It's the democracy, stupid

So Japan is in Recession, and Shinzo Abe is expected to call for snap elections to be held mid December, giving Japan a chance to avoid the biggest R: the Restoration of Imperial Japan. For that, beyond Abe, the country must remove from power Nippon Kaigi, the extremist lobby that controls its political system*. Is that possible?

*

1) Are Abenomics at last meeting reality?

From the start, I wrote on this excuse for a blog that Abenomics were just a non-sustainable smokescreen to bribe the population at their own cost, the time for Abe to fulfill his main agenda: AbeIGNomics**. Tax hikes were supposed to make for the further deterioration of the Japanese deficit, but Abe didn't have the time to implement the second wave. Now he's kicking the can down the road, and pledging that he won't raise taxes because he can't win the vote otherwise.

More than ever, the equation can't work. Anyway, economy's never been the aim of Abe's game. But he certainly doesn't want to lose for the second time his PM seat because of the economy and money scandals involving members of his cabinet. Can he scam voters once more with the same tale?


2) Can Abe's pseudo-diplomatic offensive pay?

Ahead of the APEC and G20 meetings, Abe appeared in an international TV campaign promoting the image of Japan as a peaceful nation helping others, and I almost choke each time I see the ad with this impostor shamelessly piggybacking on a NGO's noble deeds... he who pushes so hard for the re-militarization of Japan and the revision of its peaceful constitution! he who maintains that the Imperial army never waged any war of aggression, never committed any war crime!

Shinzo Abe already started his campaign. On international TV. With government money (Japan sharing campaign)! Posing as a peacemaker! #AbeIGNomics - 20141113 twitter.com/theseoulvillage/status/532548828126146561

Shinzo Abe badly needed to raise his international profile ahead of the elections, and he seems to have bagged a trilateral meeting hosted by Japan for next year. I wouldn't be surprised if we heard later that he had given some guarantees to Xi Jinping or Park Geun-hye, something like I won't anymore visit Yasukuni as a Prime Minister. A small price to pay for a man who's already pledged not to attack the Kono statement before going back at it.


3) With or without Abe as PM, will Nippon Kaigi be confirmed as the de facto ruler of Japan?

Abe didn't change. Never did, never will. He'll try whatever it takes to remain at the helm of the nation to pursue his goal of destroying peaceful, post-war Japan. And he wouldn't want to be sidelined by his own majority, and to see the LDP push another candidate. Take Koizumi's former Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki, for instance: that political weasel already proved that he could used leverage Abe's outrageous traits to position himself as a more consensual player (he stopped supporting Yasukuni visits when it helped him gain momentum within the party, then returned to it when it was all the rage). Of course, like most contenders, Tanigaki is tied to Nippon Kaigi... 

Fresh faces keep emerging in a lobby that lost at least 3 old timers over the past few months (Abe advisor Hisahiko Okazaki, the economist Yasuhiko Oishi, and the ultimate die-hard Imperial Japan soldier Hiroo Onoda).


In less than one month, Japan is unlikely to purge its political system from Nippon Kaigi, but if it could make it lose its majority at the Diet (289 of all 480 lawmakers these days), that could be a start, and a positive signal.

A contrario, a confirmation of Abe and his Nippon Kaigi friends would further weaken Japan's endangered democracy.

For the moment, revisionism keeps permeating the society at large: a recent Jiji Press poll showed that already 45% of the Japanese want the Kono Statement about Imperial Japan sexual slavery system reviewed***.

And Abe keeps making the 'best' of his tenure by trying to undermine the nation at all levels, most recently by allowing his government, expert in historical revisionism, to decide which documents to classify as state secrets, and to crucify leakers****.

*

In any case, Japan is deciding its own future, even when it refuses to decide (See "Saving Japan - Let's fall the Indecision Tree"):

Saving Japan - Let's fall the Indecision Tree

And for those of us who refuse to see this beautiful nation (self)destroy, let's remember to always stand for Japan. Never against it, only against its enemies from within:

#YesToJapanNoToNipponKaigi

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* see "Nippon Kaigi and friends exposed, at last", "'Comfort Women': No Resolution Without Resoluteness. From Everyone, Please".
** see all posts related to Shinzo Abe.
*** even if that embryo of nano-apology only refers to former sex slaves as the euphemistic 'comfort women' label ("45% of Japanese want ‘comfort women’ statement reviewed, survey by Jiji Press suggests" - The Japan Times 20141114)
**** "Prosecutors to be tapped for secrecy panel, in hopes of mollifying law’s opponents" (The Japan Times 20141116)

2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit

One year after the tsunami that triggered the Fukushima Daichi incident, and 16 month after the G20 Summit*, Korea will host the World's top heads of state and nuclear security experts at the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit**.

The event reaches beyond Non Proliferation Treaty signees but of course, neither North Korea nor Iran will attend (they already 'missed' the first edition - 2010 Washington Nuclear Security Summit). And of course, both will nonetheless manage to appear center stage.

At the top of the agenda (beyond Kim The Third and Ahmadinejad, that is):
- cooperative measures to combat the threat of nuclear terrorism
- protection of nuclear materials and related facilities
- prevention of illicit trafficking of nuclear materials

Threats are not limited to ill prepared facilities or 'Rogue States': nuclear materials are more than ever a prime target for terrorist groups, and even friendly countries collaborating with the IAEA are at risk (typically, Washington trusts Islamabad up to a certain point only). The presence of the INTERPOL tells a lot about the will to cooperate at a more operational level.

I bet they won't even allow one poktanju*** to detonate within a 50-mile radius during the conference.


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*see "G20 Seoul Summit 2010"
**2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Symposium (March 23)
2012 Seoul Nuclear Industry Summit (March 23-24)
***Korea's most proliferating WMDs: the infamous A and H bombs made with soju and beer or whisky

Daegu 2011 IAAF World Championships

Usain Bolt and Oscar Pistorius are expected to run in Daegu Stadium this summer for the 13th World Championships in Athletics.

Since both athletes have been enjoying enhanced performances for years, let's hope Korea will be spared another Ben Johnson moment ahead of the London 2012 olympics. If anti-doping officials share their hairdos with Sarbi the mascot, the Jamaican and the South African don't risk much : this Sapsal dog sports a colorful mop that completely cover its eyes...

Let's hope competitions can be both spectacular and fair. This stadium deserves more animation than the struggling Daegu FC can provide in the K-League (BTW Korea's pro soccer league is experiencing its worst year ever, plagued by a pervasive game fixing scandal).

Except in marathon, Koreans don't have a strong tradition in athletics, but they are now a top tier power in world sports. Daegu was selected in 2007 ahead of tough competitors : Brisbane and Moscow, who will organize the 2013 edition. Note that just like in Olympics with Seoul 1988 or Pyeongchang 2018*, Korea is again the first Asian country to claim major sports events after Japan (except Formula One**, where petrodollars came first). And regarding the tie in soccer, we all remember how the 2002 FIFA World Cup was split between both rivals to prevent one tragic loss of face.

Anyway, it is very positive for Korea to put "new" cities on the global map : this country is certainly not just only about Seoul***, and Daegu or Pyeongchang reached the global sports stage even before Busan (yes, Korea's second biggest city did organize Asian Games, but that's a regional event and it was held in 2002, in the shadow of the World Cup).

Dae(hanmin)gu(k)!

13th IAAF World Championships Daegu 2011
'Sprint together for tomorrow'
20110827-0904
website : daegu2011.org.

Seoul Village 2011
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* Pyeongchang (pyeongchang2018.org
) won logically as the best candidate... even if the bidding team looked more than suspicious (see "Pyeongchang 2018 vs Sejong City 2010 ?").
** see last year : "Yeongam-gun braces for inaugural Formula One Grand Prix"
*** again, for such a big capital, even a G20 Summit is a non-event : "G20 Seoul Summit 2010"

Yi Sun-shin drives away

As soon as the G20 Seoul Summit 2010 non-event got packed, Admiral Yi Sun-shin was awarded a few months leave from his position at the lower end of Gwanghwamun Square.

His iron statue was removed today, and driven to a rejuvenating lair probably less glamour than Chaum, CHA Hospital recently inaugurated upscale anti-ageing center*.

I sincerely hope Yi won't come back with the same golden tan as his new neighbor King Sejong (see "Santa Sejong is coming to town").

Anyway, living in Gwanghwamun is a bit like watching a Korean drama : new twists happen every day, but they are quite foreseeable** and you often end up with the same bankable stars.

On the brighter side : since the gate reopened, tourists have been swarming all across the square***. And those who just came for Korean dramas will come back for Seoul.

Seoul Village 2010

* a spectacular, holistic concept for VIPs in the heart of Gangnam, which also happens to be the heart of Korea's booming medical tourism. A reference in birth (and stem cells), CHA Hospital remains ahead of Korean trends and demographics.
** even if, when I wrote "Gwanghwamun restoration : too bballi-bballi ?", I didn't expect the gate to show signs of alteration that quickly : big cracks appeared on its seal just weeks after the inauguration.
*** and the Sejongno Park is yet to be redesigned.

---

UPDATE 20101117

Along with the screen where visitors can appear in Yi's outfit, the statue's pedestal has been animated with an original installation by Yi Je-seok : where the Admiral stood, a huge fitting room, his armor lying on the wall, and the message "undressing" (daluijung) on the door. The King will come out of the closet (no pun intended) on December the 22nd, 2010.

UPDATE 20101210

Oh my gold : I saw pictures of the statue in its lair, and it will have the same coating as King Sejong's (a bit like a cheap plastic Disney toy). Now even Seoul's new baby Haechi character looks scarier than Yi with its fangs. Who the hell is in charge of statues out there ?

UPDATE 20101223

Phew. He's back, but he's not doning gold : after many hesitations, officials opted for a lighter dark color.

G20 Seoul Summit 2010

The best thing about this 2010 G20 Summit ? The logo : a traditional Korean lantern with a modern twist : in motion, radiating positive energy from an almost Obamesque, red and blue sun. Dignified and smart.

Like for previous international events, all downtown buildings posted huge billboards celebrating a truly global company / country... but this time, we are mercifully spared the usual "models" (Park Ji-sung, Park Tae-hwan, Kim Yu-na, Yoo Name-it...). Even the companies themselves are sidelined, the real stars being the logo, and the city that's hosting The Group of Twenty summit.

Of course, this event confirms Seoul as a major business / convention venue, and Korea as a significant player between China and the US (remember : G20 = G2 + a few zeros). Of course, it also represents a major security challenge in the heart of a megalopolis. Of course, there is always the (slim) chance that something productive may come out of it, some kind of "Seoul Declaration" to join the pantheon of Yaltas, Bretton Woods, or other Kyotos...

But I'd like to remember this summit as a non-event. Business as usual for a city that, unlike say Pittsburgh, is used to climbing 8000m mountains, and doesn't need to boast about that kind of stuff anymore. Simply put, a member of the small club of major world capitals.

Seoul Village 2010