essay on democracy in japan

Japan’s democracy is characterized by the unique role of the emperor. He is a constitutional monarch but is still described by some Japanese conservatives as ‘ruler of a divine nation’. The current democratic system and constitution are the legacy of Japan’s defeat in World War Two.

With reference to the country's history, the book focuses on how democracy is experienced in contemporary Japan, highlighting the important role of generational change in facilitating both gradual adjustments as well as dramatic transformation in Japanese politics.

Japan’s credentials as a consolidated democracy matter more at a time of widespread democratic backsliding and the rising influence of an authoritarian economic behemoth like China.

Japan is an excellent case for the comparative study of the connections between democracy and culture. —It is a country with a well established system of constitutional democracy with roots in the nineteenth century.

Historical account of the creation of modern Japan, covering Japan’s transitions from feudal society to nation-state to military regime to postwar democracy through the 1980s. Provides significant historical context for students of political science, especially newcomers to the field.

While neither democracy is without flaws, the fact that Japan has been successful in adapting it to its own culture has given hope to others in Asia. The essay that follows places Japanese democracy in historical context and weighs both its strengths and weaknesses.

Democracy in Japan (like everywhere else) is a work in progress. Much needs to be done to achieve meaningful political competition in light of a weak and divided opposition camp, and to...

Historian Kiyotada Tsutsui, taking a more sweeping view, argues in his 2018 book Senzen Nihon no popyurizumu (Populism in Prewar Japan, Chuokoronshinsha) that the rise of mass democracy after the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–5 propelled Japan down the path to militarism and World War II.

Ultimately, the chapter argues that the way that Japan deals with both the admission and treatment of foreign laborers will help shape the nature of Japan’s democracy going forward. Keywords: immigration, foreign labor, Zainichi Koreans, trainees, refugees, visa categories, nativism, voting rights. Subject.

How does Japan handle dissent and protest? How stable is its democracy? In closely related and readable essays, thirteen leading experts consider three main components of democracy in Japan...