Sanya: Japan's internal colony

Abstract

You have to get up early to know Tokyo. Take Baba as a case in point. By day, it is an ordinary, slightly run-down park beside the tracks of the city's central commuting loop, halfway between Shinjuku and Ikebukuro stations. Go at dawn and a thousand men populate the park—young men in shirts and sneakers, carpenters in their belling, knicker-like pants, the muscular dokata, construction workers, duffle bags thrown over their shoulders and heavy black cloth shoes on their feet, a handful of men in office suits and leather shoes, old men, hoboes—the park is a different world. At six, the action begins. Vans pull up and encircle the square, the contractors dismount, enter the crowd, and wait as clusters of men gather around them to negotiate the sale of their day's labor. Small eating carts dot the park and along the cement paths second-hand clothes vendors peddle pants and jackets piled on squares of open cloth. The bargaining reaches a climax at seven, when wages are highest, and goes on for another hour as weaker, less aggressive men take what is left. Then, one by one, the vans with their cargoes of workers drive off, the cart-owners lock up, the clothes vendors bundle their goods back into their squares of cloth, and by eight Baba is once more a drab, empty park.     

日本对华官方发展援助的定位与评价

以日元贷款为主体的日本对华官方发展援助是20世纪70年代末以来中日关系中的一个重要组成部分.20多年来的实践表明,日本对华官方发展援助不仅在中日两国经贸关系中发挥着助推器作用,而且也成为双方加深互信与理解的有效渠道.然而冷战结束后,日本官方发展援助中的非经济因素影响和制约了日本对华官方发展援助的顺利实施.日本在对华官方发展援助问题上突出强调政治效果以及两国就对华官方发展援助问题的不同认识,削弱了日本对华官方发展援助中的积极因素.     

中美战略竞争:日本的认知与回应

随着中美实力差距日益缩小,竞争逐渐成为中美关系的主要方面.作为中美关系中的第三方,日本对中美在整体和具体领域层面的竞争有着基于自身视角的认知.对于中美的整体性竞争,日本认为其在态势上是长时期、大范围和多领域的,其根源是秩序主导权之争;就影响而言,对日本有利有弊.对于中美在具体领域的竞争,日本认为其主要集中在地缘战略和经济领域,在中国香港问题和新冠肺炎疫情等问题上也有体现.基于这种认知,日本对中美竞争的回应是坚持和巩固日美同盟,在此基础上与中国建立稳定关系,同时积极拓展"第三空间"外交,灵活采用多种形式实现其维护国家利益的目标.     

日本的新发展战略:观光立国

观光立国战略是日本政府继贸易立国和技术立国战略之后提出的又一项发展战略.该战略的提出反映了日本政府希望通过旅游业的振兴来带动日本经济复苏的愿望,从经济效果来说,旅游业的振兴确实可以促进经济发展、振兴地方产业、促进国际交流,然而,日本的高成本结构和相对封闭的社会及国民意识成为日本旅游业振兴的主要障碍,这给观光立国战略的实施带来很多不确定因素.     

2000年日本防卫与安全的变化

2000年,日本的防卫与安全发生了引人注目的变化.其主要特点是加强战时立法;重组部队编制;增强军事装备;加大地区安全中的军事外交力度;开始重新审视<日美安全条约>;探讨未来日美安全保障体制应有的模式.这些变化使人们发现,一个政治上愈加自信、军事上日趋自立的日本正迅速向扮演主要地区安全角色靠拢.     

日本在缅甸的平衡外交:特点与困境

冷战时期,日本与缅甸建立了特殊的历史友好关系,但在1988年以后双边关系较为冷淡。尽管日本之后一再努力,希望恢复昔日对缅影响与特殊的邦交,但收效甚微。日本在对缅关系上,一方面利用援助制裁实行有限的压力政策,另一方面又保持对缅接触,实行制裁和接触政策之间的中间路线。日本在缅甸问题上表现出的两面性,是其在国内各界分歧、日美基轴外交与亚洲独立外交、国家利益与价值观外交之间相互平衡的结果。     

Japan's Global Health Strategy: Connecting Development and Security

Japan has made its presence felt in the realm of power politics by focusing on the promotion of “human security” and sustainable development. At the core of both concepts lies the issue of health. As Japan prepares for the upcoming G7 Summit, Keizo Takemi examines the question of what sort of leadership role Japan should play in the critical field of health.     

Singapore: Recent developments in terrorism and Japan's role

The threat of terrorism to Singapore remains serious, given the spread of radical ideology in Southeast Asia. Aware that it is a prime terrorist target, Singapore's response has been the most vigorous of all the states in the region. It has instituted a comprehensive homeland security structure, stepped up security cooperation with the USA and has been at the forefront of many US-led counter-terrorism initiatives in the region. Japan's regional role is important as Japan cannot opt out of the global war on terrorism given its huge stake in the security of the Straits of Malacca and the stability of the littoral states. Japan's contribution lies in capacity building, in helping states build up their indigenous counter-terrorism capabilities. Japan also needs to take a much more proactive, strategic role in the Malay archipelago in regional “hearts and minds” strategies to counter radical ideology, as well as develop functional security linkages.     

Kamikazefication and Japan's wartime ideology

Abstract

A number of recent works have focused on the personal experiences of kamikaze pilots, but very little has been published in English on the Japanese government's effort to “kamikazefy” the civilian population in the final year of the Asian PacificWar (1937-45). To illustrate this effort, this article employs images taken from the author's personal collection of over 2,500 Japanese wartime publications (predominantly periodicals). In early 1945, the Japanese government announced a “fight to the death for the home islands,” in which civilian “home-front warriors” would fight alongside troops in the event of an Allied invasion. Civilian combatants were expected to follow the “no surrender” policy hammered into Japanese servicemen and to emulate the kamikaze pilots' spirit of supreme sacrifice. The article begins with a brief discussion of the ideology behind kamikazefication, inviting comparisons with suicide missions in other times and places. Historical context is further established by an overview of media accounts of Japanese suicide missions in the Asian PacificWar, beginning with the mission carried out at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. An analysis of media reportage shows how members of suicide missions were glorified and made into role models for all Japanese, even women and children. Servicemen who died for their country were enshrined at the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. The article concludes by suggesting reasons why civilians, even those who died fighting in the war, have not been similarly honored.     

日本加强与台湾关系的原因及影响

冷战后,日台交流全面突破了经济文化领域的限制,并积极推动安全领域的合作,企图对中国大陆形成牵制。这是日本出于对国内、地区和世界局势变化的考虑,从其自身战略利益出发所导致的结果,这不仅会影响中日关系的发展,更为中国的和平统一大业增加了难度。中国应在坚持祖国统一、民族崛起等原则的前提下,灵活处理具体事务。     

日本防卫政策的调整及其评价

首先通过防卫计划大纲的修改概括分析了日本新防卫政策调整的五个特点,即重点防范对象由俄罗斯转向中国,防卫理念由静态转向动态,军事部署的重心由北方转向南方,安保合作方式由双边转向多边,武器输出限制由严格转向宽松。然后,对这种调整的背景进行分析,认为防卫政策的调整是日本防卫力渐增过程的必然结果,是日本对中国崛起的具体反映,是日本配合美国亚洲战略调整的重要步骤。最后,对这次调整进行了初步评价,认为该调整是对日本战后一直奉行的低调防卫政策的又一次突破,并使东亚合作的进程蒙上了阴影,特别是给中日建立战略互惠关系增添了新的障碍。     

日本经济走强及政权更迭对东亚地区的影响

日本经济在泡沫崩溃之后经历了十年的不景气,2002年走向复苏,近期开始步入上升轨道。随着安倍时代的开启,人们期盼日本能改善外交形象,修复日中、日韩关系。“邻里关系”一旦理顺,日本经济的走强,对提升东亚地区竞争力将具有重要作用,对改善地区融资状况、加强投资力度以及拉动出口也都会产生重大影响。     

日本政治中的“世袭”现象及潜规则

日本在明治维新后废除了身份制度,贵族制度也随之消失。但封建时代的许多旧俗仍然不可避免地残存下来,并在现代日本的政治生活中发挥着不可小视的影响。其中,“世袭议员”现象就是最为典型的政治文化遗产,折射出日本政治中某些传统的潜规则。日本政坛长期以来存在的“家族世袭”现象,在某种意义上对过去几十年日本的经济发展和政治稳定都起到了积极作用。但同时,“世袭”现象也使日本政坛的关系过于复杂化,权钱交易丑闻时有发生,增加了政治和经济改革的难度。日本大选使得民主党和自民党在这一问题上展开了激烈的斗争。“世袭议员”制度的政治传统面临着改革的压力,然而日本民族文化深远的影响力同样不容忽视。关注2009年日本大选背景下日本有关“世袭议员”现象的争论,从制度成因变化的角度分析日本政治的传统与变革之争,并尝试对“世袭议员”现象的前景做一展望。     

日美同盟与日本的军事大国化倾向

冷战后日本军事大国化倾向不断加强。这是与日美同盟的强化过程同步进行的 ,日美同盟成为日本政府拓展军事力量发展空间的主要外部借助因素。日美同盟不仅提升了日本自卫队的军备扩张水平 ,且促使日本的海外派兵日趋“正常化”,但日本自主防卫力量的发展也给未来的日美同盟带来了诸多不确定性。     

Geopolitics and Soft Power: Japan's Cultural Policy and Cultural Diplomacy in Asia

Japan's cultural policy and cultural diplomacy in Asia has changed dramatically over the past one hundred years, from actively introducing and imposing Japanese culture during its empire-building period, to essentially avoiding the promotion of Japanese culture in Asia for most of the postwar period due to fears of being seen once again as engaged in cultural imperialism, and more recently, to supporting and encouraging the export of Japanese contemporary culture and lifestyle in order to attain “soft power.” Looking at the fluctuations in Japan's cultural policy over these three periods allows us to understand how Japan has used cultural policy to further its geopolitical goals and more basically how it has viewed the role of “culture” in the context of its relations with Asian neighbors. In a broader sense, the Japanese experience shows that cultural policy, even when inward-looking, is not isolated from a country's geopolitical position and its ambitions in the world, regardless of the political system under which it operates.     

Japan's Economy and the Global Financial Crisis

After the prolonged stagnation that followed the post-Bubble economic collapse at the end of the 1980s, from 2002 onwards the Japanese economy exhibited its longest period of economic expansion (albeit gradual) since World War Two. As this expansion came to an end and the economy was on the verge of the downward curve of the economic cycle, it was confronted with the current financial and economic crises, which originated in the USA. Nevertheless, Japanese financial institutions had invested little in sub-prime-related financial products, and with the lessons learned from the issue of bad loans in the 1990s, Japan's financial system enjoyed greater stability than that of any other major nation. However, in the period from the end of 2008 to early 2009, Japan experienced the sharpest economic decline of any major nation.

Yet, with the worst period having ended in the spring of 2009, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has predicted in its October 2009 forecasts that Japan will experience real economic growth of 1.7% in 2010—a higher rate than the USA (with 1.5%) or the Euro Zone (with 0.3%). Despite forecasts of a protraction of excessive US imports as a direct result of excessive US consumption, Japan is being forced to reduce its degree of reliance on exports to the USA and to make major adjustments to its export structure—both in terms of the regions to which it exports and the products that it exports. Japan also faces the task of setting itself on the path to economic growth, using the twin drivers of foreign demand and domestic demand, and this will necessitate the cultivation of domestic demand. Now, the long-term strategy for Japan is to promote the expansion of regional demand in Asia, to couple this regional demand with domestic demand, and to latch on to Asia's economic dynamism.     

Japan's security strategy: Meeting the needs of a new era

A new era has dawned, but the US and Japan remain in a security relationship of parent to child, says Toshiyuki Shikata, professor of inter‐cultural studies at Teikyo University and retired lieutenant general in Japan's Ground Self‐Defense Force. He draws on his familiarity with security issues to examine Japan's strategic challenges in the new era, Japan's role in the alliance, and Japan's defense modernization. He denounces avoiding international security responsibilities due to alleged constitutional constraints, and says that a seat on the UN Security Council would allow Japan to share the full risks and responsibilities in discharging international obligations.