31 August 2009

Japan's opposition wins historic election – Hatoyama to become new Prime Minister

Incoming Prime Minister Hatoyama said that the era of US unilateralism may come to an end and will concentrate more on Asia, calling for a regional currency integration and bolstering alliances in Asia.  

The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) ended a half-century of almost unbroken rule by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).  Parliament is expected to vote for Yukio Hatoyama, the 62-year-old head of DPJ who holds a doctorate in engineering from Stanford University, as the new Prime Minister of Japan.

 

The DPJ secured 308 seats in the powerful 480-seat House of Representatives while the LDP, in contrast, won only 119 seats and its smaller ally New Komeito won 21 seats. Three other parties in the opposition bloc, Social Democratic Party, the Japanese Communist Party and the People's New Party won seven, nine and three seats, respectively.

 

A New Path for Japan

 

In an article published in the NYT a few days before the elections, the incoming Prime Minister outlined that “the era of U.S.-led globalism is coming to an end”. What becomes of central importance in the near future, Hatoyama noted, Japan’s role when caught between the United States and China”.

 

The incoming Prime Minister called for the “creation of an East Asian community”. The financial crisis has suggested to many that the era of U.S. unilateralism may come to an end, he said. Japan must not forget its identity as a nation located in Asia.

 

“The recent economic crisis resulted from a way of thinking based on the idea that American-style free-market economics represents a universal and ideal economic order, and that all countries should modify the traditions and regulations governing their economies in line with global (or rather American) standards”, Hatoyama wrote.

 

“If we look back on the changes in Japanese society since the end of the Cold War, I believe it is no exaggeration to say that the global economy has damaged traditional economic activities and destroyed local communities”, he went on.

 

Hatoyama proposed that Japan should work with other Asian countries to create a single regional currency and bolster alliances to make it possible, and Asia should “aspire to move toward regional currency integration”.

 

© Graham Bishop