Japan's ruling party yesterday chose moderate political veteran Yasuo Fukuda as the country's next prime minister, seeking safe hands after a disastrous year under conservative Shinzo Abe.
The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is still reeling from a landmark election defeat in July and a resurgent opposition immediately vowed to press Fukuda to call a snap general poll.
Fukuda, a dour-looking behind-the-scenes operator who openly admits he lacks charisma, easily fended off a challenge from hawkish former foreign minister Taro Aso in the race to lead the world's second-largest economy.
Fukuda, wearing his usual grey suit, bowed before LDP members and pledged to revive the party, which he acknowledged faced "huge difficulties."
"I would like to do my best to revive the LDP," Fukuda told party members. "I want the LDP to be born again so it recovers the public trust and is able to steadfastly carry out policies."
Abe, an outspoken conservative who campaigned to build a "beautiful nation" freed from the legacies of World War II defeat, abruptly resigned on Sept. 12 after a series of scandals involving the Cabinet and sliding approval ratings.
Abe, who was considered a bright young face for the LDP when he took over a year ago this week, checked himself into a hospital after his resignation for treatment of extreme stress and exhaustion.
"I apologize to party members and especially to all the Japanese people that I created this political vacuum after I announced my resignation at such an important time," Abe said in a letter read to the LDP meeting.
Abe, who remains out of sight, pledged to stand behind Fukuda, whose views on issues ranging from North Korea to wartime history are far more centrist than Abe's.
Analysts say the LDP wanted a respite from the ideologically driven Abe and his predecessor Junichiro Koizumi, who won elections through his flamboyant style but spearheaded free-market reforms unpopular in the countryside.
"Fukuda is not charismatic but he is being viewed as a safe pair of hands," said Robert Dujarric, director of Temple University's Institute of Contemporary Japanese Studies. "They know he's not going to be totally incompetent."
Fukuda, a former oilman and top aide to previous prime ministers, received 330 votes among party members against 197 for Aso, the party announced. One vote was invalid.
The vote by LDP lawmakers and local officials made Fukuda party president. He is virtually assured of being installed as prime minister tomorrow by parliament, where an LDP-led coalition has control of the nation's more powerful lower house.
Fukuda will be Japan's oldest prime minister on entering office since 1991, a stark contrast to the 53-year-old Abe, who was Japan's youngest leader in recent times and faced criticism that he was too inexperienced.
Fukuda himself has faulted Abe for not stepping down earlier after the LDP lost control of the upper house of parliament for the first time in the July elections.
Fukuda has also pledged to ease the pain of rural voters, who feel left out of Japan's economic recovery and deserted the LDP in the elections.
The opposition has vowed to use the upper house to end a naval mission supporting US-led forces in Afghanistan. Abe effectively staked his job on the renewal of the mandate, which Fukuda also supports.
Senior opposition leader Yukio Hatoyama pledged to press Fukuda for a general election, which many observers predict will come by next year.
"The people's wishes are not just for a swapping of power within the LDP," Hatoyama said.
Fukuda held the powerful post of chief Cabinet secretary, the top aide to the prime minister, for a record three-and-a-half years until 2004, developing a reputation for damage control and effective management of the bureaucracy.
He is known for his close contacts with China and for hobnobbing with Tokyo-based diplomats. He is the son of late prime minister Takeo Fukuda, who signed a peace-and-friendship treaty with China in 1978.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique