In 16 towns and villages around Japan, the elections for mayor, municipal assembly seats and prefectural assembly seats were all uncontested in the unified local elections in April, an Asahi Shimbun survey found.
Some 56.0 percent of 125 mayoral elections in towns and villages that started on April 18 have already been decided because there was only one candidate.
The second half of unified local elections kicked off on April 16, and the races for nearly 30 percent of mayoral posts and around 5 percent of city assemblies have already been decided.
Japan’s Diet building (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
Lawmakers are forming a nonpartisan group to enact a Japanese version of the U.S. Magnitsky Act, which would allow Japan to slap sanctions on parties it deems guilty of human rights abuses overseas.
However, the Japanese government is wary about the initiative, viewing it could limit the cards in its diplomatic repertoire.
Japan has championed human-rights diplomacy through “dialogue and cooperation.”
Currently, no Japanese law exists to authorize sanctions against individuals and groups outside Japan merely on grounds of their violation of human rights.
Tokyo can impose sanctions if the U.N. Security Council adopts a resolution.
A Self-Defense Force s surface-to-ship guided missile (Provided by Defense Ministry)
A new missile defense policy directive approved by the Suga administration makes no mention of whether Japan should acquire first-strike capability against enemy targets, but says plans are on track to develop longer-range cruise missiles.
Strengthening Japan s deterrent capability was a major policy pillar advocated by Suga s predecessor, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
When Abe in June announced that the government would abandon plans to purchase the costly U.S.-developed land-based Aegis Ashore missile defense system, he stated that a new national security directive was necessary and that discussions could not be put off on whether Japan should acquire first-strike capability.