Greeting with No Progress

Japan is having the first anniversary of governmental ownership of Senkaku Islands on Wednesday. One update was that Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, had a five-minute conversation with Chinese President, Xi Jinping, out of official meeting schedule of G20 Summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, making no difference in their deteriorated relationship. Both leaders could not take advantage of a chance to get a momentum for improving the relationship between them.

They spent that short period of time in explaining their basic standpoints. “We need to get back to the starting point of ‘strategic reciprocity.’ Humbly facing history, I want to build a future-oriented relationship,” told Abe, according to a report based on a comment of a Japanese official. Chinese government-owned Xinhua News Agency reported that Xi told that Japan needed to explore correct solution on Diaoyu, Chinese name of Senkaku, and interpretation of history.

It became the first direct conversation between the leaders of two countries since PM Yoshihiko Noda met Xi at Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting last September. Officials of Japanese Government expect accumulation of this sort of conversation to improve the relationoship in coming international conferences this year. By maintaining this approach, they believe Abe will somehow take a chance to have an official meeting with Xi.

However, there is uncertainty in domestic politics in Japan for rebuilding the relationship with China. Abe is going to take on legislative reforms to enhance Japan’s security, which purpose is obviously to deal with potential threat from China. Reinterpretation of constitutional limitation in exercising collective self-defense right, establishing Japanese version of National Security Council, and reviewing National Defense Program Guideline would be the focusing points in next session of National Diet this fall. In this process, the assertive attitude of Abe administration against China will clearly appear, making the bilateral relationship more complicated.

Abe also had a short talk with President of South Korea, Park Geunhye, in St. Petersburg. Without shaking hands and fundamental exchange of opinions on current issues between them, they just only had greetings.

As long as Abe keeps his shaky standpoint that Japan might have not invaded foreign soils and seeks reinterpretation of history in the World War II, it is unlikely for Japan’s relationship with those neighbors to improve substantially. If the United States is deeply involved in the quagmire of the civil war in Syria, situation in East China Sea will be more unstable. Even though there is an expectation that China is going to approach Japan when its economy gets decline, economic uncertainty is the same in Japan.

Winners’ Homework

After merciless competition among candidates, Tokyo won the ticket of hosting Olympic Games in 2020. International Olympic Committee seemed to have focused on relative political and economic stability of Tokyo, while other two, Istanbul, Turkey, and Madrid, Spain, were in short of assuring those points. It still is unsure that Tokyo will be able to fulfill the expectations.

Before the decision, it was Madrid for Tokyo team to target for winning the ticket. Madrid, however, got out of the race in the first vote, being worried about economic slump these years. Some argued that negative reputation of Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr. was disadvantage for Madrid. Istanbul, suffered from growing possibility of United States military attack on neighboring Syria, could not catch up Tokyo in final vote. One can say that decline of other candidates were biggest advantage for Tokyo.

Tokyo still has a lot of homework to be done by 2020. While people in Japan have got been optimistic about their future, Japan’s economy is still unstable in terms of its fundamentals. There are only a few industries, namely Toyota or Honda, that showed resilience in cheaper yen. Most are very careful in further capital investment. The amount of national debt is going to increase next year. Nobody can anticipate better shape of Japan’s economy seven years later.

More unclear is the situation of reconstruction from the great earthquake and nuclear power plant accident. Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, insisted that the leak of contaminated water from the First Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant was limited inside the port pertaining to the site. It was intensive underestimation. It is estimated that hundreds of thousands tons of contaminated water has been leaked to the sea. The data Abe used was submitted by incompetent Tokyo Electric Power Company. Who will believe the story that a company unable to control land water can control sea water? The greater problem is in reactor No. 4 in the site, with which numerous used fuel rods are stocked in the pool. TEPCO is still controlling the situation of them.

If Abe administration continues for years, the relationship with China and South Korea will not be improved so much. No one can deny the possibility of those countries to boycott Tokyo Olympics, in case territorial issues or interpretation of history gets more complicated.

“Japan will appear as a country firmly reconstructed from the devastation,” told Abe in his winning speech. However, Japan is still in jeopardy of dropping the ticket by unimaginable accident for coming years. As long as seeing the difference between suffered region and others, Japan does not look like being integrated enough to make the event successful.

Embargo on Japan

The Government of South Korea announced that it would prohibit import of all marine products from eight prefectures, including Fukushima, in Japan on Friday. Pushed by consumers worried about radioactive contamination in the products affected by leaked water from broken First Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, the government decided to tighten the embargo on Japan. Although there is an argument that it would be based on a mean motivation to Japan’s candidacy for hosting Olympic Games in 2020, it should be the Government of Japan to be blamed, being incompetent in delivering correct information.

South Korea had already set embargo on fifty kinds of sea products from eight prefectures. However, it is now applied to all sea products, because contamination by leaking water from some tanks around First Fukushima site and through underground water stream would not be accurately detected. If radioactive Cesium are detected from sea products from rest of the prefectures in Japan, the government of South Korea will request Japanese exporters a document of guarantee to be free from all other radioactive materials, the measure which is actually an embargo.

In South Korea, the leakage of contaminated water has been reported everyday basis. While the officials of Tokyo Electric Power Company insisted on no broad pollution of sea water, people in South Korea would no longer believe in the words of that already incompetent failed company as Japanese do. The scandal has affected to fishery in South Korea, decreasing consumption of its own sea products.

Fishermen in Japan are furious about the Government of Japan lagging behind in dealing with the contaminated water leakage. Japan Fisheries Cooperatives submitted the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry a request to properly deal with this issue. But, it is Japan’s bureaucracy which is never taking responsibility. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries criticized South Korea’s decision of its lack of scientific evidence.

But, what South Korea is doing to Japan is what Japan had done to the United States on beef. Against the argument in U.S. that embargo should be set with scientific evidence, Japan dealt with the issue of possible Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy from the perspectives of consumers’ skepticisms on food safety. It rejected all U.S. beef, while World Organization of Animal Health guaranteed over 30 month-old cow would to be safe.

Some devious guys still argue that the intention of South Korea is to block Japan’s hosting of 2020 Olympic Games. This would be an attempt to diminish criticisms against TEPCO and the Government of Japan and excuse Japan’s possible failure in Olympic hosting race. It is wrong, actually. The reason of possible defeat will be other’s superiority, as always told in athletic games.

Sober Cooperation

According to the reports, it was unusual for both leaders of Japan and the United States to have direct conversation within such a short period as three days. In the meeting in St. Petersburg, nevertheless, U.S. President, Barack Obama, asked Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, firm support on U.S. military intervention. Abe did not make his support clear, while he reconfirmed close cooperation with U.S. It seemed that Obama was paying for his indifference on building credible relationship with foreign leaders.

“Use of chemical weapons was tragedy and against international law. We share a recognition that we need to deal with it,” told Obama in the meeting for an hour. Abe replied with pleasure, saying “I realized the significance of your decision. Use of chemical weapons would not be tolerated. It is obvious that Assad regime is responsible for it. I would pay respect to the United States to take responsibility on stopping inhumane behavior.”

It was beneficial for Abe to show cooperative aspect of Japan-U.S. relationship to his domestic audience. He expressed his positive intention on reinterpretation of the Constitution of Japan to exercise collective self-defense right, establishment of the Japanese version of national security council, and legislation of protecting intelligence. He also reconfirmed close cooperation in having conclusion on Trans-Pacific Partnership, on which sharp disputes are still remaining in Japan.

The meeting was more necessary for President than for Prime Minister. Obama needed as many supports on attacking Syria as possible. Against his speech in Stockholm, Sweden, a day before, which indicated that “red line” for Syria had been set by the world, European nations began to criticize Obama of his attribution of his decision to international community. Having lost a firm support from United Kingdom, Japan’s support should be one of the most important tools to persuade people in and outside of U.S.

Obama has, however, not established close personal relationship with Abe. In the meeting in Washington last February, Obama accepted Abe at White House in businesslike manner. It was apparent that President had been skeptical about how long Abe administration would last, in light of frequent replacement of Japanese Prime Minister these years. If Obama had treated Abe with great pleasure and hospitality, as George W. Bush would have done, Abe might have unequivocally supported U.S. military option on Syria.

Having said this, Japan, as an ally, still has no option except supporting U.S. attack. What Abe can only do is praying for avoiding severe decision.

Right of Kids out of Legal Marriage

Significance of the decision is not about human rights of kids, but about rebuilding legal structure of civil law. The Supreme Court on Wednesday decided that the provision of Civil Law of Japan, which determined a child out of legitimate marriage would receive a half heritage of what legitimate child would take, was unconstitutional in terms of equality of children. Lawmakers now are required to abolish the provision enacted over one hundred years ago as soon as possible. Still, the conservatives are reluctant to do that in moral perspective.

The lawsuit was raised by two persons, each of whose mothers had not legally married with father. In the case of woman in Wakayama Prefecture, her mother, worker in a restaurant, had been living with her father who were the owner of the restaurant. He had legitimate spouse and children in another place. After father died in 2001, the woman realized that she could not receive a half amount of legitimate child’s take, and felt her life is as half valuable as each of them.

According to Civil Law of Japan, for example one man, wife and two kids with $1.2 million heritage, a half of the amount, $600 thousands, would be provided with legitimate spouse, and kids receive $300 thousands each. If he had another de facto wife and two kids, legitimate kids receive $200 thousands each and de facto kids do $100 thousands each. De facto wife receives none. When the decision of the Supreme Court will be implemented, four of every kid can take $150 thousands regardless their legitimacy.

In this pantheistic nation, preventive measures against bigamy had been dependent on legal provisions and, more vaguely, moral aspect. However, developed Western nations enhanced the human rights of children out of legal marriage. The United Nations insistently requested Japan to abolish the discriminative provision against children. This time, the Supreme Court decided to change it, asserting “Considering current change of family formation and people’s mind, it is not tolerated to force a child disadvantage with no choice.”

Ministers of the Cabinet are mostly willing to change the provision. But, conservative lawmakers, namely who are affiliated to Liberal Democratic, are reluctant to change traditional interpretation of marriage, saying that it would encourage bigamy or bring trouble with disputing families. Whether or not Civil Law will be reviewed, the point is that marriage is basically a personal activity, not legal. Family matters should basically  be solved within the family.

Using Princess for Politics

Political use of Imperial Family, which the Constitution prohibits, must be doubted on the attendance of Princess Hisako of Takamado to the general meeting of International Olympic Committee in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Saturday. In the meeting, she is going to make a speech to literally appeal Tokyo’s candidacy to the host city of Olympic games in 2020. Against reluctant Imperial Household Agency, Prime Minister’s Residence pushed to let her work for this political agenda. This makes another episode of the administration to flagrantly ignore the Constitution.

Hisako had been expected only to have a greeting to board members of the committee at the reception before the general meeting. But, after the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Hakubun Shimomura, asked the Agency to let her attend the general meeting and Prime Minister’s Office did the same request, the Imperial Household Agency unwillingly accepted it.

The Agency has strictly avoided Royal Family’s participation in the race of candidates for decades, because supporting the activity of Olympic invitation directly leads to a political achievement. It has also been refraining from competition with other nations. The Constitution of Japan determines that the Emperor does not possess any ability on national politics. Accordingly, the Royal Families are also supposed to be unable to participate in politics. Abe administration actually challenged this provision and precedents.

The Grand Steward of the Agency, Noriyuki Kazaoka, spoke for the Emperor of his anxiety. “Although it was possible to be recognized as joining in the campaign, we made a tough choice. I think the Emperor and Empress are worrying about it,” Kazaoka said in a press conference. While the Agency explains that Princess Hisako is just going to appreciate the helping hands of nations for recovery effort from the great disaster in her speech, nobody regard her as a innocent attendee on the meeting where the host city will be determined.

Bringing Olympic games is an opportunity for Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, to facilitate a mood of integrated nation, which will work for his political achievement. However, it is unfair for him to shift people’s attention from disaster recovery to an international sports event. Actually, the governmental intervention in management of contaminated water produced by the broken nuclear power plant with a great amount of tax money is dubbed as in order to remove apprehension of IOC officials about Tokyo Olympic. If Japan failed in the campaign, Abe must assume his responsibility on this political adventure.

How to Deal with Severe Weather

People in greater Tokyo were astonished with the power of nature on Monday. A set of tornadoes blew houses away and caused sixty-four people injured in Saitama and Chiba prefecture, suburb of Tokyo Metropolitan District. Media in Japan reported that was a consequence of global warming, with analyses of experts.

It was around 2 p.m. when a tornado appeeared in Koshigarya City, Saitama, and swoop the land in 15 kilometers length. Injured people include mid-school students in the city. Tokyo Shimbun reported comment of a female student that she had heard stomping sound from the roof after black out happened in gym, and then broken window glasses poured on the students. A goal post on succor field was blown away by the wind in another elementary school.

Japan Meteorological Agency explained how the storm was born. At the time, the land surface was highly heated by sunshine, while the air in high altitude was significantly cool. This gap of temperature caused quick convection, and made a great cumulonimbus called “super cell.” This area, northern suburb of Tokyo, has frequently been marking Japan’s highest temperature of a day recent years. Distant from coastal area, heat island phenomena can often be seen there.

In Tokyo, an expert meeting for discussion about extraordinary climate was held mostly at the same time of the tornado. The members concluded that this extremely hot summer was brought by extraordinary climate. Temperature of Japan this summer was 1.06 Celsius degree, the fourth highest since 1898. They used data of relatively rural area where impact of urbanization would be small.

However, the land surface has been artificially warmed by urban life style. Air conditioners in office buildings and houses not only heat the air around them, but also emit humidity as compensation for keeping rooms cool and dry. Causing traffic jam sometimes, a number of cars on the road emit greenhouse gasses. Asphalt blocks earth to absorb heat of daylight.

Tornado comes too sudden to escape. It is unlikely for the government to predict it and let people evacuate accordingly. Before challenging great nature, people need to think about how to reduce negative impact of severe climate. Dense population is one of the serious problems in Japan, of which bureaucrats are lagging behind. Structural change of society is critical for the country which experienced unprecedented disaster only two years ago.