Author: Tom Phuong Le
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231553285
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 388
Book Description
Since the end of World War II, Japan has not sought to remilitarize, and its postwar constitution commits to renouncing aggressive warfare. Yet many inside and outside Japan have asked whether the country should or will return to commanding armed forces amid an increasingly challenging regional and global context and as domestic politics have shifted in favor of demonstrations of national strength. Tom Phuong Le offers a novel explanation of Japan’s reluctance to remilitarize that foregrounds the relationship between demographics and security. Japan’s Aging Peace demonstrates how changing perceptions of security across generations have culminated in a culture of antimilitarism that constrains the government’s efforts to pursue a more martial foreign policy. Le challenges a simple opposition between militarism and pacifism, arguing that Japanese security discourse should be understood in terms of “multiple militarisms,” which can legitimate choices such as the mobilization of the Japan Self-Defense Forces for peacekeeping operations and humanitarian relief missions. Le highlights how factors that are not typically linked to security policy, such as aging and declining populations and gender inequality, have played crucial roles. He contends that the case of Japan challenges the presumption in international relations scholarship that states must pursue the use of force or be punished, showing how widespread normative beliefs have restrained Japanese policy makers. Drawing on interviews with policy makers, military personnel, atomic bomb survivors, museum coordinators, grassroots activists, and other stakeholders, as well as analysis of peace museums and social movements, Japan’s Aging Peace provides new insights for scholars of Asian politics, international relations, and Japanese foreign policy.
Japan's Aging Peace
Author: Tom Phuong Le
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231553285
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 388
Book Description
Since the end of World War II, Japan has not sought to remilitarize, and its postwar constitution commits to renouncing aggressive warfare. Yet many inside and outside Japan have asked whether the country should or will return to commanding armed forces amid an increasingly challenging regional and global context and as domestic politics have shifted in favor of demonstrations of national strength. Tom Phuong Le offers a novel explanation of Japan’s reluctance to remilitarize that foregrounds the relationship between demographics and security. Japan’s Aging Peace demonstrates how changing perceptions of security across generations have culminated in a culture of antimilitarism that constrains the government’s efforts to pursue a more martial foreign policy. Le challenges a simple opposition between militarism and pacifism, arguing that Japanese security discourse should be understood in terms of “multiple militarisms,” which can legitimate choices such as the mobilization of the Japan Self-Defense Forces for peacekeeping operations and humanitarian relief missions. Le highlights how factors that are not typically linked to security policy, such as aging and declining populations and gender inequality, have played crucial roles. He contends that the case of Japan challenges the presumption in international relations scholarship that states must pursue the use of force or be punished, showing how widespread normative beliefs have restrained Japanese policy makers. Drawing on interviews with policy makers, military personnel, atomic bomb survivors, museum coordinators, grassroots activists, and other stakeholders, as well as analysis of peace museums and social movements, Japan’s Aging Peace provides new insights for scholars of Asian politics, international relations, and Japanese foreign policy.
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 0231553285
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 388
Book Description
Since the end of World War II, Japan has not sought to remilitarize, and its postwar constitution commits to renouncing aggressive warfare. Yet many inside and outside Japan have asked whether the country should or will return to commanding armed forces amid an increasingly challenging regional and global context and as domestic politics have shifted in favor of demonstrations of national strength. Tom Phuong Le offers a novel explanation of Japan’s reluctance to remilitarize that foregrounds the relationship between demographics and security. Japan’s Aging Peace demonstrates how changing perceptions of security across generations have culminated in a culture of antimilitarism that constrains the government’s efforts to pursue a more martial foreign policy. Le challenges a simple opposition between militarism and pacifism, arguing that Japanese security discourse should be understood in terms of “multiple militarisms,” which can legitimate choices such as the mobilization of the Japan Self-Defense Forces for peacekeeping operations and humanitarian relief missions. Le highlights how factors that are not typically linked to security policy, such as aging and declining populations and gender inequality, have played crucial roles. He contends that the case of Japan challenges the presumption in international relations scholarship that states must pursue the use of force or be punished, showing how widespread normative beliefs have restrained Japanese policy makers. Drawing on interviews with policy makers, military personnel, atomic bomb survivors, museum coordinators, grassroots activists, and other stakeholders, as well as analysis of peace museums and social movements, Japan’s Aging Peace provides new insights for scholars of Asian politics, international relations, and Japanese foreign policy.
The Abe Doctrine
Author: Daisuke Akimoto
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 9811076596
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256
Book Description
This book focuses on Prime Minister Abe’s policy toward international peace and security proposed in 2013 under the basic principle of ‘proactive contribution to peace’. To this end, this book investigates Prime Minister Abe’s policy-making process of the Peace and Security Legislation, which transformed Japan’s security policy and enabled Japan to exercise the right of ‘collective self-defense’, which used to be ‘unconstitutional’. This book evaluates the implications of the Peace and Security Legislation on three fronts, domestic, bilateral, and international, by analyzing Japan’s Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) program, the Japan-US alliance system, and Japan’s policy on international peacekeeping operations in South Sudan. This book is one of the first contributions to the research on Japan’s foreign and security policy under the Shinzo Abe administration and will be of interest to scholars, policymakers, and students of Japan, Japanese politics and international relations of the Asia-Pacific region.
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 9811076596
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 256
Book Description
This book focuses on Prime Minister Abe’s policy toward international peace and security proposed in 2013 under the basic principle of ‘proactive contribution to peace’. To this end, this book investigates Prime Minister Abe’s policy-making process of the Peace and Security Legislation, which transformed Japan’s security policy and enabled Japan to exercise the right of ‘collective self-defense’, which used to be ‘unconstitutional’. This book evaluates the implications of the Peace and Security Legislation on three fronts, domestic, bilateral, and international, by analyzing Japan’s Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) program, the Japan-US alliance system, and Japan’s policy on international peacekeeping operations in South Sudan. This book is one of the first contributions to the research on Japan’s foreign and security policy under the Shinzo Abe administration and will be of interest to scholars, policymakers, and students of Japan, Japanese politics and international relations of the Asia-Pacific region.
Prophets of Peace
Author: Robert Kisala
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
ISBN: 9780824822675
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 258
Book Description
Wars in the Persian Gulf and Yugoslavia have given new impetus to the ongoing debate in Japan concerning its postwar constitution and related issues of national security and world order. Although often overlooked in this debate, Japanese religious groups--especially some of the New Religions--have promoted peace as a major theme of their doctrine and activities, often explicitly supporting a pacifist position. This study, undertaken in the wake of the Persian Gulf War, looks at a representative group of New Religions and explores their concepts and practices of peace. Many of the Japanese New Religions draw on a tradition that emphasizes individual moral cultivation and use of prewar terms to describe their mission. One expression, hakko ichiu (literally, "the whole world under one roof") conveys the ideal of world unity under Japanese direction, leading to the establishment of peace. In this way it is a prime example of the prewar idea of establishing peace through the spread of Japanese civilization. The author cites evidence pointing to the prevalence of a mistaken notion of the implications of the pacifist position, a situation that both reflects and contributes to the confusion surrounding popular debates on pacifism in Japan. Prophets of Peace is an attempt to correct that misperception by providing a critical study of the social ethic of the Japanese New Religions--a topic that has been largely ignored in research on new religious movements worldwide. Professor Kisala draws on the literature that presents their doctrine and surveys their believers to describe their approach to the question of peace. The results of this fieldwork are placed within the dual framework of Western peace studies and the modern Japanese intellectual tradition, highlighting the issues of pacifism and the cultural approach to peace in Japan. In his analysis of these results, he offers some observations on the role of religion in contemporary Japanese society and advocates a more positive engagement in the debate on Japan's role in international security arrangements. By offering a representative sample of New Religion groups and focusing on their doctrines, Prophets of Peace provides a different perspective for those whose primary interest is the Japanese New Religions. Although students and scholars of Japanese religion will be the book's first audience, its accessibility and thematic approach also recommend it to readers with a broader interest in contemporary Japanese society, peace studies, and the role of religious groups in modern society.
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
ISBN: 9780824822675
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 258
Book Description
Wars in the Persian Gulf and Yugoslavia have given new impetus to the ongoing debate in Japan concerning its postwar constitution and related issues of national security and world order. Although often overlooked in this debate, Japanese religious groups--especially some of the New Religions--have promoted peace as a major theme of their doctrine and activities, often explicitly supporting a pacifist position. This study, undertaken in the wake of the Persian Gulf War, looks at a representative group of New Religions and explores their concepts and practices of peace. Many of the Japanese New Religions draw on a tradition that emphasizes individual moral cultivation and use of prewar terms to describe their mission. One expression, hakko ichiu (literally, "the whole world under one roof") conveys the ideal of world unity under Japanese direction, leading to the establishment of peace. In this way it is a prime example of the prewar idea of establishing peace through the spread of Japanese civilization. The author cites evidence pointing to the prevalence of a mistaken notion of the implications of the pacifist position, a situation that both reflects and contributes to the confusion surrounding popular debates on pacifism in Japan. Prophets of Peace is an attempt to correct that misperception by providing a critical study of the social ethic of the Japanese New Religions--a topic that has been largely ignored in research on new religious movements worldwide. Professor Kisala draws on the literature that presents their doctrine and surveys their believers to describe their approach to the question of peace. The results of this fieldwork are placed within the dual framework of Western peace studies and the modern Japanese intellectual tradition, highlighting the issues of pacifism and the cultural approach to peace in Japan. In his analysis of these results, he offers some observations on the role of religion in contemporary Japanese society and advocates a more positive engagement in the debate on Japan's role in international security arrangements. By offering a representative sample of New Religion groups and focusing on their doctrines, Prophets of Peace provides a different perspective for those whose primary interest is the Japanese New Religions. Although students and scholars of Japanese religion will be the book's first audience, its accessibility and thematic approach also recommend it to readers with a broader interest in contemporary Japanese society, peace studies, and the role of religious groups in modern society.
Japan's Evolving Security Policy
Author: Kyoko Hatakeyama
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1000366855
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 191
Book Description
Japan has been expanding its military roles in the post-Cold War period. This book analyses the shift in Japan’s security policy by examining the collective ideas of political parties and the effect of an international norm. Starting with the analysis of the collective ideas held by political parties, this book delves into factors overlooked in existing literature, including the effects of domestic and international norms, as well as how an international norm is localised when a conflicting domestic norm already exists. The argument held throughout is that these factors play a primary role in framing Japan's security policy. Overall, three security areas are studied: Japan’s arms trade ban policy, Japan’s participation in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, and Japan’s enlarged military roles in international security. Close examination demonstrates that the weakening presence of the left since the mid-1990s and the localisation of an international norm encouraged Japan to broaden its military role. Providing a comprehensive picture of Japan’s evolving security policy, this book asserts that shifts have occurred in ways that do not violate the pacifist domestic norm. Japan's Evolving Security Policy will appeal to students and scholars of International Relations, Asian Politics, Asian Security Studies and Japanese Studies.
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1000366855
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 191
Book Description
Japan has been expanding its military roles in the post-Cold War period. This book analyses the shift in Japan’s security policy by examining the collective ideas of political parties and the effect of an international norm. Starting with the analysis of the collective ideas held by political parties, this book delves into factors overlooked in existing literature, including the effects of domestic and international norms, as well as how an international norm is localised when a conflicting domestic norm already exists. The argument held throughout is that these factors play a primary role in framing Japan's security policy. Overall, three security areas are studied: Japan’s arms trade ban policy, Japan’s participation in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, and Japan’s enlarged military roles in international security. Close examination demonstrates that the weakening presence of the left since the mid-1990s and the localisation of an international norm encouraged Japan to broaden its military role. Providing a comprehensive picture of Japan’s evolving security policy, this book asserts that shifts have occurred in ways that do not violate the pacifist domestic norm. Japan's Evolving Security Policy will appeal to students and scholars of International Relations, Asian Politics, Asian Security Studies and Japanese Studies.
Pacifism in Japan
Author: Nobuya Bamba
Publisher: UBC Press
ISBN: 077484356X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 322
Book Description
Pacifism in Japan contains eight essays which deal, among other things, with such outstanding figures as Uchimura Kanzo and Kagawa Toyohiko. It is an important contribution to the understanding of the pacifist tradition in Japan and shows its development since the end of the nineteenth century. It will be of interest not only to the specialist in Japanese studies, but also to those concerned with war and peace in the modern world.
Publisher: UBC Press
ISBN: 077484356X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 322
Book Description
Pacifism in Japan contains eight essays which deal, among other things, with such outstanding figures as Uchimura Kanzo and Kagawa Toyohiko. It is an important contribution to the understanding of the pacifist tradition in Japan and shows its development since the end of the nineteenth century. It will be of interest not only to the specialist in Japanese studies, but also to those concerned with war and peace in the modern world.
Grassroots Pacifism in Post-War Japan
Author: Mari Yamamoto
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134308183
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
Grassroots Pacifism in Post-War Japan presents new material on grassroots peace activism and pacifism in two major groups active in the post-World War 2 peace movement - workers and housewives. Yamamoto contends that the peace movement, which was organised in tandem with other activities to promote democratic, economic and humanitarian issues, served as a popular lever which helped to eliminate feudal remnants that lingered in Japanese society and individual attitudes after the war, thereby modernizing the political process and the outlook of the ordinary Japanese. Including extensive primary material such as letters, essays, memoirs and interviews, specialists in Japanese history, peace studies and women's studies will appreciate the richness of the text supporting Yamamoto's narrative of how workers' and women's political awareness developed under the influence of organizational and ideological interests and contemporary events.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134308183
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 320
Book Description
Grassroots Pacifism in Post-War Japan presents new material on grassroots peace activism and pacifism in two major groups active in the post-World War 2 peace movement - workers and housewives. Yamamoto contends that the peace movement, which was organised in tandem with other activities to promote democratic, economic and humanitarian issues, served as a popular lever which helped to eliminate feudal remnants that lingered in Japanese society and individual attitudes after the war, thereby modernizing the political process and the outlook of the ordinary Japanese. Including extensive primary material such as letters, essays, memoirs and interviews, specialists in Japanese history, peace studies and women's studies will appreciate the richness of the text supporting Yamamoto's narrative of how workers' and women's political awareness developed under the influence of organizational and ideological interests and contemporary events.
The Iconoclast
Author: Tobias Harris
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 1787385132
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 492
Book Description
Shinzo Abe entered politics burdened by high expectations: that he would change Japan. In 2007, seemingly overwhelmed, he resigned after only a year as prime minister. Yet, following five years of reinvention, he masterfully regained the premiership in 2012, and now dominates Japanese democracy as no leader has done before. Abe has inspired fierce loyalty among his followers, cowing Japan's left with his ambitious economic program and support for the security and armed forces. He has staked a leadership role for Japan in a region being rapidly transformed by the rise of China and India, while carefully preserving an ironclad relationship with Trump's America. The Iconoclast tells the story of Abe's meteoric rise and stunning fall, his remarkable comeback, and his unlikely emergence as a global statesman laying the groundwork for Japan's survival in a turbulent century.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 1787385132
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 492
Book Description
Shinzo Abe entered politics burdened by high expectations: that he would change Japan. In 2007, seemingly overwhelmed, he resigned after only a year as prime minister. Yet, following five years of reinvention, he masterfully regained the premiership in 2012, and now dominates Japanese democracy as no leader has done before. Abe has inspired fierce loyalty among his followers, cowing Japan's left with his ambitious economic program and support for the security and armed forces. He has staked a leadership role for Japan in a region being rapidly transformed by the rise of China and India, while carefully preserving an ironclad relationship with Trump's America. The Iconoclast tells the story of Abe's meteoric rise and stunning fall, his remarkable comeback, and his unlikely emergence as a global statesman laying the groundwork for Japan's survival in a turbulent century.
Japan's Peace-Building Diplomacy in Asia
Author: Peng Er Lam
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134125054
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 365
Book Description
The conventional portrayal of Japan’s role in international affairs is of a passive political player which – despite its position as the world’s second largest economic power – punches below its weight on the world stage: its foreign policy driven by Washington, mercantilism and constrained by domestic pacifism. This book examines Japan’s emerging identity as an important participant in conflict prevention and peace-building in Southeast and South Asia, demonstrating that Japan has increasingly sought a positive and active political role commensurate with its economic pre-eminence. The book considers Japanese involvement in many of the region’s most serious recent conflicts: including Japan’s part in the brokering and maintaining of peace in Cambodia, which in 1992 saw the first dispatch of troops abroad by Tokyo since the end of World War II, and the attempts to bring peace to Aceh, Sri Lanka, East Timor and Mindanao. The Japanese example, when compared with other countries prominent in the fields of conflict prevention, suggests that Tokyo – given its pacifist strategic culture – relies on diplomacy and Official Development Assistance rather than peace enforcement through military means. Overall, this book provides a lucid appraisal of Japan’s overall foreign policy, as well as its new role in conflict prevention and peace-building - analysing the reasons behind this shift towards an active international role and assessing the degree of success it has enjoyed.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134125054
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 365
Book Description
The conventional portrayal of Japan’s role in international affairs is of a passive political player which – despite its position as the world’s second largest economic power – punches below its weight on the world stage: its foreign policy driven by Washington, mercantilism and constrained by domestic pacifism. This book examines Japan’s emerging identity as an important participant in conflict prevention and peace-building in Southeast and South Asia, demonstrating that Japan has increasingly sought a positive and active political role commensurate with its economic pre-eminence. The book considers Japanese involvement in many of the region’s most serious recent conflicts: including Japan’s part in the brokering and maintaining of peace in Cambodia, which in 1992 saw the first dispatch of troops abroad by Tokyo since the end of World War II, and the attempts to bring peace to Aceh, Sri Lanka, East Timor and Mindanao. The Japanese example, when compared with other countries prominent in the fields of conflict prevention, suggests that Tokyo – given its pacifist strategic culture – relies on diplomacy and Official Development Assistance rather than peace enforcement through military means. Overall, this book provides a lucid appraisal of Japan’s overall foreign policy, as well as its new role in conflict prevention and peace-building - analysing the reasons behind this shift towards an active international role and assessing the degree of success it has enjoyed.
Japan in the World
Author: Klaus Schlichtmann
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 073912675X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
The twentieth century is as remarkable for its world wars as it is for its efforts to outlaw war in international and constitutional law and politics. Japan in the World examines some of these efforts through the life and work of Shidehara Kijuro, who was active as diplomat and statesman between 1896 until his death in 1951. Shidehara is seen as a guiding thread running through the first five decades of the twentieth century. Through the 1920s until the beginning of the 1930s, his foreign policy shaped Japan's place within the community of nations. The positive role Japan played in internation.
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 073912675X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
The twentieth century is as remarkable for its world wars as it is for its efforts to outlaw war in international and constitutional law and politics. Japan in the World examines some of these efforts through the life and work of Shidehara Kijuro, who was active as diplomat and statesman between 1896 until his death in 1951. Shidehara is seen as a guiding thread running through the first five decades of the twentieth century. Through the 1920s until the beginning of the 1930s, his foreign policy shaped Japan's place within the community of nations. The positive role Japan played in internation.
Japanese Prime Ministers and Their Peace Philosophy
Author: Daisuke Akimoto
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9811683794
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 441
Book Description
This book focuses on the lives and peace philosophy of Japanese prime ministers from 1945 to the present, attempting to extract one consistent political philosophy, namely, the ‘peace philosophy’ that has consistently influenced Japan’s foreign and defense policy. Exploring the meta-narrative of international relations and politics, this book provides a new meta-analysis of the factors underpinning Japanese politics, providing a timely insight into one of Asia's most powerful yet enigmatic players in a time of transformation. This book will interest scholars of international relations, those watching Asia in transition, and journalists.
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9811683794
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 441
Book Description
This book focuses on the lives and peace philosophy of Japanese prime ministers from 1945 to the present, attempting to extract one consistent political philosophy, namely, the ‘peace philosophy’ that has consistently influenced Japan’s foreign and defense policy. Exploring the meta-narrative of international relations and politics, this book provides a new meta-analysis of the factors underpinning Japanese politics, providing a timely insight into one of Asia's most powerful yet enigmatic players in a time of transformation. This book will interest scholars of international relations, those watching Asia in transition, and journalists.