.”

I was approached by a member of the group who talked with me at length as we followed the parade, and supplied me with some of the group’s literature.

According to the Falun Dafa, their members are subject not only to simple brutality, but are targeted as unwilling suppliers of body parts to others in need of them and who can afford to pay for them. As such, the body parts are allegedly removed while the victim is still alive to ensure their efficacy for the recipient.

Gruesome posters carried by the marchers were displayed as witness to the alleged acts of persecution.

Whether such alleged practices are the result of Chinese government policy or not, I don’t know. The recent Sanlu milk powder scandal suggests that much of what happens in China happens at the local level and is either ignored by the central government or invisible to it. (Due to local official corruption and connivance, it took a formal diplomatic approach by the New Zealand government to the highest echelons of the Chinese government to get the Sanlu milk powder affair recognized and resolved.)

Whatever the economics and politics behind the problems allegedly faced by the Falun Dafa, they are real enough to their Japanese counterparts to put their all into exposing it.

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shugi - ism

主義




shugi is an affix in Japanese that crops up all the time. Used at the end of various words, it corresponds to "ism."

The 主　(shu) literally means "main, principal, ruling" and the 義 (gi) is a meaning "cloud" that covers everything from "justice" to "humanity" to "integrity" to "chivalry" to "honor" to "morality" to "significance."
So, put them together, and you have something like "main/ruling object of worthiness/devotion/significance," or, in other words, "doctrine," "principle," "ticket." Conveniently, just as with the English "ism," you stick it on the end of the object of that "devotion."

For example:
資本主義　shihonshugi = capitalism
共産主義　kyosanshugi = communism
社会主義　shakaishugi = socialism
軍国主義　gunkokushugi = militarism
自由主義　jiyushugi = liberalism
保守主義　hoshushugi = conservatism
民族主義　minzokushugi = nationalism
愛国主義　aikokushugi = patriotism
平和主義　heiwashugi = pacifism
商業主義 shogyoshugi = commercialism
毛沢東主義 motakutoshugi = Maoism
帝国主義　teikokushugi = imperialism
個人主義　kojinshugi = individualism

There are times when it doesn't work quite as neatly; for example:
民主主義　minshushugi = democracy
but most of the time it does.

shugi can also be used alone, in the "doctrine, principle" sense. For example,

主義としてやるしかない。Shugi to shite, yaru shika nai. It has to be done [or, "I have to do it"] as a matter of principle.

主義に殉じる。Shugi ni junjiru. To die [sacrifice oneself] for a cause.

主義を支持する Shugi o shiji suru. To support [take up/stand for] a cause.

主義を曲げない Shugi o magenai. To fly one's colors/Nail one's colors to the mast.

So, even if you're not up to talking principles and politics in Japanese, at least, knowing "shugi," you will know roughly when to run - or at least keep your mouth shut!


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Nagoya Hostess Bar

名古屋のホステスバー

A recent business trip to Nagoya included Japanese-style night time entertainment. Work then play.

This ended, predictably enough, with the local accountant dragging us to a hostess bar.

In front of a multi-story building in Sakai were several women dressed in the Nagoya hostess uniform: slinky dress with a lot of shoulder and side flank exposed, or a kimono.

Up the elevator we went to the eighth floor. The accountant led us to the second door on the left and into Aun, a small hostess bar with about 10 customers.

The bar was fairly bright, and only a few hostesses were on duty.

Fortunately, the other men in the bar were either preoccupied with hostesses - or drunk - so they didn't notice or mind our karaoke singing.

Mama-san, pictured above right, ministered to many of our needs. She served watered down "drinks," sang for and with us, and kept the nut tray full.

After a few hours, we left considerably more sober than when we arrived.

The accountant coughed up, and we tottered off to our hotel.


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Gion Festival Kyoto

祇園祭

Listen to the sound of Gion Matsuri

Kyoto's Gion Matsuri takes place throughout the month of July with something happening nearly every day.

Gion Matsuri began over a thousand years ago to placate Susano-o no Mikoto, the god of wind and water in an effort to halt a devasting plague that was sweeping the country. The gorgeous floats were traditionally maintained by merchant guilds (now neighborhood associations) who vied with each other to produce the most ostentatious show of kazari (decoration).

The main event and climax of the festival is the yamaboko junko, a procession of 32 giant, decorated floats (23 yama and 9 hoko) through the streets on July 17th. On the preceding evenings of July 14-16th, the floats are illuminated by lanterns and nearby houses display their family heirlooms. This part of the festival is known as Gion Bayashi with the evening of the July 16th (Yoiyama) the most significant, when thousands of people dressed in summer yukata take to the pedestrianized streets of downtown Kyoto to view the floats amid the constant festival music of flutes, drums and bells.




On July 10th, there is a welcoming ceremony for the floats (omukae chochin) when the festival lanterns are carried in a procession and later that evening in a festival known as mikoshi arai - the sacred palaquins are washed on Shijo Bridge.

After the main procession on July 17th which lasts from around 9am-1pm, three palaquins are taken from Gion's Yasaka Shrine at 6.30pm and brought to Shijo Otabisho just off Teramachi Street, south of Shijo Street. This is known as the shinko-sai.



On July 24th, hanagasa-junko is a procession of dancers including maiko (geisha) and children in traditional costume. This begins at 10pm and proceeds around the downtown area. At 5pm the three palaquins are returned to Yasaka Shrine from Teramachi in a tradition called kanko-sai.

Mikoshi-arai is the formal conclusion of the festival on July 28th and sees the floats cleaned again on Shijo Bridge before returning to Yasaka Shrine until next year.

On July 31th, a nagoshi-no-harai purification rite is held at Yasaka Shrine with visitors passing through an arch of sacred grasses. This ritual is usually performed at the end of June at other shrines around the country.


Images: Jake Davies

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Tanabata Festival, 2009

七夕祭り

Tanabata, or "the festival of the star Vega," is celebrated around Japan on the 7th day of the 7th month (though later in some rural parts of Japan).

The festival originated in China and is the celebration of the meeting of the stars Vega and Altair in the Milky Way for their annual lover's tryst. The festival is especially popular with young children.

There are larger Tanabata-themed festivals in Japan - Sendai's is the best known - but the festival is more of an occasion to be celebrated at home.

Wishes, written on colorful pieces of paper, are hung on bamboo. They are known as tanzaku in Japanese, and are usually about health, wealth, love, and the educational success of one 's children.

The bamboo pictured here with its many tanzaku is typical.

It was placed at a children's center in central Kyoto called Kodomo Mirai Kan.

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