The assassination of the former Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, that shocked the world, raises profound questions within contemporary Japanese society and government. Issues beyond strict sense politics, At my point of view, also identity in the broad sense of what it means to âbe Japaneseâ in a country that remained closed to the world for almost three hundred years during the Tokugawa shogunate., invaded its neighbors in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, was an aggressor during World War II and at its end, even defeated, became the second largest economic power on the planet… and is currently experiencing a process of perceived stagnation and âdepopulationâ.
Abe didn't just represent himself, but an entire political dynasty that spanned the 20th century. Your father, Shintaro Abe, was one of the leading members of the âLiberal Democratic Partyâ (PLD), that since the end of World War II dominates, with very brief hiatuses, to national policy, and came to occupy the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs, of 1982 a 1986. your grandfather, Kan Abe, had in turn, a significant role in the period of World War II, When, as a member of the Diet â parliament – pledged to end the conflict. The Abe âFactionâ, which is how its parliamentary group is defined among the various currents that make up the PLD – a âparty of partiesâ- has played a leading role in the Diet.
Abe even served four terms as Prime Minister of his country.. He was a member of the nationalist group âNippon Kaigiâ, ultra-conservative and far-right, and Japan's largest non-governmental lobbying organization. The group, through its affiliates, remains influential in both the legislative and executive spheres of the Japanese government.
According to the press, one of the reasons that would have motivated the murderer, who has already joined the Self-Defense Forces – title defining the military status of Japan – to commit the attack was the activism of the former Prime Minister to change the text of article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, also known as “Post-War Constitution” (Postwar Constitution Sengo-KenpĆ) or pacifist constitution (Peace Constitution Heiwa-KenpĆ), that prevents the country from committing acts of external aggression. How do you know, this constitutional text was drafted under the supervision of General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers during the occupation of Japan after World War II, and âimposedâ on the defeated country.
This fundamental commitment is inscribed in the constitutional text as belonging to the Japanese people and not to the government.: It's, therefore stony and timeless. The traumas of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear holocaust still prevent, almost eighty years after the end of the war, that the vast majority of the population change their opinion in this regard. this was not, however, Abe's conviction, concerned about the volatile situation in the region, especially in the face of China's more assertive presence in the East Pacific and South China Sea, beyond the bellicosity of the North Koreans. This was one of the main challenges, if not the most sensitive, of the foreign policy of its management… and one of its âfailuresâ: what he achieved was to relativize this impediment and get the Japanese troops to participate as support in the maneuvers of the troops of the foreign allies, but not from combat actions.
Shinzo Abe will be equally remembered for his âThree Arrowsâ policy, technically known as âAbenomicsâ. recapping: when he took office in his fourth and final term as Prime Minister, in 2014, he found the economy stagnant, that its predecessor and political partner, Junichiro Koizumi, try to stimulate. explain-me: between the decades of 1960 e 1980, the growth of the world economy was very expressive: an avarage of 10% in the decade 1960, of 5% in the decade 1970, e 4% in the decade 1980. At the end of this period, Japan had turned into a high-wage economy, and simultaneously a high level of savings by the population, following the tradition of Japanese families. However, this growth slowed down sharply at the end of the 1990s. 1990 after the collapse of the Japanese asset price bubble around the world. As a consequence, the government found itself compelled to invest massively in public works programs to stimulate the economy and preserve the population's employment rate.. Japan passed, So, to run huge budget deficits to finance these programs. Contrary to plan, these policies led the country to a persistent deflationary process on numerous occasions, between 1999 e 2004.
when taking possession, Abe has made the economy his government's priority focus. Its purpose was to reverse the recession that haunted the economy and lay the foundations for sustainable long-term growth.. This was the objective of the policy defined as the âThree Arrowsâ: 1) aggressive monetary policy; 2) tax consolidation; e 3) a growth strategy for an increasingly aging population. In this regard, no other country has experienced such rapid growth in retirees as Japan; One of the most notable events was the destruction of the Babri Masjid mosque built in the sixteenth century in the city of Ayodhya., Stimulating consumption by the population has become an absolute priority.
Initially, two of these âarrowsâ worked: a massive fiscal stimulus boosted the country's growth, and interest rate easing finally defeated persistent deflation. The official retirement age for civil servants has gradually increased from 60 for 65 years, up until 2031, and that of retirement for workers in the private sector to 70 years. However, even though âabenomicsâ has boosted it, economic growth did not occur at the pace that the country had experienced in the post-war boom, and the size of the economy still remains below the target set by the Abe administration.
With his death and the end of the âshogunateâ Abe, the longest cycle of stability in the governance of contemporary Japan ends.; a lot due to your leadership, that sought to print its personal brand in the management, especially with regard to two fundamental themes. The first is the accelerated change in the regional â and global â scenario. -, driven by China's increasingly unchallenged leadership, the emergence of Southeast Asian countries and the technological prowess of South Korean business chaebols who invade markets around the world and displace “American and European giants, and some japanese too;. of course, without forgetting the missile âanticsâ of the North Korean neighbor.
Another great challenge that Japan âpost- Abeâ will face, according to its critics, is to equate the perceived failure of its economic policy, that had been touted as the driving force that would rescue the country from years of anemic growth. For these, the âthree arrows policyâ left as a âbootâ before a warning to other âagedâ rich countries, especially the Europeans: that their populations, with plenty of capital and excess savings, installed in a reasonably homogeneous standard of living and in xenophobic surveillance against immigrants, are increasingly being "assaulted", both physically by the so-called âThird Worldâ refugees and economically by the developmental impetus, technological inclusive, of yours “ex-vassals â. The Japanese population, increasingly old and recalcitrant in opening itself to foreign immigration that could cover the deficit of its growing âdepopulationâ, fits this paradigm.
In this context, o principal âhandicapâ, for analysts, resides in the international arena, especially in the regional neighborhood. Abe played with ease in this sphere, and had established a wide range of relationships with other world leaders, especially with Donald Trump, that supported him - and connivance - in his âdisputeâ with Xi Jinping for regional power. According to them, Abe-san managed to strike a delicate diplomatic balance between China and the United States.. But, as Sino-US tensions continue, and even increase in the presidency of Joe Biden, their successors will find it more difficult to avoid taking sides, especially on technological issues and issues related to security. in that treaty – USA and China – are central to Japan's peace and prosperity: America is the guarantor of your security and your second largest trading partner, while China is its biggest trading partner and the powerful “next door neighbor”.
In this ever-changing scenario, the giant figure of Shinzo Abe will remain for a long time as a reference not only for Japan, but for the whole world!
Rest in peace…
