Reiwa Shinsengumi
Reiwa Shinsengumi (れいわ新選組, Reiwa Shinsengumi) is a political party in Japan founded by actor-turned-politician Tarō Yamamoto. The party was formed shortly after Ichirō Ozawa announced that the Liberal Party would merge with the Democratic Party for the People.[14] In the same year of the party being founded, it won more than 4% of the vote after contesting the House of Councilors election in July, gaining two seats only about three and a half months after the formation of the party.[15]
Reiwa Shinsengumi れいわ新選組 Reiwa Shinsengumi | |
---|---|
Japanese name | れいわ新選組 |
Leader | Tarō Yamamoto |
Founded | 1 April 2019 |
Split from | Liberal Party |
Headquarters | 1F, Akasaka-Kōei Bldg. 3-2-6 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo |
Ideology | Anti-austerity Anti-nuclear power[1] Disability rights[1] Animal welfare[1] Economic interventionism[2] Anti-establishment[3][4][5] Left-wing populism[6][7][8][9] Progressivism[10] |
Political position | Left-wing[11][12][13] |
Colors | Pink |
Councillors | 2 / 245 |
Representatives | 0 / 465 |
Website | |
https://reiwa-shinsengumi.com/ | |
History
Founding
Tarō Yamamoto, a member of the House of Councillors for Tokyo, founded the party on 1 April 2019. This was with the intent of standing multiple candidates, including himself, in the upcoming House of Councillors election later in the year.[16] On 10 April, Yamamoto held a press conference and announced the party's platform.[17]
2019 House of Councillors election
The party stood multiple candidates in the 2019 House of Councillors election. The party won 2.2 million votes in the national PR block, exceeding the 2% threshold needed to be recognised as a political party, and securing two seats. Although nearly one million votes were cast for Yamamoto personally, since the party had nominated Yasuhiko Funago and Eiko Kimura—both of whom have disabilities[18]—ahead of him in the party list, Yamamoto did not win a seat.[19] The National Diet Building was adapted to allow barrier-free access for wheelchair users.
Notable party members include university professor Ayumi Yasutomi and former deputy representative of the North Korean abduction liaison Toru Hasuike.
Policies
In a press conference held shortly after the founding of the party, Yamamoto announced that his party would push for the abolition of the consumption tax and instead, make the corporation tax a progressive tax and increase government bonds.[20] In addition, he said that the party is against the construction of the Henoko base. They would also ban nuclear power entirely, raise the minimum wage to 1500¥ per hour with public guarantee, implement laws protecting free education, disability rights, LGBT rights, animal rights, and reinforce social services.[21]
The party has announced that it would reverse/abolish many of the laws that were revised or passed by Prime Minister Shinzō Abe if elected, including the pre-emptive anti-terrorism law such as martial law State Secrecy Law and the 2015 Japanese military legislation.
References
- "政策 れいわ新選組". reiwa-shinsengumi.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- Blondy, Théophile (21 July 2019). "Le Reiwa Shinsengumi un parti " populiste "". Le Petit Journal (in French). Retrieved 26 July 2019.
Le programme appelle directement et sur presque tous les sujets à un interventionnisme plus marqué de l’Etat;
- "Reiwa Shinsengumi makes splash in Japanese election debut, giving voice to people with disabilities". The Japan Times. 22 July 2019. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
- "Man with Lou Gehrig's disease wins seat in Japan's parliament for 1st time". Kyodo News. 22 July 2019. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
- Minami, Daisuke (2 August 2019). "Is Populism Finally Coming to Japan?" (in Japanese). The Japan Times. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- 石戸諭 (22 July 2019). 山本太郎、れいわ…左派ポピュリズムの衝撃とどう向き合うか?. news.yahoo.co.jp (in Japanese). Yahoo! JAPAN. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
- Nakamura, Kasane (1 August 2019). "れいわ・山本太郎代表「私はポピュリストです」。羽鳥慎一モーニングショーで左派ポピュリズムとの指摘に宣言。" (in Japanese). HuffPost. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- Kamei, Hiroshi (31 July 2019). "れいわ躍進、左派ポピュリズムの日本版 N国も無視できず". AERA dot. (in Japanese). Asahi Shimbun. p. 1. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- Ohi, Akai (3 July 2019). "山本太郎は日本のバーニー・サンダースか 左派ポピュリズムと中道リベラルの「戦略的互恵関係」". webronza.asahi.com (in Japanese). Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. pp. 1, 4. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
- Brasor, Philip (20 July 2019). "Citizen campaigns seek to increase voter turnout in Upper House election". The Japan Times. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
- Thisanka Siripala (6 August 2019). "Japan's Upper House Election Results A Win for Diversity". The Diplomat. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
- Daisuke Minami (2 August 2019). "Is Populism Finally Coming to Japan?". The Japan Times. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
- "Japan's first severely disabled lawmakers join parliament". BBC News. 1 August 2019. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
- "Mr. Taro Yamamoto "Reiwa Shinsen-gumi" justified "people in this country, a guardian, welcome to me"". Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- 「れいわ新選組」山本太郎氏が立ち上げ 野党結集が狙い. 朝日新聞デジタル (in Japanese). 11 April 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
- "Mr. Taro Yamamoto "Reiwa Shinsen-gumi" justified "people in this country, a guardian, welcome to me"". Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- 山本太郎・参院議員が新党『れいわ新選組』を結党 消費税廃止を公約に (in Japanese). 12 April 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
- Funago with ALS and Kimura with cerebral palsy
- "Reiwa Shinsengumi makes splash in Japanese election debut, giving voice to people with disabilities". 22 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
- れいわ旋風で読めぬ「ステルス票」与野党は戦々恐々 (in Japanese). 16 July 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
- "Reiwa Shinsengumi - Policies". Retrieved 23 July 2019.