Campaign Tour Kick-off

The general election of House of Representatives is going to be a referendum on the political handling of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe these five years. The party leaders embarked on their campaign tour, in which they would appeal legitimacy of maintenance or replacement of the administration. The voters are frustrated with both unilateral ruling of Abe and insufficiency of alternative power.

As previous four national elections, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe chose Fukushima for the place of kicking off his campaign tour. “Under the administration of Democratic Party of Japan, reconstruction had been lagging behind. We had to return back the administration as soon as possible. That was our starting point. We must not forget it,” appealed Abe in Fukushima.

He added justification of constitutional amendment. “To Self-defense Force that contributed to recovery in East Japan Great Earthquake, we cannot tell them to risk their lives, even though they are unconstitutional,” insisted Abe. However, Abe did not touch on changing Article 9 of the Constitution, which was sensitive in terms of internal dispute in Liberal Democratic Party or keeping relationship with coalition partner, Komeito. He spent rest of his speech for appealing achievement in Abenomics.

President of Party of Hope, Yuriko Koike, criticized unilateral politics by Abe. “It’s friend, it’s consideration. When you are a friend of him, then you can get something good. Can we have any confidence in such a politics?” stressed Koike. Consumption tax hike was her main target. “Changing the purpose of tax hike? We do not take such a shabby policy. First of all, we freeze it,” said Koike.

Maintenance of democracy was main theme of Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. The President Yukio Edano accused hawkish legislation of Abe administration. “In spite of broad opposition among the people, they did what they wanted because they had majority, without any explanation. Is this really a democracy?” said Edano. “Beyond individual defense right written in the Constitution, Mr. Abe is going to start war without being offended our territorial land or sea.”

Japan Communist Party took historical approach. “The biggest issue is whether we allow the reckless driving of Abe administration. There has not been such an administration full of doubt on privatizing national politics,” Chairman Kazuo Shii blamed Abe. President of Social Democratic Party, Tadatomo Yoshida, asked the people whether they would forgive Abe’s attitude of dissolving House of Representatives without discussion over the scandal of Moritomo and Kake Gakuen.