Japan’s elections: the Communist Party’s role

One aspect of the parliamentary elections to be held in Japan on Sunday is the role of the Japanese Communist Party (JCP). With all the opinion polls pointing to a decisive victory of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan over the incumbent Liberal Democratic Party, the JCP appears to be the only smaller party likely to pick up votes and possibly seats.

At a critical turning point in Japanese politics, the Communist Party is positioning itself as a safety valve for the political establishment by corralling popular discontent with the two major parties behind a perspective that in no way challenges the capitalist system. While the party still calls itself “communist” and makes vague references to “socialism”, its election platform consists of limited promises to safeguard workers, farmers and small businesses through protectionist measures and a return to national economic regulation.

The JCP’s foreign policy calls for greater independence from the US...the party’s program lines up with sections of the Japanese ruling class who are deeply frustrated at having to play second fiddle to Washington and want a more aggressive foreign policy to assert Japan’s own economic and strategic interests.

There is no doubt that the current election is creating considerable nervousness in Japanese ruling circles. If, as expected, the Liberal Democrats are ousted, Japanese politics will be entering uncharted waters. With the exception of a brief interlude in 1993, the right-wing party has been in power since it was formed in 1955. The opposition Democratic Party, which was only formed in 1998 as an alliance of Liberal Democratic breakaway factions and ex-members of the Socialist Party, has never held the reins of government.

The surge of support for the Democrats reflects profound hostility toward the government over deepening social inequality, growing unemployment and deteriorating living standards. The global economic recession has battered Japanese exports and the economy as a whole. Last month unemployment hit a six-year high and the labour ministry forecast that as many as 290,000 part-time and temporary contract workers could lose their jobs by September. Indices of poverty, homelessness and social inequality are all on the rise.

If the Democratic Party does win the election, it will inevitably confront growing disillusion and opposition as the gulf between popular expectations and reality becomes evident.

That is precisely why the Communists are being cultivated as a mechanism to defuse social and political tensions. Like its counterparts in Europe, the Communist Party in Japan has long been part of the political establishment. In the current election campaign, it was one of six parties invited to participate in TV debates. In a recent interview, party leader Kazuo Shii boasted that he had been invited onto a major commercial TV station and encouraged to present his bowdlerised version of Marxism.

Commentators in Japan and internationally have noted a growing interest in socialism, especially among young people. A manga version of Marx’s masterpiece Capital has become a best seller. A classic pre-war novel Kanikosen, highlighting the brutal exploitation of workers on a crab canning boat, sold more than half a million copies last year and another 200,000 in a comic version.

The Communist Party appears to have benefitted. According to Shii, party membership has been growing by 1,000 per month since September 2007 and has reached 415,000 members. Many of the new members are young people in their 20s and 30s...


http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/aug2009/japa-a28.shtml