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At the same time many Japanese companies, which continue to make world-class products, are posting record profits, and through the 1990s recession Japan enjoyed huge trade surplus[r]

A short history

of Japan

Dr Curtis Andressen is a senior lecturer in the School of Political and International Studies at Flinders University, South Australia He has been a willing student of Japan for over two decades and has spent several years living there Curtis Andressen has published widely on a variety of aspects of

contemporary Japanese Society and is co-author of Escape

from Affluence: Japanese students in Australia and author of Educational Refugees: Malaysian students in Australia Series Editor: Milton Osborne

Milton Osborne has had an association with the Asian region for over 40 years as an academic, public servant and inde-pendent writer He is the author of eight books on Asian

topics, including Southeast Asia: An introductory history, first

published in 1979 and now in its eighth edition, and, most

recently, The Mekong: Turbulent Past, Uncertain Future,

pub-lished in 2000

A short history

of Japan

From Samurai to Sony

Curtis Andressen

For my parents, Thorsten and

Marilyn Andressen

First published in 2002

Copyright © Curtis Andressen, 2002

All rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced or

transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher The Australian Copyright Act 1968 (the Act) allows a maximum of one

chapter or 10 per cent of this book, whichever is the greater, to be photocopied by any educational institution for its educational purposes provided that the educational institution (or body that administers it) has given a remuneration notice to Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) under the Act.

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Cataloguing-in-Publication entry:

Andressen, Curtis A (Curtis Arthur), 1956–

A short history of Japan: from samurai to Sony.

Bibliography.

Includes index.

ISBN 1 86508 516 2.

1 Japan—History I Title.

952

Figures from A Brief History of Chinese and Japanese Civilisations,

Second Edition by Conrad Schirokaner, © 1989 by Harcourt, Inc reproduced by permission of the publisher.

Set in 11/13 pt Sabon by DOCUPRO, Canberra

Printed by South Wind Productions, Singapore

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Some images in the original version of this book are not

available for inclusion in the eBook

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Japan’s lands and cities.

Japanese friends and colleagues over the years provided valuable insights into their society Keen Western observers of Japan also helped me to understand Japanese culture, and prominent here is Peter Gainey A number of people provided a great deal of help in the editing stage, including my hardworking parents and Andrew MacDonald Peter, again, proved to be invaluable at this stage Debbie Hoad was a dedicated and creative research assistant I also owe a debt to Professor Colin Brown for his encouragement to undertake this task Any errors or omissions, of course, remain the responsibility of the author Finally, a special thank you to Blanca Balmes, for her love and unwavering support

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ODA official development assistance

Development

Cambodia

A b b re v i a t i o n s

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1 INTRODUCTION

FEW COUNTRIES HAVE BEEN the subject of so much scholarly attention yet remain so elusive Who exactly are the Japanese? Are they peace-loving or war-like? Creators of stunningly beautiful art forms or destroyers of pristine natural environments? Isolationist or expansionist? Considerate of other cultures or arrogantly dismissive? Willing members of the international community or shy and fearful of engaging with others? Wildly successful or perched on the edge

of economic ruin? Newspapers over the past few decades have provided all of these images

In the late 1980s Japan appeared on the verge of an economic takeover of the world The purchase of Columbia Pictures by Sony and the Rockefeller Center by Mitsubishi Real Estate at the time were two of the more dramatic examples of Japanese economic power In Australia residents

of Queensland’s Gold Coast (with the notable exception

of local real estate agents) protested the Japanese buy-up of prime real estate The reaction in many parts of the world was

fear Movies such as Rising Sun intimated that there was a

rather sinister plot by inscrutable kingpins to make Japan the next superpower by taking control of the global economy Yet governments around the world at the time vied for the

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investment opportunities held out tantalisingly by Japanese megafirms

So what happened? Since the early 1990s this image has been turned on its head Suddenly Japan is a giant with feet

of clay Financial institutions are closing their doors, or merg-ing, and their leaders are being marched off to jail or are hanging themselves in hotel rooms At the same time, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), in power almost continuously since the end of the Pacific War, has managed to remain in control of the government, while voter apathy—reflected in the 1995 election of former comedians as governors of both Tokyo and Osaka—is at an all-time high The recession in Japan, which has dragged on for more than a decade, seems

to present a problem too large and complex for the govern-ment to handle Politicians appear unable to dissociate themselves from long-standing interest groups, so stimulus packages designed to pull Japan out of recession continue to take the form of pork-barrelling, with massive contracts awarded to construction companies and the like who in turn fill LDP coffers Unfortunately, the money is not spent effec-tively, public confidence has not been restored, and Japan’s economy in the early twenty-first century continues to slump Part of the problem concerns the demographic profile of Japanese society Voting is not compulsory, and those who vote are disproportionately older and more conservative, so out-dated policies tend to endure Japan also has a very rapidly ageing population, with high numbers of people entering retirement over the next ten to twenty years At the same time the birthrate has dropped to its lowest levels ever, so there are fewer and fewer people to support an ageing population Hence, when contemplating retirement, older Japanese workers have a tendency to save even more than usual This lack of spending continues to inhibit economic recovery

Japanese companies, too, which appeared unstoppable in the 1980s, are suddenly looking for international partners to help them out of their dire financial straits, hence the recent link-up between Nissan and the French automobile company Renault, preceded by the American company Ford’s massive

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purchase of Mazda shares At the same time many Japanese companies, which continue to make world-class products, are posting record profits, and through the 1990s recession Japan enjoyed huge trade surpluses It is an unusual type of economic downturn Furthermore, Japan continues to hold by far the greatest foreign exchange reserves of any country in the world,

is second only to Germany in overseas assets and has been the world’s largest creditor nation since 1985 The country pro-vides nearly 16 per cent of the world’s economic output and

is therefore, for a range of reasons, watched carefully by other countries

On the international front, however, Japan is relatively subdued A few personalities have emerged on the international scene, such as Akashi Yasushi, the head of the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) during the UN reconstruction of that country in the early 1990s and, more recently, Ogata Sadako, present head of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), especially promi-nent during the UN’s recent intervention in East Timor These are exceptions, though, and Japan continues to play a less visible role than is appropriate for a country that still has the second largest economy in the world At the same time, it is

a key source of funds and direction for many international organisations such as the UNHCR and the Asian Development Bank

In part the Japanese reluctance to be more assertive is a reflection of the country’s vulnerability In many ways the label

of ‘fragile superpower’ continues to hold true In spite of massive investments abroad, trade surpluses and cutting-edge products, Japan remains vulnerable to fluctuations in foreign policies and economies It continues to import 80 per cent of its primary energy requirements and is dependent on value-added exports for its wealth When restricted to its home islands Japan is a poor, isolated, island nation It must trade

to create wealth, and this fundamental reality has moved the country into imperialism, war, destruction and global trade at various times over the last century At the same time, given Japan’s massive foreign investments and level of trade, other

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countries are dependent on its goodwill for economic growth.

In this sense economic globalisation serves to protect Japanese interests

There is a curious tension in Japan’s foreign relations Many in the region still remember Japan’s wartime aggression;

as a result, while investment is welcomed, the investor is watched with some wariness In the history of the region the Pacific War did not end so long ago, certainly not long enough for fundamental cultural change to take place Foreign trade, regardless, does not take place for altruistic reasons and Japan, like other countries, tries to maximise its benefits Japanese companies also tend to recreate their structures overseas They claim to need the quality products that only Japanese firms can provide In other countries, though, Japanese companies are often seen as supporting each other while freezing out local suppliers Hence, the extent to which Japanese investment produces long-term local benefits (particularly ones that are spread around rather than going mostly to local elites) is hotly debated

For most people in the region the effects of Japanese trade and investment are highly visible Whether it is downtown Bangkok, Sydney, Ho Chi Minh City, Shenzen or the Klang Valley outside Kuala Lumpur, the names of famous Japanese companies are everywhere Automobiles bear Japanese brands,

as do stereos, televisions, computers and a vast range of other types of consumer electronics Goods that carry Japanese names, too, are often made (or at least assembled) in the low-wage countries of Asia There are few countries in which Japanese companies are not playing a substantial role and in which their goods are not readily accessible

While Japanese goods are moving around the world, so too are Japanese people Tourist departures rose dramatically

in the 1970s and 1980s, and even in the 1990s they continued

at record levels More than 17 million Japanese travelled abroad in 2000, more than 80 per cent of them as tourists While there are increasing numbers of independent, especially budget, travellers, most still prefer package tours Indeed, Japanese are renowned for their failure to blend into local

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cultures, remaining observers rather than participants (though younger Japanese seem to be challenging this trend) In part this is a result of the Japanese employment system, which gives few holidays to workers, and in part it reflects the essentially culture-bound character of the Japanese nation

One group which is increasingly visible on foreign land-scapes, however, is young Japanese women They are the

‘bachelor elite’ of Japanese society They tend to live at home and work full-time after completing their education, thereby saving substantial sums Foreign travel is one of the preferred ways of spending this money Indeed, they are a prized group for marketing companies Does this indicate a substantial change in women’s roles, though? Today there remains much debate about the extent to which contemporary changes are part of the mainstream The Equal Employment Opportunity Law (EEOL) of 1986 (most recently revised in 1999) helped women to access management-track positions This change has been driven to some extent by an increased assertiveness on the part of women, and partly by the demographic shift in Japan

Although the economic downturn of Japan in the 1990s has meant relatively high unemployment levels, the ageing population will lead to substantial labour shortages in the not-so-distant future, and this should have a significant impact

on women’s participation in the labour force At the moment, although it is clear that more women are being provided more opportunities in the labour force, the classic working-life profile, where women in their 30s and 40s quit working to raise children and re-enter the labour force later in life, is still evident However, women are increasingly being given the option of a career path in Japanese companies, and this trend will almost certainly become stronger over time

Participation in the labour force is, of course, linked to changes in the social roles of women in Japan The average age of first marriage for women has increased three years over the past three decades and now stands at 27.5 years At the same time the fertility rate has dropped, from 4.5 children per Japanese woman in 1947 to 1.36 today, well below the

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replacement level of 2.1 children This is having an impact throughout the social system, from work expectations to gender roles to demands for specialised services

Japanese men, on the other hand, seem to be stuck in the past, where the traditional life cycle is still very much the norm There are a few indications, however, that young Japanese men are beginning to question the dedication and compliance that such a life demands, and are considering alternatives This dissatisfaction is in part related to the increasingly visible costs

of the existing system Indeed, one of the most recent issues

overwork’, though it generally refers to the problem of chronic exhaustion Former Prime Minister Obuchi, who died in 2000 while still in office, is its most recent high-profile victim

An increasingly rare

sight in modern Japan.

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