FROM THE EDITOR (IWAO Sumiko)

CHRONOLOGY (January - February 1999)

SPOTLIGHT

An Imperial Poetic Tradition (LIN Yixiao)

Every January the imperial family and their guests assemble for a ceremony called Utakai Hajime, the Imperial New Year’s Poetry Reading. The poems, submitted by ordinary citizens as well as by the emperor and his family, are all on a single theme. This ritual helps sustain a poetic tradition that has endured for over a millennium.

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DIPLOMATIC AGENDA

Obuchi Diplomacy: How to Follw a Successful Start (TANAKA Akihiko)

Prime Minister Obuchi Keizô has been showing signs of adopting a self-directed stance in foreign affairs, an unusual development for a country whose diplomacy has tended to consist of responses to actions by others. This stance came into clear view in the policy address he delivered in Hanoi last December. He has also conducted a round of generally successful summit meetings. In order to sustain this performance, the cabinet should be strengthened and the tradition of frequent rotation of ministers should be ended. Also, conceptual initiatives should be drawn from both the bureaucracy and the political parties.

The Simmering Crisis on the Korean Peninsula (IZUMI Hajime)

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are on the rise. Last year the North Koreans launched a missile across Japanese territory, and there have been signs that they are preparing to launch another. This may lead to the collapse of the 1994 Agreed Framework under which the United States and its allies have been providing assistance to North Korea in return for the latter’s dismantlement of facilities capable of producing plutonium. Japan needs to reaffirm the strength of its alliance with the United States to deter the North Koreans from rash action; at the same time, it should open its own direct channel of communication to Pyongyang and be ready to participate in a deal to provide further assistance if the conditions are right.

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A NEW COALITION

Together Again: The LDP and Ozawa’s Liberal Party (KAWACHI Takashi)

The Liberal Democratic Party, headed by Prime Minister Obuchi, has formed a coalition with the Liberal Party of Ozawa Ichirô. This has decisively shifted the balance of power between the government forces and the opposition in the legislature, even though the opposition still controls a majority of seats in the upper house. Many see the coalition as no more than a marriage of convenience, and some believe that Ozawa’s party will be swallowed up by the much larger LDP. But it has also been suggested that the combination will breathe new life into Japan’s conservative movement.

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MARKET REFORM FOR ECONOMIC REVIVAL (NARIAI Osamu)

Constancy and Change in Japanese Management (USHIO Jirô, Ronald DORE)

Ronald Dore, a sympathetic observer of the Japanese style of management for many years, fears that executives may now be going too far in trying to pay greater attention to shareholders’ interests. He cites the value of the traditional harmony between labor and management and calls for continuation of the practice of finding executives within the ranks of employees. Ushio Jirô cautions against complacent maintenance of existing practices and declares that companies must improve their capital efficiency and otherwise meet international expectations in order to raise low-cost funds in today’s capital markets.

The Small Gems of Japanese Industry (HASHIMOTO Hisayoshi)

Japan’s small businesses are treasure houses of ingenuity and resourcefulness. Given the high level of technology and support available within Japan, warnings of the imminent “hollowing out” of the domestic industrial base are unwarranted. Small firms should take advantage of the current prolonged recession to hire talented workers. They should also strive to turn their plants into local showcases, be open to new business opportunities, and make use of various forms of networking.

The Euro’s Great Potential (GYOHTEN Tokyo)

Europe’s new currency will integrate and expand Europe’s financial markets. While the new currency is unlikely to quickly displace the dollar, its potential is great. Unless internationalization of the yen is promoted, the Japanese currency could end up a distant third in terms of its share of international transactions.

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JAPANESE FOOD

Tea and Japan’s Culinary Revolution (KUMAKURA Isao)

The foundations of Japan’s modern cuisine, which offers healthful foods while striving for beauty in presentation, go back to a culinary revolution that occurred in Japan about 450 years ago with the development and refinement of the tea ceremony (chanoyu) and thekaiseki meals designed to accompany it. A tradition of banquets featuring lavish quantities and dazzling display was largely superseded by a much more austere form of cooking, with food presented simply, in moderate quantities, and in a carefully timed sequence. Like the tea ceremony itself,kaiseki cuisine strongly reflects the influence of Zen monasticism.

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CULTURE AND CIVILIZATION (TAKASHINA Shûji)

Surviving the “Clash of Civilizations” (SAEKI Shôichi)

Samuel Huntington, following Arnold Toynbee, recognizes Japan as possessing a distinct civilization. The power of this civilization is best seen in the glories of Heian-period literature and the culture that flowered in the Edo period, as embodied in haiku, kabuki, and ukiyo-e. It is highly significant that these two cultural zeniths were attained during periods of national isolation, which allowed Japan, a “peripheral” country within the Chinese sphere of influence, to fashion a unique civilization containing elements of universal appeal.

Toward a Country of Wealth and Virtue (KAWAKATSU Heita)

Prime Minister Obuchi has set the target of making Japan “a rich country which also has virtue” (fukoku yûtoku), offering a modern version of the nineteenth-century sloganfukoku kyôhei, or “Enrich the country and strengthen the military.” In order to achieve this goal, a key objective should be the building of a beautiful Japan, taking up the traditional ideal of recreating the feel of the countryside even within urban districts. Early Western visitors to Japan were captivated by the country’s beauty; today’s Japanese should strive to re-create it.

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ESSAY

Isamu Noguchi and Sapporo (ISAKA Shigetaka)

The late American sculptor Isamu Noguchi has left a valuable legacy in his design of a park that opened in Hokkaidô last summer.