英紙Financial Times の記事。 ttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/579dffea-fc44-11dd-aed8-000077b07658.html Japan’s politicians lose their way at a bad time
The DPJ talks about replacing bureaucrats with politicians in key ministerial positions but says virtually nothing about what policies these newly empowered politicians would implement. Ichiro Ozawa, its leader, is a survivor from the old school of Japanese politics too busy micromanaging the election - he is his own Karl Rove - and too unwilling to share decision-making with others in the party, especially those whom he suspects are not entirely loyal to him, to be spending time preparing a transition.
The other day I asked an MP who is one of the party’s economic policy specialists what fiscal policies the DPJ would employ to deal with what is shaping up to be Japan’s worst postwar recession. His answer: “We haven’t thought much about that yet.”
There will be more destruction, perhaps including the demise of both the LDP and DPJ and the formation of new parties. Whatever the political goings-on, there is no optimistic short-term scenario for Japan.
At some point the public will grasp the seriousness of the economic troubles and demand change. But that crisis mentality does not exist today. Therefore things will not only get worse before they get better. They will get worse before the political system comes up with policies that even stand a chance of making them better.