Japan has started its summer "Cool Biz" casual clothing campaign with politicians ditching their suits and ties to encourage people to use less air-conditioning.
The government has asked people in both the private and public sectors to dress lightly and set the temperature of their air-conditioned offices no lower than 28?C during the hot summer months.
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has pledged to discard his tie throughout the campaign, except when meeting important people from other countries.
PHOTO: AFP
"It feels nice not to have to wear a tie," Koizumi said, wearing a loose, white shirt in Tokyo.
The government has said that in 2005, the first Cool Biz campaign helped reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 460,000 tons, which is equal to the emissions from 1 million Japanese households per month.
About one-third of Japanese offices said they had significantly reduced the use of air-conditioning after last year's campaign.
But not everyone is happy. Last year tie-makers made less money during the summer months. There are also people who are not taking advantage of the opportunity to dress casually.
"Personally, I don't like to wear ties. But since that's the way it has always been done, I can't do otherwise," said one 23-year-old office worker dressed in a black suit and light-blue tie on his lunch break in central Tokyo.
Some older businessmen are especially reluctant to ditch their tie.
"Ties strangle me," joked one 64-year-old, "but since I work in a major company, they're a status symbol." (AFP)
日本已經展開「Cool Biz」夏日清涼便裝運動，政治人物紛紛脫掉西裝、拿下領帶，鼓勵民眾減少使用冷氣。
日本政府已要求各公、私立機關人員在炎熱的夏天穿著輕便服裝，同時辦公室內的空調溫度不得低於攝氏二十八度。
首相小泉純一郎承諾，活動期間除了會見他國重要人物以外，他都不打領帶。
穿著寬鬆白襯衫的小泉在東京表示：「不必打領帶的感覺真好。」
日本政府表示，二００５年首度推行的「Cool Biz」運動有效減少了四十六萬噸二氧化碳的排放，這相當於日本一百萬個家庭每月的排放量。
約有三分之一的日本官員表示，去年開始推行「Cool Biz」運動後，冷氣的使用已明顯減少。
不過幾家歡樂幾家愁，領帶製造商去年夏天的營業額就減少了些；也有民眾放棄這個穿著便裝的機會。
東京市中心一名穿著黑色西裝打淺藍色領帶、正在午休的二十三歲上班族說：「我個人雖不喜歡打領帶，但長久以來已習慣如此，不打領帶反而覺得奇怪。」
部份年長的商務人士尤其不願脫下領帶。
一名六十四歲的男士開玩笑說：「領帶雖勒得我難受，但對在大公司上班的我來說，它們可是地位的表徵。」
（法新社／翻譯：林倩如）
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