Mr. Abe spoke on the main features of his policies in the both Houses of the Japanese Parliament (known as the Diet) on 12 February. Here are some of these policies, together with my critical comments wherever relevant.
At the very beginning, he said before going into the details that Japan will perform her responsibility in the international community in fighting terrorism. He thus put Japan on the side of the willing, effectively though not formally. He did not elaborate what was terrorism, whom he wanted to fight, and how it came into being in a large measure in the present world. Terrorism is a word very vague and dangerous to use in the international context. I have raised five questions on Abe's behaviour, including his language, in connection with the Japanese hostages who were murdered by the ISIL.
Then, Abe made it clear that he wants to see the TPP negotiations to come to an early conclusion, to lower the corporation tax by 2.5 %, to reopen the nuclear plants which are considered safe, to let the company profit to be related to the rise in wages, and to raise the consumption tax from the present 8 % to ten from April 2017.
It is clear from them that he is firmly standing on the trickling-down theory which is now labelled out of date, even by the OECD, the alliance of the rich countries, in its recent report. The lower corporation tax and the successive hike in the consumption tax, heavier on the poor people, will assure the income tax in general to be on the high level. The average monthly wage has come down from its highest in 1997 by as much as \ 55, 000 by now, showing the bankruptcy of the trickling-down theory. On the reopening of the nuclear plants, Abe is apparently taking the side of the nuclear business industry, as the Fukushima plant is still not able to deal with its contaminated water.
On the diplomacy and security, Abe sticks to the Japan-US alliance, and says that he will go ahead with the construction of the new US air base at Henoko, Okinawa, in spite of the overwhelming opposition of the residents of Okinawa Prefecture, as represented in several elections toward the end of 2014.
In the last minute or two of his speech Abe referred to the issue of the Constitutional amendment, without getting into any details. It did not look nice. Worse still, he did not say a word on the talk he is supposed to give around 15 August this year in commemoration of the 70 years of the end of the War.
At the very beginning, he said before going into the details that Japan will perform her responsibility in the international community in fighting terrorism. He thus put Japan on the side of the willing, effectively though not formally. He did not elaborate what was terrorism, whom he wanted to fight, and how it came into being in a large measure in the present world. Terrorism is a word very vague and dangerous to use in the international context. I have raised five questions on Abe's behaviour, including his language, in connection with the Japanese hostages who were murdered by the ISIL.
Then, Abe made it clear that he wants to see the TPP negotiations to come to an early conclusion, to lower the corporation tax by 2.5 %, to reopen the nuclear plants which are considered safe, to let the company profit to be related to the rise in wages, and to raise the consumption tax from the present 8 % to ten from April 2017.
It is clear from them that he is firmly standing on the trickling-down theory which is now labelled out of date, even by the OECD, the alliance of the rich countries, in its recent report. The lower corporation tax and the successive hike in the consumption tax, heavier on the poor people, will assure the income tax in general to be on the high level. The average monthly wage has come down from its highest in 1997 by as much as \ 55, 000 by now, showing the bankruptcy of the trickling-down theory. On the reopening of the nuclear plants, Abe is apparently taking the side of the nuclear business industry, as the Fukushima plant is still not able to deal with its contaminated water.
On the diplomacy and security, Abe sticks to the Japan-US alliance, and says that he will go ahead with the construction of the new US air base at Henoko, Okinawa, in spite of the overwhelming opposition of the residents of Okinawa Prefecture, as represented in several elections toward the end of 2014.
In the last minute or two of his speech Abe referred to the issue of the Constitutional amendment, without getting into any details. It did not look nice. Worse still, he did not say a word on the talk he is supposed to give around 15 August this year in commemoration of the 70 years of the end of the War.
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