Where can i get a good essay on contemporary japan?
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The 1972 reversion of Okinawa completed the United States’ return of control of these islands to Japan. Japan continues to protest for the corresponding return of the Kuril Islands (Northern territory or ‘Hoppou Ryoudo’) from Russia.
Defeat came for a number of reasons. The most important is probably Japan’s underestimation of the industro-military capabilities of the U.S. The U.S. recovered from its initial setback at Pearl Harbor much quicker than the Japanese expected, and their sudden counterattack came as a blow to Japanese morale. U.S. output of military products also skyrocketed past Japanese counterparts over the course of the war. Another reason was factional in-fighting between the Army and Navy, which led to poor intelligence and cooperation. This was compounded as the Japanese forces found they had overextended themselves, leaving Japan itself vulnerable to attack. Another important factor is Japan’s underestimation of resistance in China, which Japan claimed would be conquered in three months. The prolonged war was both militarily and economically disastrous for Japan.
[edit] Occupied Japan
General MacArthur and Emperor Hirohito.Main article: Occupied Japan
After the war, Japan was placed under international control of the American-led Allied powers in the Asia-Pacific region through the Supreme Commander, Gen. Douglas MacArthur. This was the first time since the unification of Japan that the island nation was successfully occupied by a foreign power. Entering the Cold War with the Korean War, Japan came to be seen as an important ally of the US government. Political, economic, and social reforms were introduced, such as an elected Japanese Diet (legislature) and expanded suffrage. The country’s constitution took effect on May 3, 1947. The United States and 45 other Allied nations signed the Treaty of Peace with Japan in September 1951. The U.S. Senate ratified the treaty in March 20, 1952, and under the terms of the treaty, Japan regained full sovereignty on April 28, 1952.
[edit] Post-Occupation Japan
Main article: Post-Occupation Japan
From the 1950s to the 1980s, Japan’s history consists mainly of its rapid development into a first-rank economic power, through a process often referred to as the “economic miracle”. The post-war settlement transformed Japan into a genuine constitutional party democracy, but, extraordinarily, it was ruled by a single party throughout the period of the “miracle”. This strength and stability allowed the government considerable freedom to oversee economic development in the long term. Through extensive state investment and guidance, and with a kick-start provided by technology transfer from the U.S.A. and Europe, Japan rapidly rebuilt its heavy industrial sector (almost destroyed during the war). Given a massive boost by the Korean War, in which it acted as a major supplier to the UN force, Japan’s economy embarked on a prolonged period of extremely rapid growth, led by the manufacturing sectors. Japan emerged as a significant power in many economic spheres, including steel working, car manufacture and the manufacture of electronic goods.
It is usually argued that this was achieved through innovation in the areas of labour relations and manufacturing automation (Japan pioneered the use of robotics in manufacturing). Throughout this period its annual GNP growth was over twice that of its nearest competitor, the U.S.A. By the 1980s, Japan – despite its small size – had the world’s second largest economy, after the U.S.A. These developments had a marked effect on its relations with the U.S.A., the foreign nation with which it had the closest links. The U.S.A. initially heavily encouraged Japan’s development, seeing a strong Japan as a necessary counterbalance to Communist China.
By the 1980s, the sheer strength of the Japanese economy had become a sticking point. The U.S.A. had a massive trade deficit with Japan. This deficit was sometimes used as a scapegoat for American economic weakness, and relations between the two cooled substantially. There was particular friction over the issue of Japanese car exports, as Japanese cars by this point accounted for over 30% of the American market. The U.S.A. also criticised the closed nature of the Japanese economy, which was marked by heavy tariff protection which made entry into the Japanese market difficult for foreign firms. Japan throughout the 1980s and 1990s embarked on a process of economic liberalisation to counter this criticism. The car issue was dealt with through a series of “voluntary” restrictions on Japanese exports and by making factories in America.
[edit] The ‘Lost Decade’
The economic miracle ended abruptly at the very start of the 1990s. In the late 1980s, abnormalities within the Japanese economic system had fueled a massive wave of speculation by Japanese companies, banks and securities companies. Briefly, a combination of incredibly high land values and incredibly low interest rates led to a position in which credit was both easily available and extremely cheap.
This led to massive borrowing, the proceeds of which were invested mostly in domestic and foreign stocks and securities. Recognising that this bubble was unsustainable, resting, as it did, on unrealisable land values—the loans were ultimately secured on land holdings, the Ministry of Finance sharply raised interest rates.
This “popped the bubble” in spectacular fashion, leading to a major crash in the stock market. It also led to a debt crisis; a large proportion of the huge debts that had been run up turned bad, which in turn led to a crisis in the banking sector, with many banks having to be bailed out by the government. Eventually, many became unsustainable, and a wave of consolidation took place, and as such there are now only four national banks in Japan.
Critically for the long-term economic situation, it meant many Japanese firms were lumbered with massive debts, affecting their ability for capital investment. It also meant credit became very difficult to obtain, due to the beleaguered situation of the banks; even now the official interest rate is at 0% and has been for several years. Despite this, credit is still difficult to obtain.
Overall, this has led to the phenomenon known as the “lost decade”; economic expansion effectively came to a total halt in Japan during the 1990s. The effect on everyday life has been rather muted, however.
Unemployment ran reasonably high, but not at crisis levels. Rather than suffer large scale unemployment and layoffs, Japan’s labor market suffered in more subtle, yet no less profound effects that were none-the-less difficult to gauge statistically. During the prosperous times, jobs were seen as long term even to the point of being life long. In contrast, Japan during the lost decade saw a marked increase in temporary and part time work which only promised employment for short periods and marginal benefits. This also created a generational gap, as those who had entered the labor market prior to the lost decade usually retained their employment and benefits, and were effectively insulated from the economic slowdown, whereas younger workers who entered the market a few years later suffered the brunt of its effects. The official figure is a little under 5%, but this is a considerable underestimate — the actual situation would probably be around 10%. This has combined with the traditional Japanese emphasis on frugality and saving (saving money is a cultural habit in Japan) to produce a quite limited effect on the average Japanese family, which continues much as it did in the period of the miracle.
[edit] Political life
Since the end of American rule in 1952, the conservative Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has been the largest political party. While various scandals have plagued the party, the LDP has been in power almost constantly since 1955, when it was created with the merging of Japan’s Liberal and Democratic conservative parties. Only in 1993 did Japan come under reformist rule for a year. Today, the Liberal Democratic Party continues to dominate Japanese politics, though the opposition, led by the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) seems to be gaining stronger influence in the Diet.
Today, the government is led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, beginning in 2006. Recently, the government was led by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, holding office 2001 to 2006, who is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. He made a radical change when allowed for members of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces (the modern day antecedent of the Imperial Army) to be sent to Iraq. The ruling coalition was formed by the conservative LDP and also the New Clean Government Party, a conservative yet theocratic Buddhist political party affiliated with the Buddhist sect Soka Gakkai. The opposition was formed by the Democratic Party, as well as the moderate yet staunchly communist Japanese Communist Party, and the somewhat social-democratic Social Democratic Party (Japan), formerly the Japan Socialist Party.
Minor political parties included the conservative Liberal League, as well as the Midori no kaigi, an ecologist-reformist party formerly known as the Sakigake Party, and before that, the New Party Sakigake.
