Gradual Institutional Change In Japan

This book analyses institutional reforms implemented by Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzō, under his second administration from 2012 to 2020. Also examined is the evolution in the role of such actors in Japanese politics as bureaucrats, Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) factions, and backbenchers of the ruling party. Chapters offer multi-dimensional explanations for the preconditions of successful gradual institutional change in political systems, characterized by relatively strong veto players, rigid governmental structures, and numerous unofficial decision-making rules. It is argued that enhancement of the prime minister’s position was implemented through the creative use of pre-existing policy venues, coupled with minor institutional changes in decision-making bodies. Using three illustrated case studies, it is demonstrated how the prime minister managed to centralize the decision-making process: a result of strategic appointment of ministers, empowerment of the Cabinet Secretariat and also taking advantage of wider advisory organs, largely circumventing deliberations on key policies in the ruling party. Seemingly minor changes thus manifested in a major redefinition of decision-making patterns: a result of the long-term perspective of the Abe administration. Gradual Institutional Change in Japan: Kantei Leadership under the Abe Administration will be useful for students seeking to understand the process of successful gradual institutional change and for scholars of Japanese studies and political science.

"Institutional Change in Japan analyzes institutional change within this period of economic transition.

This Open Access book provides a comprehensive analysis of political reforms in Japan since the 1990s, emphasizing the role of ideas in shaping their goals and outcomes. For more than fifteen years following the collapse of Japan’s economic bubble, politicians, business people and academics tackled a range of institutional reforms. The sweeping changes they enacted—covering almost all facets of the public sphere, including elections, public administration, courts and the central bank—fundamentally altered Japanese political processes and policies. Taken together, they arguably represent the final touches of Japan’s political modernization, which had been unfolding since the mid-19th century. Throughout the reform process, advocates were inspired by a combination of liberal and modernist ideas. This book examines those guiding concepts and illustrates the often messy process of applying them to real-world institutions. While most reforms began from common goals, they ultimately produced different—and frequently unexpected—institutional outcomes, which continue to shape Japanese politics. By focusing on the relationship between the ideas and processes that shaped Japan’s reforms, this book presents a broad vision of institutional change in comparative politics.

Globalization and the Politics of Institutional Reform in Japan illuminates Japan’s contemporary and historical struggle to adjust policy and the institutional architecture of government to an evolving global order. This focused and scholarly study identifies that key to this difficulty is a structural tendency towards central political command, which reduces the country’s capacity to follow a more subtle allocation of authority that ensures political leadership remains robust and non-dictatorial. Thus, Motoshi Suzuki argues that it is essential for a globalizing state to incorporate opposition parties and transgovernmental networks into policy-making processes. Providing an in-depth analysis of the theories of institutional change, this book introduces readers to a wealth of perspectives and counterarguments concerning analysis of political decision-making and policy adjustment on both the national and international scale. Placing Japanese policy reform in the global context and relating policy reform to leadership’s political strategies, the author gives a detailed chronological and analytical overview of Japan’s challenging institutional, political and bureaucratic transformations since the Meiji Restoration of the late nineteenth century. Analysis of globalization and policy reform in a non-liberal state, and the relationship between politicians and bureaucrats from an international perspective is included. For those interested in historical and contemporary Japanese politics from a theoretical perspective, particularly the implications of globalization and the politician–bureaucrat relationship, this is an indispensable resource.

With little domestic fanfare and even less attention internationally, Japan has been reinventing itself since the 1990s, dramatically changing its political economy, from one managed by regulations to one with a neoliberal orientation. Rebuilding from the economic misfortunes of its recent past, the country retains a formidable economy and its political system is healthier than at any time in its history. Japan Transformed explores the historical, political, and economic forces that led to the country's recent evolution, and looks at the consequences for Japan's citizens and global neighbors. The book examines Japanese history, illustrating the country's multiple transformations over the centuries, and then focuses on the critical and inexorable advance of economic globalization. It describes how global economic integration and urbanization destabilized Japan's postwar policy coalition, undercut the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's ability to buy votes, and paved the way for new electoral rules that emphasized competing visions of the public good. In contrast to the previous system that pitted candidates from the same party against each other, the new rules tether policymaking to the vast swath of voters in the middle of the political spectrum. Regardless of ruling party, Japan's politics, economics, and foreign policy are on a neoliberal path. Japan Transformed combines broad context and comparative analysis to provide an accurate understanding of Japan's past, present, and future.

Corporate Governance in the 21st Century is a very useful addition to the literature on corporate governance in Japan. It is worth reading simply because it updates many of the ongoing issues such as adoptions of takeover defenses, appointments of independent directors, and increases in foreign direct investment. It is also useful because it examines corporate governance from the perspectives of business as well as law. Furthermore, it provides the beginnings of a framework through which to understand the process of gradual transformation. Christina L. Ahmadjian, Journal of Japanese Studies An invaluable set of resources for everyone with an interest in corporate governance in Japan. Covering both basic information and recent developments, the collection provides readers with an excellent survey of the complexity of modern corporate governance and its legal setting. . . in Japan. Hideki Kanda, University of Tokyo, Japan The essays in this collection approach Japanese corporate governance in the 2000s from a variety of novel perspectives novel in terms of subject matter, methodology, and points of comparison. The result is a comprehensive portrait of the current dynamics of change and stasis in the institutional environment for Japanese firms. Curtis Milhaupt, Columbia Law School, US The lost decade of economic stagnation in Japan during the 1990s has become a found decade for regulatory and institutional reform. Nowhere is this more evident than in corporate law. In 2005, for example, a spate of reforms to the Commercial Code culminated in the new Company Act, a statute promising greater organisational flexibility and shareholder empowerment for Japanese corporations competing in a more globalised economy. But does this new law herald a more Americanised system of corporate governance? Has Japan embraced shareholder primacy over its traditional loyalty to other key stakeholders such as main banks , core employees, and partners within diffuse corporate (keiretsu) groups? This book argues that a more complex gradual transformation is unfolding in Japan a process evident in many other post-industrial economies. The book brings together contributions from academics and practitioners from Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States. It includes chapters on comparative corporate governance theory and methodology, lifelong employment, the main bank system, board structures, and governance issues in small and medium-sized enterprises. The procedural, substantive and FDI policy dimensions of takeover law and practice are discussed, as well as empirical changes to corporate governance practices in large, publicly listed companies during the past twenty years. The authors rich mix of national, disciplinary and professional backgrounds allows for a broad comparative perspective on developments in Japanese corporate governance. The book will be of great interest to scholars and students of law, business, political economy and Japanese studies, and will also appeal to corporate lawyers and policymakers.

Agriculture has been among the toughest political battlegrounds in postwar Japan and represents an ideal case study in institutional stability and change. Inefficient land use and a rapidly aging workforce have long been undermining the economic viability of the agricultural sector. Yet vested interests in the small-scale, part-time agricultural production structure have obstructed major reforms. Change has instead occurred in more subtle ways. Since the mid-1990s, a gradual reform process has dismantled some of the core pillars of the postwar agricultural support and protection regime. Harvesting State Support analyzes this process by shifting the analytical focus to the local level. Drawing on extensive qualitative field research, Hanno Jentzsch investigates how local actors, including farmers, local governments, and local agricultural cooperatives, have translated abstract policies into local practice. Showing how local variants are constructed through recombining national reforms with the local informal institutional environment, Harvesting State Support reveals new links between agricultural reform and other shifts in Japan’s political economy.

Japan Inc was once used to describe the powerful political and economic system that delivers Japan's transformation to an industrial power. This book is about the breakdown and failure of policy coherence in Japan in the 1990s and how the political economy of Japan has changed in response. The essays in the volume seek to identify where change has occurred, as well as where things have not changed and why. The issue of policymaking transparency is accorded particular attention. The book covers a wide range of Japanese institutions and policy areas, including the political party system, electoral and legal reforms, deliberation councils and the financial and agricultural sectors. The findings suggest that resistance to change through the political system is at the root of Japan's inability to deal with its national policy problems. Nonetheless, there has been considerable reform and change towards more open economic and political competition. And, these changes profoundly affect the way in which foreign governments must now relate to domestic political processes in their dealings with Japan. This interdisciplinary book draws together contributions from experts in political science, economics, law and Japanese studies to give a deeper understanding of how Japan's political economy and policymaking processes are working today.