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SDP woos Koizumi to lend clout to anti-nuclear drive

by

Staff Writer

If only briefly, former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi raised hopes he will stage a comeback as an anti-nuclear crusader when he met Tuesday with the head of a minor but like-minded opposition party.

But, during their 45-minute meeting, Koizumi declined Social Democratic Party chief Tadatomo Yoshida’s request to cooperate with his five-Diet-member party’s push to abolish nuclear plants. According to Yoshida, Koizumi argued that it was the duty of each party and politician to appeal separately and directly to the public.

“I asked him to cooperate, but he said that each party, which has its own arguments, should try to realize the abolition of nuclear power plants,” Yoshida, who took charge of the SDP earlier this month, told reporters after the meeting.

Koizumi also insisted he is not planning to form a new party or a political force centered on anti-nuclear policy, Yoshida, said, noting Koizumi told him he will continue to seek to change public opinion, which will eventually influence the government.

Once the most powerful opposition party and a longtime foe of Koizumi’s Liberal Democratic Party, the SDP has advocated a nonnuclear energy policy for years. It is now a minor party, with five Diet members.

Koizumi met Yoshida at the Center for International Public Policy Studies in Tokyo, where Koizumi serves as an adviser.

After stepping down as prime minister in 2006, Koizumi, 74, largely withdrew from the public eye, rarely remarking on politics.

That changed earlier this year when he began calling for the abolition of nuclear plants after visiting a final disposal site in Finland that is supposed to store spent fuel up to 100,000 years.

The SDP is attempting to expand its political clout by calling on antinuclear political forces, such as Koizumi.

Officials at the prime minister’s office appear worried about Koizumi’s anti-nuclear call. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government has pledged to restart any of the now-shut 50 nuclear plants that pass Nuclear Regulation Authority safety tests.

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  • Warren Kung

    There was an excellent article on why DPJ lost its power in Journal of East Asian Studies. In general, DPJ was elected on a campaign for change and nothing was done, no matter if it is for child care or Futenma base removal. None of the current anti-nuclear parties were credible in their policy implementation because they are were too new or were part of the DPJ governing alliance, with the notable exception of JCP.

    LDP was the only “pro-nuclear’ received 28% on the party list votes. Their governing partner Komeito in fact supported zero-nuclear policy. The polls across the country also show 70% support for zero-nuclear policy.

    LDP is facing the dilemma of governing with majority but supporting policies that are simply not popular. Most of the LDP politicans are backed bu business associations whose interests fly in the face of the general populace and to think that LDP with its bureaucrats can turn against local politicians on nuclear polices will mean that their demise is near.