Takashi Kawamura (politician)

Takashi Kawamura
河村 たかし
21st Mayor of Nagoya
Assumed office
28 April 2009
Preceded by Takehisa Matsubara
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
19 July 1993 – 7 April 2009
Succeeded by Yūko Satō
Constituency Aichi-1st (2006–2009)
Old Aichi-1st (1993–1996)
Personal details
Born (1948-11-03) November 3, 1948
Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
Political party Genzei Nippon
Other political
affiliations
  • TPJ (2012, dissolution)
  • Independent (1992–1993, 1998–2000, 2009–2010)
  • DPJ (2000–2009)
  • LP (1998)
  • NFP (1996–1998)
  • JNP (1993–1994, merger)
  • LDP (1990–1992)
  • DSP (before 1983)
Alma mater Hitotsubashi University
Website Official website

Takashi Kawamura (河村 たかし, Kawamura Takashi, born 3 November 1948) is a Japanese politician of the Nagoya-based Genzei Nippon (減税日本 "Tax Cut Japan") party and a former member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). Kawamura is currently serving as Mayor of Nagoya.

Biography

A native of Nagoya, Aichi and graduate of Hitotsubashi University, he was elected for the first time in 1993 as a member of Morihiro Hosokawa's Japan New Party after an unsuccessful run in 1990. He resigned from his office of a member of House of Representatives, ran for mayor of Nagoya, and was elected in April 2009.

On February 6, 2011 he won a landslide re-election victory. Voters in Nagoya gave him three times the votes of his DPJ rival. Also nearly three-quarters of voters supported a referendum to dissolve the sitting Nagoya assembly, since the mayor clashed with the assembly repeatably on issues such as devolution and cutting down the generous diets and retirement packages of assembly members to save costs for taxpayers.[1]

The mayor announced plans in 2009 to completely reconstruct the main towers of Nagoya Castle that were destroyed during the Second World War in wood, just as in the original structure.[2][3][4]

Controversy

On 20 February 2012, while serving as the Japanese representative of Nagoya, Mayor Takashi Kawamura made denialist statements about the Nanjing Massacre while receiving an official Chinese delegation from Nanjing.[5] The incident led to the suspension of all official exchange between the two cities of Nagoya and Nanjing on 21 February.[6]

Some Nagoya citizens opposed Takashi Kawamura's denial by organising lectures and setting a website.[7]

References

  1. ↑ The Economist. Grass-roots revolt in Japan: Maverick as hell. Grass-roots revolt in Japan. February 10, 2011.
  2. ↑ http://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXLASFD24003_T21C14A0000000/
  3. ↑ http://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXNASDG0401J_W2A101C1CR0000/
  4. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-06-18. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
  5. ↑ Wang, Chuhan (22 February 2012). "Nanjing to suspend official exchanges with Nagoya". CNTV.
  6. ↑ Wang, Chuhan (22 February 2012). "Nanjing suspends official contact with Nagoya". CNTV.
  7. ↑ Joseph Essertier and Ono Masami, David vs. Goliath: Resisting the Denial of the Nanking Massacre, Japan Focus 2014/2/21.
  • 政治家情報 〜河村 たかし〜. ザ･選挙 (in Japanese). JANJAN. Archived from the original on 2007-12-03. Retrieved 2007-10-20. External link in |work= (help)
Political offices
Preceded by
Takehisa Matsubara		 Mayor of Nagoya
28 April 2009 – present		 Succeeded by
Incumbent
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