 | Looking for Leadership: The Dilemma of Political Leadership in Japan Democratic leaders around the world are finding it increasingly difficult to exercise strong leadership and maintain public support. However, there is nowhere that this has proven to be as challenging of a task as Japan, which has seen its top leaders change more often over the past 25 years than any other major country in the world. The current prime minister has strived to put an end to this pattern, but can he buck this historical trend? More fundamentally, why do Japan's prime ministers find it so difficult to project strong leadership, or even stay in office? And what are the ramifications for Japan's partners and for the world? This volume, authored by contributors who straddle the scholarly and policymaking worlds in Japan, explores the obstacles facing Japan as it looks for greater leadership and explains why this matters for the rest of the world. Yuka Uchida Ando served as political secretary to the foreign minister of Japan and was a longtime staff member of the Democratic Party of Japan. James Gannon is the executive director of the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/USA). Yuichi Hosoya is a professor at Keio University. Satoru Mori is a professor at Hosei University. Takao Ochi is a member of Japan's House of Representatives and serves as a Parliamentary Vice-Minister at the Prime Minister's Cabinet Office. Ryo Sahashi is an associate professor at Kanagawa University. Harukata Takenaka is a professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) in Tokyo and previously served in the Ministry of Finance. |
