Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi vowed yesterday to push ahead with his reform agenda despite suffering a setback in elections seen as a verdict on unpopular policies on Iraq and pensions.
Koizumi's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has ruled Japan almost uninterruptedly for nearly 50 years, won 49 of the 121 seats contested in Sunday's upper house election, a net loss of just one seat.
The main opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) won 50 seats, up from 38 before the election.
PHOTO: AFP
However, Koizumi's ruling coalition retained its majority in the upper house after its coalition partner, the New Komei party, won 11 seats. It also holds a majority in the more powerful lower chamber of parliament, which chooses the prime minister.
Newspaper editorials described the results as a slap down for an "arrogant" Koizumi by voters who were angry he had failed to explain the planned overhaul of the creaking pension system and the decision to keep troops in Iraq deployed since December.
But senior members of the ruling party, who have expressed frustration at Koizumi's high-handed management style, expressed support after last week suggesting a poor election result could see him deposed as premier.
Koizumi said he would not change course on key policy initiatives. He promised to keep up the structural reform of the economy and said Japan would maintain the contingent of troops doing reconstruction work in southern Iraq.
"I believe the public is calling for the ruling coalition to work with the opposition to push for our reform agenda," Koizumi told reporters, saying his reforms were responsible for the current economic recovery.
But analysts warned that he could be punished more severely next time unless he speeds up the reform process.
Koizumi could be forced to resign or dissolve the lower house in next summer and call a snap election, in which the Democrats could win power, said political analyst Minoru Morita.
"I think it will be difficult for him to last two more years," added Yoshiaki Kobayashi, political science professor at Keio University.
Koizumi acknowledged that a majority of Japanese opposed his decision to keep troops in Iraq as part of a multinational force, but he insisted it was the right thing to do.
"Japan needs to continue activities which will be regarded as valued work there," he said.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
WARFARE: All sectors of society should recognize, unite, and collectively resist and condemn Beijing’s cross-border suppression, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said The number of Taiwanese detained because of legal affairs by Chinese authorities has tripled this year, as Beijing intensified its intimidation and division of Taiwanese by combining lawfare and cognitive warfare, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) made the statement in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈柏洋) about the government’s response to counter Chinese public opinion warfare, lawfare and psychological warfare. Shen said he is also being investigated by China for promoting “Taiwanese independence.” He was referring to a report published on Tuesday last week by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency,
‘ADDITIONAL CONDITION’: Taiwan will work with like-minded countries to protect its right to participate in next year’s meeting, the foreign ministry said The US will “continue to press China for security arrangements and protocols that safeguard all participants when attending APEC meetings in China,” a US Department of State spokesperson said yesterday, after Beijing suggested that members must adhere to its “one China principle” to participate. “The United States insists on the full and equal participation of all APEC member economies — including Taiwan — consistent with APEC’s guidelines, rules and established practice, as affirmed by China in its offer to host in 2026,” the unnamed spokesperson said in response to media queries about China putting a “one China” principle condition on Taiwan’s
RSS