Tag - shinzo

 
 

SHINZO

BUSINESS
Sep 26, 2017
Abe trots out tax hike issue again before snap election to boost LDP chances
The controversy over increasing the consumption tax won't be unfamiliar to those who follow modern Japanese politics, as earlier proposals have proven unpopular with voters throughout the postwar years and have even doomed previous administrations.
EDITORIALS
Sep 26, 2017
Abe's hardly convincing reason for snap election
His decision to call the snap poll seems driven by the political calculation that the LDP can maximize its seat gains — or minimize its possible losses — by catching the opposition off guard.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 26, 2017
Voters question Abe's decision to call snap election
Many voters on Tuesday appeared confounded at the timing of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision to dissolve the Lower House and call a snap election, questioning the need to set in motion a costly process without a clear need to secure a new national mandate.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 25, 2017
Abe gambles on snap election as Koike surprises with new party
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe confirms he will call a snap election on Thursday and Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike launches a new political party to take him on.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Sep 23, 2017
In Japan under Shinzo Abe, more power to the PM, but to what end?
In his final Counterpoint column, Jeff Kingston considers where Japan is heading under scandal-hit Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 22, 2017
Japan faces a consequential decision in possible snap election
When they go to the polls, voters must rationally assess the successes and shortcomings of the LDP under Abe and what they mean for Japan's future.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 22, 2017
Extra Diet session on Sept. 28, Suga confirms
The Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe formally decided Friday to convene an extraordinary Diet session next Thursday, which Abe is expected to immediately close by dissolving the Lower House despite opposition allegations that it would constitute a violation of Article 53 of the Constitution.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 21, 2017
Opposition lawmakers slam timing of Abe's snap poll plans as abuse of power
Abe's plan to force a snap election by closing an extraordinary Diet session the same day it opens has opposition lawmakers crying foul.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 20, 2017
LDP struggles to reach consensus on Article 9 revision ahead of snap election
Senior lawmakers of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party agreed on Wednesday that while the party may include constitutional revision as an official campaign pledge in the upcoming Lower House election, it will not specify details on how it plans to revise the war-renouncing Article 9, three party executives...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 20, 2017
Trump's fire and brimstone U.N. speech hands Abe a win on North Korea, but will victory be pyrrhic?
Experts warn that Trump's threat could reinforce Pyongyang's belief that nuclear weapons remain the sole means of securing the regime's safety.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 20, 2017
Abe's snap election to cost taxpayers ¥60 billion to ¥70 billion
Some may question the decision to hold a costly election, but records show that the tenure of current members is actually longer than average.

Longform

A sinkhole in Yashio, which emerged in January, was triggered by a ruptured, aging sewer pipe. Authorities worry that similar sections of infrastructure across the country are also at risk of corrosion.
That sinking feeling: Japan’s aging sewers are an infrastructure time bomb