#JAPAN: Tribute To Abe May Be Postponed Due to Opposition

[world politics news]

Japan's ruling party is considering putting off a memorial speech in parliament for former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe until this fall, after its plan for his close aide to deliver it in August met resistance from within the party and from opposition parties, lawmakers said Thursday.

Akira Amari, who was an economy minister in the Abe administration and was personally close to him, was floated as a candidate to speak in parliament during an extraordinary session starting next week.

The Liberal Democratic Party is now being forced to review the plan, which opposition lawmakers said would break with the long-standing practice of a leader from a different party giving such a speech in order to express condolences beyond the differences of political views.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN,: Former PM Shinzo Abe Assassinated

[world politics news]

Former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated at a campaign stop yesterday by a lone gunman. He was 67 years old. 

Abe, who stepped down in 2020, was shot moments into a speech in Western Japan. He was immediately airlifted to a hospital, but was later pronounced dead. 

Police arrested suspected gunman, a 41-year-old former member of the Japanese Naval Defense Force, who used a homemade shotgun to shoot Abe twice, was easily apprehending him at the scene.

World leaders reacted with shock at the news.

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: PM SHINZO ABE EXPECTED TO STEP DOWN OVER HEALTH CONCERNS

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to step down as prime minister amid speculation over his health, NHK reported Friday, throwing the political center of Nagatacho in turmoil over the question of who will take over.

Abe was expected to speak to reporters at 5 p.m. local time.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: PM Abe Returns To Hospital After Check-Up; Sparking Health Fears

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe returned Monday to a Tokyo hospital where a week ago he underwent what an aide called "a regular health checkup," the visit coming on the same day he marks a record as Japan's longest-serving prime minister in terms of consecutive days in office.

Abe was taken to Keio University Hospital for a follow-up to his previous visit, said Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.

Speculation about the 65-year-old's health has been swirling since he spent more than seven hours at the hospital on Aug. 17. Questions began being asked about his health after a magazine reported he had vomited blood in July.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: Gov't To Cut Senior Benefits, Urge Elderly To Work Longer, Amid Aging Crisis

[world politics news]

The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe plans to cut benefits given to employees aged between 60 and 64, whose salaries drastically drop when they turn 60. Japan is facing an increased demographic burden after decades of rapid ageing of the population and falling birth rates. Critics argue Abe’s government has done little to reverse the trend. People aged 65 or older are expected to reach nearly 40 per cent of the population by 2060, according to the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.

Abe’s cabinet has approved bills to call on businesses to allow their employees to work until the age of 70.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: Consumption Tax Rate Rises From 8% To 10% Today

[world politics news]

The Japanese national consumption tax rate rose from 8% to 10% on Tuesday as a way to secure a source of funding for ballooning social security costs and promote fiscal reform, marking the third increase since the levy was introduced in 1989 and the first hike since April 2014.

The increase to 10% was initially scheduled for October 2015, but Prime Minister Shinzo Abe postponed the hike twice due to concerns about the impact on the Japanese economy.

The government has prepared a series of measures to soften the blow to consumers, including the introduction of a reduced tax rate of 8% for certain goods, and of a point program for cashless payments.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: New Tax On Food In Theme Parks Taxed Less If Consumed While Walking

[world politics news]

With two months to go before the consumption tax hike, the government released a document Thursday spelling out cases regarding food and drinks purchased at theme parks, saying they will be taxed at 10% if consumed at tables, but 8% if consumed while walking.

The government will raise the tax from the current 8%  to 10% from Oct 1, but daily necessities such as food, nonalcoholic beverages and newspapers delivered to homes will be exempt from the hike. Dining out will incur a 10% charge, but food purchased and taken out from restaurants will be taxed at the current 8%.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: PM Abe's Party Wins Election, But Opposition Makes Gains In Upper House

[world politics news]

Opposition parties saw mixed results in the upper house election on Sunday, with the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan making big gains while others struggled to attract support in a crowded field.

The CDPJ, which ran on promises to postpone a planned consumption tax hike and raise the minimum wage to 1,300 yen ($12), won 17 of the 124 contested seats, gaining eight seats compared with its pre-election level to solidify its status as the leading opposition force in parliament.
[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: In Debate, PM Abe Says Sales Tax Hike Will Go Ahead In October

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said during a debate with opposition leaders that he will go ahead with the planned sales tax hike in October but vehemently denied there will be further increases while he remains in power.

Although rumors that Abe might postpone the tax hike have died down, with an Upper House election in less than three weeks, questions have been raised over whether there might be further tax hikes.

Japanese voters go to the polls tomorrow to elect the House Of Councillors, the upper house of the Diet, the nation's parliament.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: Pre-Election No Confidence Motion Against PM Abe Fails

[world politics news]

A no-confidence motion against the cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was voted down Tuesday in the lower house, with the ruling bloc fending off opposition camp criticism about the government's handling of a pension report before an upper house election.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: Victims Of Forced Sterilization Law To Receive Apology, Compensation

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe plans to issue a statement offering a state apology to those who were subject to forced sterilization under a now-defunct eugenics law after a redress bill clears the Diet.

His statement and the bill’s expected enactment this month to provide ¥3.2 million ($28,600) in state redress to each victim are unlikely to settle compensation disputes, however, as victims are demanding much larger payments. The Eugenic Protection Law was enacted in 1948, and was only repealed in 1996.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: PM Abe Won't Seek Party Rule Change To Seek Fourth Term In 2021

[world politics news]

Already the nation's longest serving leader, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says he has no intention of serving another four-year term as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party when his third term expires in September 2021. Abe’s remarks came after some in the party hinted at the possibility of changing a party rule to make it possible for him to remain in the post beyond the current limit of three terms.

"Seeking a fourth term is prohibited by a party regulation. It is a matter of course to abide by the rule," said the 64-year-old prime minister, who was returned to power in late 2012. "As this is my last tenure, I will concentrate on achieving results with full might.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: Negotiations Over Disputed Islands Break Down Over Premature Statements

[world politics news]

Negotiations between Japan and Russia over islands that have been claimed by both nations since World War II have broken down.

Russia has slapped down Japanese assertions that a deal was nearing to resolve a decades-old dispute over the Kuril Islands, accusing Tokyo of distorting agreements struck with Moscow to break the deadlock.

Japanese officials reportedly told residents of the island to prepare for an imminent transfer of sovereignty to Japan, long before negotiations had reached that point.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: PM Abe Prepares Legislation To Admit More Foreign Workers; Sparks Early "Japan First" Protest March

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is preparing to introduce legislation to allow migrants to start filling vacancies next year in sectors worst hit by the country’s shrinking, aging population. While the government hasn’t released a target, local media have reported numbers that would represent a 40% increase over the 1.3 million foreign workers now living in the country. If passed, the legislation would be Japan’s most dramatic immigration overhaul since the 1990s, when it let “trainees” from Asian nations in the country. Foreigners make up only about 1.7% of the country’s population, compared with 3.4% in South Korea and about 12%  in Germany. A small group of protesters, calling themselves "Japan First" gathered this past weekend in an upscale Tokyo shopping district. They were met by counter-protesters calling them "racists," but it was a stark reminder to Abe that anti-migrant feeling in Japan could grow.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: Candidate Urging Reduced US Military Presence Wins Okinawa Governor's Race

[world politics news]

A candidate opposed to the relocation of a US military base within Okinawa Prefecture, and wants a sharply reduced US presence in the region, won the Okinawa gubernatorial election on Sept. 30.

Denny Tamaki, 58, a former Lower House member of the Liberal Party, defeated three other candidates, including former Ginowan mayor Atsushi Sakima, 54, who was supported by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democratic Party and other, smaller parties. Tamaki, the son of a Japanese woman and a US Marine, campaigned on a platform stressing the burdens placed on the region by the US military base there.

WHY WE SHOULD CARE:
Military observers and political leaders in both Japan and the US worry what signals a decreased presence in the region could send to China, North Korea, and others in the region.

[FULL STORY HERE]

World Politics News is dedicated to raising Americans' knowledge of political events, elections, and legislation throughout the world.

#JAPAN: Finance Min. Returns Annual Salary Over Doc Tampering Scandal

[world politics news]

Japan's finance minister, Taro Aso, has said he will return a full year's salary after his ministry was found to have tampered with public documents. An inquiry found that references to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife were removed from papers relating to a controversial sale of state land. Aso said the scandal has "hurt" public confidence in the ministry and the government.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#JAPAN: PM Abe's Cabinet Begins Process Of Lowering Age of "Adult" To 18 From 20

[world politics news]

The cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has adopted bills to amend the Civil Code and other laws to lower Japan's adult age from 20 to 18. The Abe government plans to introduce the bills, including ones to maintain the ban on drinking, smoking and gambling by people under 20, to the ongoing ordinary session of the Diet for enactment. If the bills are passed into law, the new adult age will be implemented on April 1, 2022, to mark the first change in the definition of adult in the country's modern period.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#JAPAN: Abe's Party Favors Inclusion Of Self-Defense Forces In Post-War Constitution's Article 9

[world politics news]

Members of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party favor a re-wording of Article 9, the constitutional provision barring Japan from having an offensive military capability, to explicitly allow the nation's Self-Defense Forces. Currently, a lack of recognition in the Constitution puts restrictions on what the de-facto military force can do within the borders and waters of Japan.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#JAPAN: National Legislature Meets To Take Up Constitutional Reforms, Labor Issues, Casinos

[world politics news]

After months of turmoil over a snap election, opposition realignment and stalled legislative progress, this year’s regular Diet session kicked off this week. The five-month-long process will see the nation’s lawmakers discuss a slew of important bills - including work on amending the constitution, casinos, and labor reform - for the first time since the end of last year’s ordinary session in June. A fall session of the legislature, convened in September, lasted just a few minutes after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe hustled to dissolve it by calling a snap election.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#JAPAN: PM Abe's Hard Line Against N. Korea Pays Off In Strong New Election Mandate

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has secured a strong mandate for his hard line against North Korea and room to push for revision of the country’s pacifist constitution after his party crushed untested opposition parties in Sunday’s general election.

[FULL STORY HERE]