(LinkAsia: December 21, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
These days most Japanese are fed up with politics in general. And when elections came around last week, voter turnout was at an all-time low. With its slumping economy, an energy crisis and flaring tensions with China voters were clearly dissatisfied with the DPJ. But the turnout didn't show a great enthusiasm for the LDP either. Japan's public broadcaster NHK reports on why voters have lost faith in their country's politicians.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: December 17, 2012

Reporter:
These angels come out every hour. Prime Ministers in Japan seem to come and go almost every year. The democrats went through three leaders since 2009.

Voter:
I felt betrayed by the democrats over the past three years.

Voter:
I expected a lot from the DPJ, but they broke the promises in their manifesto. Millions of Japanese went to vote on a Sunny and warm winter Sunday. The weather Monday in Tokyo was more of a reflection of the turnout: gloomy. People admit they feel political apathy.

Young Voter:
I didn't go to vote because I didn't feel like it. I had work too.

Young Voter:
Young people think things will change by casting a single vote.

Reporter:
But apathy is not the only reason people feel at a loss. A record number of parties crowded the ballot. It was too much choice for some.

Voter:
So many political parties. I didn't know which one to vote for.

Reporter:
Many people told us they voted for the Liberal Democrats. But not because of the promises the LDP made. They say they are disappointed with the broken promises of the ruling democrats.

Voter:
The DPJ blew themselves up.

Voter:
I didn't think the LDP was the most suitable party to change the situation, but I voted for it out a process of elimination.

Reporter:
And so those who didn't vote are putting their faith in the party that has a checkered past: one marked by scandals. For better or worse Japan appears to be headed for a period of political stability.

(LinkAsia: November 16, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
Japanese are going to have a new government by year's end. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda announced a general election for December 16th. Here's Japanese public broadcaster NHK.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: November 14, 2012

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda:
The economy and energy will be part of the focus of the election. Our party will make a manifesto and play our position to voters. I'll explain it to the people after I dissolve the lower house on Friday.

Reporter:
The lead up to the decision played out on Wednesday in the Diet. Noda debated LDP leader Shinzo Abe. The prime minister said he was ready to dissolve the lower house if the LDP committed to reducing the number of seats in the chamber by next year. LDP executives met later and decided to accept Noda's proposal. Officials campaigning for the general election starts on December 4th. Japanese voters head to the polls less than two weeks later.

Woman on the street:
I can't believe they decided to hold an election. I want them to think about alternate people. There isn't any talent among the leaders.

Man on the street:
Lawmakers don't really care about the people. The prime minister changes like a revolving door. It's better to give the younger generation a chance at the leadership.

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Yul Kwon:
Opinion polls reflect that last comment. Noda's Democratic Party of Japan has only about 13 percent support, half of that of the Liberal Democrats. But the eye-catching figure is that fully 45 percent of Japanese say they don't support any party.

(LinkAsia: November 9, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
In the wake of Romney's defeat and Obama's victory, Japan's prime minister congratulated the president and stressed the importance of the Japan-US alliance for East Asian security and economic recovery. Here's Japanese public broadcaster NHK with more.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: November 7, 2012

Reporter:
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has congratulated the US President and promised his co-operation. The foreign ministry will also welcome Obama's second term. Senior officials expect the US will maintain its international policies, including its focus on Asia. But problems remain in Japan-US ties. There is the stalled plan to relocate the Marine Corps' Futenma Station in Okinawa. The deployment of the US transport aircraft, the Osprey, is another sticking point. Defense officials have yet to convince local populations to accept training flights over their neighborhoods. In Okinawa, people are calling for stronger controls on US troops after the recent sexual assault of a woman by US servicemen.

On the economy, Japanese officials will be preparing a response should the US press Japan into joining free trade talks for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. There may be friction if the US insists Japan drop its tariffs.

But overall, Obama's win should be good for Japan. There's the chance of stronger US ties. With China relations gone sour over the Senkaku conflict, that's sure to be re-assuring.

Jun Oikawa. NHK World, Tokyo.

(LinkAsia: September 21, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
The Japanese government's effort to nationalize the Senkakus seems to be backfiring. NHK anchor Gene Otani talked to a former diplomat and scholar who explained that Japan had made a mistake by pushing ahead with an idea that had little chance of working.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: September 18, 2012

Anchor:
Chinese people are angry that the Japanese government nationalized the islands, did the Japanese leaders expect this kind of reaction?

Kuni Miyake:
Well, I did and I hope they did. But unfortunately, the idea of the Japanese government is this: they thought that the nationalization would help because the owner, landowner would get the money, and the government of Tokyo would sell the nationalization idea to the Japanese government. So that Japanese government thought that they could sell this deal to the Chinese side. Unfortunately, the Chinese didn't buy it. The reason, one of the biggest reasons is that they are in the middle of the politically sensitive season.

Reporter:
Now the Chinese government officials say that Japanese representatives agreed to avoid any territorial action on the Senkakus, they say the Japanese broke the promise. What's your take on this?

Kuni Miyake:
Well, they say this is shelving the issue of  Senkaku. But there must have been some kind of unilateral practice by some of the Japanese politicians with respect to the island.
The Japanese government said there is no agreement like that in the past.

Anchor:
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson has called on protesters to exercise restraint, but he stopped short of telling them to stop the demonstration. What do you think are the
intentions of the Chinese government?

Kuni Miyake:
Well, they have a big dilemma. They're facing a wrong deed by the Japanese government, so they have to do something. Otherwise, they could be criticized for being too weak against the Japanese government. So, they encourage, or sometimes even organize some of the demonstrations in those cities to show their anger of the Chinese people. But at the same time, if you fan it too much, then probably the anti-Japanese movement could turn into an anti-government movement in China. So that's exactly what they really want to avoid.

Reporter:
I guess the big picture is how does this all end and finish? What measures will leaders on both sides take to deal with the problem? What are the channels of negotiations between China and Japan going on right now.

Kuni Miyake:
If the idea of shelving the issue is gone, probably we have to work on the new set of rules to avoid unnecessary friction. In order to have a real understanding between the two
countries, we need to have a political dialogue and political channel to have frank, candid discussion.

(LinkAsia: September 14, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
Japan is likely to face a general election toward the end of the year. The unpopular Noda government can't afford to be seen as weak. Its tough stance on the island dispute may be helping it in the polls. Here's more from Japan's public broadcaster, NHK.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: September 10, 2012

Reporter:
The approval rating for Noda's cabinet is 31 percent. That's three percentage points higher than August. It's the first time in five months that that approval rating has gone above 30 percent. The disapproval rating is 53 percent, three percentage points lower than last month. Our poll also asked voters about a local group that's expected to become Japan's newest political party. Osaka mayor Toru Hashimoto will lead Nippon Ishin-no-kai. He wants to challenge the established parties- the DPJ and LDP in the next general election. The poll suggests 54 percent of voters have some or high expectations for Hashimoto's party. And, of those with expectations, 40 percent say it's because Nippon Ishin-no-kai seems better than other parties.

(LinkAsia: August 17, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
World War Two ended 67 years ago this week. The conclusion of the war was marked by Japan's unconditional surrender. But the country's neighbors, especially South Korea and China, still feel that Tokyo hasn't shown enough remorse over the Japanese army’s brutality throughout the conflict. As a result, the anniversary has become a time of protest against Japan.

This week, there was a new development in a long-simmering dispute over the islands that Japan calls Senkaku. Japan controls the islands, but they’re also claimed by China and Taiwan. Japanese authorities arrested a group of Hong Kong activists for illegally entering the islands. Here's the story from Japanese broadcaster NHK.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: August 15, 2012

Reporter:
Coast Guard spokespersons say seven activists on a fishing boat landed Wednesday on the Senkakus in the East China Sea. Japan considers the islands part of its southernmost prefecture Okinawa.

Police say the activists jumped off the boat and swam to Uotsuri Island. Two of them went back to the vessel soon after landing. Officers arrested the five activists who remained on the island on charges of illegal entry into Japanese territory.

The fishing boat left Hong Kong Sunday. It entered Japanese territorial waters near the Senkakus despite repeated warnings from coast guard patrol vessels.

In 2004, a group of seven Chinese activists landed on Uotsuri Island. Japanese authorities arrested them on charges of illegal entry and deported them. In 2010, a Chinese trawler collided with two Japanese patrol boats off the Senkakus. Research ships, fisheries, patrol boats and other vessels from China have frequently entered Japanese territorial waters since then.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda announced in July that his government is planning to purchase some of the islands from private owners and nationalize them.

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Yul Kwon:
News reports from Tokyo say that Japan has deported 14 Chinese. The government didn't want relations with Beijing to deteriorate further.

(LinkAsia: August 3, 2012)
Yul Kwon:
Over in Japan, the government has released its annual Defense White Paper. Normally, this is just a policy guide to help politicians in making decisions. But this year’s paper has gotten Japan’s neighbors all worked up. That’s because it discusses China’s growing military and the continuing threat of North Korea’s nuclear program. Here's NHK with more details on the report.

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NHK World NEWSLINE
Airdate: July 31, 2012

Reporter:
Defense officials presented the report Tuesday to Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and his cabinet. Its main focus is military activity in the region, as it has been in previous years.

The report notes China’s defense budget has increased about 30-fold over the past 24 years. It says the country will likely expand its maritime activities. The report backs up the case by noting the dispatch of Chinese naval vessels in the Pacific Ocean and an increase in what it calls monitoring activities in waters near Japan.

The paper cites North Korea as a continuing threat. It says authorities in the North may be developing nuclear arms with highly rich uranium. And it says they are likely to continue missile tests following a failed rocket launch in April.

The defense report also addresses American foreign policy. Its authors note the shift in US emphasis toward the Asia-Pacific. They say Japan will seek to deepen and develop defense ties in a way that fits the new security environment. The paper also acknowledges the issue of US military facilities in Japan. It says the bases should maintain their deterrent role while reducing the burden on host communities.