Tag - 2014

 
 

2014

Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2014
Dec 11, 2014
Welfare cuts? Abe won't say it
Hiroko Shinohara frets about one issue Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has noticeably avoided on the campaign trail ahead of Sunday's election: the need to cut the nation's generous social welfare program that supports millions of people.
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2014
Dec 10, 2014
Diet session likely to open Dec. 24 to pick new prime minister: LDP lawmaker
A special session of the Diet will likely begin on Dec. 24 to choose a new prime minister following Sunday's snap Lower House election, a Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker said on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2014
Dec 10, 2014
Ishin no To's campaign haunted by voter discontent in Kinki, Tokyo-Kanagawa
With several polls indicating that the ruling coalition may win over 300 of the 480 seats in Sunday's Lower House race, the Liberal Democratic Party is poised to be the big winner — and Ishin no To (Japan Innovation Party) the main loser.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2014
Dec 10, 2014
DPJ faces uphill battle for swing voters
While the ruling coalition commands a higher number of core supporters, opposition parties are vying for swing voters in an election that is expected to see a low turnout.
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2014
Dec 10, 2014
Ruling parties likely to win over two-thirds of Lower House, poll suggests
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democratic Party and its ruling coalition partner, Komeito, are expected to win more than a two-thirds majority in the Lower House on Sunday, the latest Kyodo News poll suggests.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LAW OF THE LAND
Dec 10, 2014
Electoral dysfunction leaves Japan's voters feeling impotent
This Sunday's poll could well prove a high-water mark of pointlessness even for Japan: an election campaign waged against the unelected.
Japan Times
JAPAN / DECISION 2014
Dec 10, 2014
Fukushima forgotten: No. 1 plant workers feel voters don't realize their ordeal
Many of the workers involved with decommissioning the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant say they want voters to know about their persisting harsh working conditions, low pay and health worries.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / DECISION 2014
Dec 10, 2014
Japan's persisting gender gap leaves many single moms in poverty
Yuka Suzuki, 47, has virtually no savings, earns about half the average national wage and cannot see where the money will come from to retire one day.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2014
Dec 10, 2014
Japan urged to take the lead in addressing historical issues
European scholars have called on the Japanese government to ensure consistency in its statements about wartime history, irrespective of the outcome of Sunday's election.
JAPAN / Society / DECISION 2014
Dec 9, 2014
Most political parties falling short on child poverty pledges, NPO says
Only two political parties this election are pledging to take full action on child poverty, according to a Tokyo-based nonprofit organization.
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2014
Dec 8, 2014
In one Osaka district, only women are running
In an election where female candidates account for less than 17 percent of the total, all three vying for a Lower House seat in the Osaka No. 7 district are women.
JAPAN / Politics / DECISION 2014
Dec 2, 2014
Another low for Japan's gender gap, as only 15% of election candidates are female
So much for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's call to empower women.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 2, 2014
Snap election caught maker of 'luminous' poll posters off guard
As the official campaigning for the Dec. 14 Lower House poll kicks off Tuesday, "luminous" election posters of candidates printed with special technologies are in high demand.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 1, 2014
Party chiefs spar at press club debate
Leaders of the ruling and opposition parties squared off during a debate at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Monday, a day before official campaigning got underway for the Dec. 14 Lower House election.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 29, 2014
Abe Cabinet disapproval rating tops support for first time: poll
Disapproval of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Cabinet exceeds its support rating for the first time since he returned to power in December 2012, a new poll finds.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 29, 2014
U.S. in suspense over fate of 'Abenomics'
The impending election has drawn little reaction from the U.S. government, but analysts say it will keep a close eye on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's economic policies once it is over.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 27, 2014
Reduced tax rate, security legislation top priorities for Komeito
The government must apply a reduced rate to certain daily necessities to soften the impact of the second stage of the consumption tax hike in April 2017, even if it means collecting less revenue and creating extra work for some people, Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi said Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 27, 2014
Japan Communist Party chief outlines election planks, calls 'Abenomics' a failure
Japanese Communist Party Chairman Kazuo Shii pledged Thursday to scrap the second stage of the consumption tax hike as he outlined the party's platform ahead of the campaign for the Dec. 14 Lower House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 26, 2014
Ruling, opposition party leaders visit disaster-hit areas ahead of snap election
The ruling and opposition parties are making a priority of improving the country's preparedness for natural disasters as Japan gears up for the Lower House election next month.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 25, 2014
LDP releases platform ahead of snap election, including pledge for tax break on necessities
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Tuesday officially pledged to cut the consumption tax on daily necessities by fiscal 2017 in a bid to ease the impact of another hike planned for April that year.

Longform

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