The national convention today of Shinshinto, the largest opposition party, may seal the fate of Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto's priority set of reforms since Shinshinto leader Ichiro Ozawa has dropped his hostility toward the Hashimoto administration.
Hashimoto has restated his determination to follow through on drastic reforms of the bureaucracy, fiscal structure, the monetary system, economic structure, social security and education to rebuild the nation for the 21st century. Ozawa earlier this month expressed a willingness to work together with Hashimoto to promote the reforms, without consulting with his party members.
The national convention is expected to provide Shinshinto members with their first opportunity to officially voice their opinions on a possible tieup with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which Hashimoto heads. At present, Shinshinto, which formerly consisted of eight defunct political parties and one parliamentary group, is divided into two forces. One supports a conservative union with the LDP, the other favors forming ties with other parties.