Seiji Maehara was just elected leader of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) to replace outgoing leader Katsuya Okada after the party’s devastating losses in last weeks election. The DPJ is Japan’s largest opposition party.
This is welcome news. Maehara was running against Naoto Kan, an old school leader of the DPJ tainted by sex scandals, unpaid pension bills, and a wicked bad temper. The margin of victory was razor thin: Maehara beat Kan 96-94 in open balloting, with two members abstaining and two others casting invalid votes. The divide was generational, as younger members voted for the 43-year old Maehara and older members backed the 58-year old Kan.
Maehara offers a lot. First, he’s a fresh face. Second, he understands the challenges the party faces: in his victory speech he said the lost because it was beholden to special interests (namely the labor unions that form the backbone of the DPJ grassroots and which opposed postal privatization). Third, he’s a conservative hawk known for his expertise in national security and defense affairs. He’s a notable advocate for revising Article 9 of the Constitution, and wants a more muscular Japan to get involved in peace keeping overseas.
This is not the fast lane to a two-party Japan. The DPJ is supposed to be a center-left opposition party, which weeks ago was talking about pulling out of Iraq and reducing US forces in Japan. But regardless of whether Maehara is future Prime Minister material, he’s the best man to make the DPJ get serious and jetison its unrealistic fantasies, held dear by some in the left wing, that the country can dump the US for better relations with Asia.
For those Japanese buffs of you who want to listen to Maehara’s victory speech, click here. For the Japundit view, see here.
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Although he is a refreshing change for the DPJ, I’m not going to be over optimistic. He doesn’t have the strength to kick out the seriously deluded leftists, and I don’t know how he is going to keep the party together with his right-leaning (relative to party median) stance. Of course, he doesn’t have to. If the DPJ does fall apart, maybe they will take the chance to transform the party into one with more realistic policies.
About an year ago, Maehara commented that the Japan is leaning too much towards the US and that it should pursue a more independent foriegn policy like forming a stronger bond with its neighbors. He is for the formation of the East Asian version of the EU, so to speak. I find that vision an unrealistic fantasy. A balancing act between the US and China? Sounds like what President Roh was proudly proclaiming at the beginning of this term. Maybe he will tread more carefully now that he is in a more responsible position.
A few days before this election disaster, I saw something I can’t remember seeing in ten years here: a crowd outside Jiyugaoka station, applauding the DPJ speeches almost at every breath. On the other hand, maybe when the speakers moved onto another station-front, all those applauders just got on the train to follow them there ….