Junichiro Koizumi (; , ''Koizumi Jun'ichirō'' ; born 8 January 1942) is a former Japanese politician who was
Prime Minister of Japan
The prime minister of Japan (Japanese: 内閣総理大臣, Hepburn: ''Naikaku Sōri-Daijin'') is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its Ministers of Sta ...
and
President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics in 2009. He is the
sixth-longest serving Prime Minister in Japanese history.
Widely seen as a maverick leader of the LDP upon his election to the position in 2001, he became known as a
neoliberal economic reformer, focusing on reducing Japan's
government debt
A country's gross government debt (also called public debt, or sovereign debt) is the financial liabilities of the government sector. Changes in government debt over time reflect primarily borrowing due to past government deficits. A deficit oc ...
and the
privatisation of its
postal service. In the
2005 election, Koizumi led the LDP to win one of the largest parliamentary majorities in modern
Japanese history
The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to prehistoric times around 30,000 BC. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new inventi ...
. Koizumi also attracted international attention through his deployment of the
Japan Self-Defense Forces to
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
, and through his visits to the
Yasukuni Shrine
is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It was founded by Emperor Meiji in June 1869 and commemorates those who died in service of Japan, from the Boshin War of 1868–1869, to the two Sino-Japanese Wars, 1894–1895 and 1937–1945 resp ...
that fueled diplomatic tensions with neighbouring
China and
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
. Koizumi resigned as Prime Minister in 2006.
Although Koizumi maintained a low profile for several years after he left office, he returned to national attention in 2013 as an advocate for abandoning
nuclear power in Japan
Prior to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Japan had generated 30% of its electrical power from nuclear reactors and planned to increase that share to 40%. Nuclear power energy was a national strategic priority in Japan.
, of the 54 nu ...
, in the wake of the 2011
Fukushima nuclear disaster
The was a nuclear accident in 2011 at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Ōkuma, Fukushima, Japan. The proximate cause of the disaster was the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, which occurred on the afternoon of 11 March 2011 ...
, which contrasted with the pro-nuclear views espoused by the LDP governments both during and after Koizumi's term in office.
Early life
Koizumi is a third-generation politician of the
Koizumi family. His father,
Jun'ya Koizumi
(January 24, 1904 – August 10, 1969) was a Japanese politician who served as Director General of the Japan Defense Agency during the 1960s.
Life and career
Koizumi was born in Higashi-Kaseda, Kagoshima Prefecture (now part of Minami-S ...
, was director general of the
Japan Defense Agency (now
Minister of Defense) and a member of the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
. His grandfather,
Koizumi Matajirō
was a Japanese politician and cabinet minister in the Taishō period and early Shōwa period Japan. He was the grandfather of Jun'ichirō Koizumi, who served as the Prime Minister of Japan from 2001 to 2006.
Early life
Koizumi was born in Mut ...
, called "Tattoo Minister" because of the big tattoo on his body, and the leader of Koizumi Gumi in Kanagawa (a big group of ''
yakuza
, also known as , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media, by request of the police, call them , while the ''yakuza'' call themselves . The English equivalent for the ter ...
''), was Minister of Posts and Telecommunications under Prime Ministers
Hamaguchi and
Wakatsuki and an early advocate of postal privatization.
Born in
Yokosuka, Kanagawa
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region.
The city ...
on 8 January 1942, Koizumi was educated at
Yokosuka High School. He graduated with a
Bachelor of Economics
The Bachelor of Economics (BEc or BEcon),
or the "Bachelor of Applied Economics", is a bachelor's degree awarded by many universities and colleges for completion of an undergraduate program in economics, econometrics, or applied economics;
th ...
degree from
Keio University. He attended
University College London
, mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £143 million (2020)
, budget = ...
before returning to Japan in August 1969 upon the death of his father.
He stood for election to the lower house in December; however, he did not earn enough votes to win election as a Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) representative. In 1970, he was hired as a secretary to
Takeo Fukuda
was a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan from 1976 to 1978.
Early life and education
Fukuda was born in Gunma, capital of the Gunma Prefecture on 14 January 1905. He hailed from a former samurai family and his father was mayor ...
, who was Minister of Finance at the time and was elected as Prime Minister in 1976.
In the general elections of December 1972, Koizumi was elected as a member of the Lower House for the
Kanagawa 11th district
The is a constituency of the House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan (national legislature). It is located in Kanagawa Prefecture, and consists of the cities of Miura and Yokosuka. Former Prime Minister of Japan Junichiro Koizumi served as ...
. He joined Fukuda's faction within the LDP. Since then, he has been re-elected ten times.
Member of House of Representatives
Koizumi gained his first senior post in 1979 as Parliamentary Vice Minister of Finance, and his first ministerial post in 1988 as Minister of Health and Welfare under Prime Ministers
Noboru Takeshita
was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1987 to 1989 during the bubble economy.
Takeshita led the largest faction at the time in the Liberal Democratic Party, which he inherited from Kakuei Tanaka, from the 1980s ...
and
Sōsuke Uno. He held cabinet posts again in 1992 (Minister of Posts and Telecommunications in the
Miyazawa cabinet) and 1996–1998 (Minister of Health and Welfare in the
Hashimoto cabinets).
In 1994, with the LDP in opposition, Koizumi became part of a new LDP faction,
Shinseiki, made up of younger and more motivated parliamentarians led by
Taku Yamasaki,
Koichi Kato and Koizumi, a group popularly dubbed "YKK" after the
zipper
A zipper, zip, fly, or zip fastener, formerly known as a clasp locker, is a commonly used device for binding together two edges of fabric or other flexible material. Used in clothing (e.g. jackets and jeans), luggage and other bags, camping ...
manufacturer
YKK
The is a Japanese group of manufacturing companies. As the world's largest zipper manufacturer, YKK Group is most known for making zippers. It also manufactures other fastening products, architectural products, plastic hardware and industrial ...
.
After Prime Minister
Morihiro Hosokawa
is a Japanese politician and noble who was Prime Minister of Japan from 1993 to 1994, leading a coalition government which was the first non- Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) government of Japan since 1955. After a funding scandal in early 1994, h ...
resigned in 1994 and the LDP returned to power in a coalition government, Koizumi and Hosokawa teamed up with
Shusei Tanaka of
New Party Sakigake
The , also known as the New Harbinger Party, was a political party in Japan that broke away from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on 22 June 1993. The party was created by Masayoshi Takemura. The party was centrist, and had many reformist an ...
in a strategic dialogue across party lines regarding Japan becoming a permanent member of the
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
. Although this idea was not popular within the LDP and never came to fruition, Koizumi and Hosokawa maintained a close working relationship across party lines, with Hosokawa tacitly serving as Koizumi's personal envoy to China during times of strained Sino-Japanese relations.
Koizumi competed for the presidency of the LDP in September 1995 and July 1998, but he gained little support losing decisively to
Ryutaro Hashimoto
was a Japanese politician who served as the Prime Minister of Japan from 1996 to 1998. He was the leader of one of the largest factions within the ruling LDP through most of the 1990s and remained a powerful back-room player in Japanese politi ...
and then
Keizō Obuchi
was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1998 to 2000.
Obuchi was elected to the House of Representatives in Gunma Prefecture in 1963, becoming the youngest legislator in Japanese history, and was re-elected to his ...
, both of whom had broader bases of support within the party. However, after Yamasaki and Kato were humiliated in a disastrous attempt to force a
vote of no confidence
A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
against Prime Minister
Yoshirō Mori
is a former Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan between April 2000 and April 2001. He was unpopular in opinion polls during his time in office, and is known for making controversial statements, both during and after his ...
in 2000, Koizumi became the last remaining credible member of the YKK trio, which gave him leverage over the reform-minded wing of the party.
On 24 April 2001, Koizumi was elected president of the LDP. He was initially considered an outside candidate against Hashimoto, who was running for his second term as Prime Minister. However, in the first poll of prefectural party organizations, Koizumi won 87 to 11 percent; in the second vote of Diet members, Koizumi won 51 to 40 percent. He defeated Hashimoto by a final tally of 298 to 155 votes.
[Anderson, Gregory E., ]
Archive
, ''Asian Perspective'' 28:149–182, March 2004. He was made Prime Minister of Japan on 26 April, and his coalition secured 78 of 121 seats in the Upper House elections in July.
Prime minister
Domestic policy
Within Japan, Koizumi pushed for new ways to revitalise the moribund economy, aiming to act against bad debts with commercial banks, privatize the postal savings system, and reorganize the factional structure of the LDP. He spoke of the need for a period of painful restructuring in order to improve the future. To design policy initiatives in 2001 he used the new Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy (Keizai Zaisei Seisaku Tanto Daijin) or CEFP. It issued an annual planning document,
"Basic Policies for Economic and Fiscal Management and Reform". It planned a major reorganization of the central government, and shaped economic policy in cooperation with key cabinet members. To meet the challenge of economic stagnation CEFP took an integrated approach, a worldwide economic view, and, promoted greater transparency; its philosophy was neoliberal.
In the fall of 2002, Koizumi appointed Keio University economist and frequent television commentator
Heizō Takenaka
is a Japanese economist, retired politician, and political activist last serving as Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications and Minister of State for Privatization of the Postal Services in the cabinet of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizum ...
as Minister of State for Financial Services and head of the
Financial Services Agency (FSA) to fix the country's banking crisis. Bad debts of banks were dramatically cut with the NPL ratio of major banks approaching half the level of 2001. The Japanese economy has been through a slow but steady recovery, and the stock market has dramatically rebounded. The
GDP
Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is ofte ...
growth for 2004 was one of the highest among
G7 nations, according to the
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...
and
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Takenaka was appointed as a Postal Reform Minister in 2004 for the privatization of
Japan Post
was a Japanese statutory corporation that existed from 2003 to 2007, offering postal and package delivery services, banking services, and life insurance. It's the nation's largest employer, with over 400,000 employees, and runs 24,700 po ...
, operator of the country's Postal Savings system.
Koizumi moved the LDP away from its traditional rural agrarian base toward a more urban,
neoliberal core, as Japan's population grew in major cities and declined in less populated areas, although under current purely geographical districting, rural votes in Japan are still many times more powerful than urban ones. In addition to the privatization of Japan Post (which many rural residents fear will reduce their access to basic services such as banking), Koizumi also slowed down the LDP's heavy subsidies for infrastructure and industrial development in rural areas. These tensions made Koizumi a controversial but popular figure within his own party and among the Japanese electorate.
Foreign policy
![Junichiro Koizumi Mahathir Mohamad at the new PM Office in 2002 (1)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/Junichiro_Koizumi_Mahathir_Mohamad_at_the_new_PM_Office_in_2002_%281%29.jpg)
Although Koizumi's foreign policy was focused on closer relations with the United States and UN-centered diplomacy, which were adopted by all of his predecessors, he went further, supporting the US policies in the
War on Terrorism
The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant ...
. He decided to deploy the
Japan Self-Defense Forces to
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
, which was the first military mission in active foreign war zones since the end of the
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. Many Japanese commentators indicated that the favorable US-Japan relation was based on the Koizumi's personal friendship with the US President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
. White House officials described the first meeting between Koizumi and Bush at Camp David as "incredibly warm", with the two men playing catch with a baseball. Since leaving office, he has defended his decision to send Japanese troops to Iraq. In the
North Korean abductions North Korean abductions may refer to:
*North Korean abductions of South Koreans
* North Korean abductions of Japanese citizens
* Doina Bumbea, a Romanian abductee in North Korea
* Anocha Panjoy, a Thailandese abductee in North Korea
See also
*List ...
and nuclear development issues, Koizumi took more assertive attitudes than his predecessors.
Self-Defense Forces policy
Although Koizumi did not initially campaign on the issue of defense reform,
he approved the expansion of the
Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) and in October 2001 they were given greater scope to operate outside of the country. Some of these troops were
dispatched to Iraq. Koizumi's government also introduced a bill to upgrade the
Defense Agency
The is an executive department of the Government of Japan responsible for preserving the peace and independence of Japan, and maintaining the country’s national security and the Japan Self-Defense Forces.
The ministry is headed by the ...
to ministry status; finally, the Defense Agency became the Japanese
Ministry of Defense
{{unsourced, date=February 2021
A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...
on 9 January 2007.
[Diet closes for summer, puts lid on Koizumi legacy]
," ''Japan Times'' (registration required), 17 June 2006.
Visits to Yasukuni Shrine
Koizumi has often been noted for his controversial visits to the
Yasukuni Shrine
is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It was founded by Emperor Meiji in June 1869 and commemorates those who died in service of Japan, from the Boshin War of 1868–1869, to the two Sino-Japanese Wars, 1894–1895 and 1937–1945 resp ...
, starting on 13 August 2001. He visited the shrine six times as prime minister. Because the shrine honors Japan's war dead, which also include many convicted
Japanese war criminals
The Empire of Japan committed war crimes in many Asian-Pacific countries during the period of Japanese imperialism, primarily during the Second Sino-Japanese and Pacific Wars. These incidents have been described as an "Asian Holocaust". Some w ...
and 14 executed Class A
war criminals, these visits drew strong condemnation and protests from both Japan's neighbours, mainly
China and
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
, and many Japanese citizens. China and South Korea's people hold bitter memories of Japanese invasion and occupation during the first half of the 20th century. China and South Korea refused to have their representatives meet Koizumi in Japan and their countries. There were no mutual visits between Chinese and Japanese leaders from October 2001, and between South Korean and Japanese leaders from June 2005. The standstill ended when the next prime minister Abe visited China and South Korea in October 2006.
In China, the visits led to massive anti-Japanese riots. The president, ruling and opposition parties, and much of the media of South Korea openly condemned Koizumi's pilgrimages. Many Koreans applauded the president's speeches criticizing Japan, despite the
South Korean President's low popularity. When asked about the reaction, Koizumi said the speeches were "for the domestic (audience)".
![Vladimir Putin 20 July 2001-6](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Vladimir_Putin_20_July_2001-6.jpg)
Although Koizumi signed the shrine's visitor book as "Junichiro Koizumi, the Prime Minister of Japan", he claimed that his visits were as a private citizen and not an endorsement of any political stance. China and Korea considered this excuse insufficient. Several journals and news reports in Japan, such as one published by Kyodo News Agency on 15 August 2006, questioned Koizumi's statement of private purpose, as he recorded his position on the shrine's guestbook as prime minister. He visited the shrine annually in fulfillment of a campaign pledge. Koizumi's last visit as prime minister was on 15 August 2006, fulfilling a campaign pledge to visit on the anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War II.
Eleven months after his resignation as prime minister, Koizumi revisited the shrine on 15 August 2007, to mark the 62nd anniversary of Japan's surrender in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. His 2007 visit attracted less attention from the media than his prior visits while he was in office.
Statements on World War II
On 15 August 2005, the sixtieth anniversary of the end of World War II, Koizumi publicly stated that "I would like to express keen remorse and heartfelt apologies" and vowed Japan would never again take "the path to war".
Popularity
![Junichiro Koizumi](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/Junichiro_Koizumi.jpg)
Koizumi was at certain points in his tenure an extremely popular leader. Most people know him very well due to his trademark wavy grey hair. His outspoken nature and colourful past contributed to that; his nicknames included "Lionheart", due to his hair style and fierce spirit, and "Maverick".
During his tenure in office, the Japanese public referred to him as ''Jun-chan'' (the suffix "chan" in the Japanese language is used as a term of familiarity, typically between children, "Jun" is a contraction of Junichiro). In June 2001, he enjoyed an approval rating of 80 percent.
In January 2002, Koizumi fired his popular Foreign Minister
Makiko Tanaka
is a Japanese politician. She is the daughter of former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka and his official wife Hana.
Early life
Tanaka attended high school at Germantown Friends School in the United States and graduated from Waseda University. She s ...
, replacing her with
Yoriko Kawaguchi. A few days before the sacking of Tanaka, when she was filmed crying after a dispute with government officials, Koizumi generated controversy with his statement "tears are women's ultimate weapons". Following an economic slump and a series of LDP scandals that claimed the career of YKK member
Koichi Kato, by April Koizumi's popularity rating had fallen 30 percentage points since his nomination as prime minister.
Koizumi was re-elected in 2003 and his popularity surged as the economy recovered. His proposal to cut pension benefits as a move to fiscal reform turned out to be highly unpopular. Two visits to
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...
to solve the issue of abducted Japanese nationals only somewhat raised his popularity, as he could not secure several abductees' returns to Japan. In the
House of Councilors elections in 2004, the LDP performed only marginally better than the opposition
Democratic Party of Japan
The was a centristThe Democratic Party of Japan was widely described as centrist:
*
*
*
*
*
*
* to centre-left liberal or social-liberal political party in Japan from 1998 to 2016.
The party's origins lie in the previous Democratic ...
(DPJ), winning 32 more seats than the latter obtained.
In 2005, the House of Councilors rejected the contentious
postal privatization bills. Koizumi previously made it clear that he would dissolve the lower house if the bill failed to pass. The Democratic Party, while expressing support for the privatization, made a tactical vote against the bill. Fifty-one LDP members also either voted against the bills or abstained.
On 8 August 2005, Koizumi, as promised, dissolved the House of Representatives and called for
snap election
A snap election is an election that is called earlier than the one that has been scheduled.
Generally, a snap election in a parliamentary system (the dissolution of parliament) is called to capitalize on an unusual electoral opportunity or to ...
s. He expelled rebel LDP members for not supporting the bill. The LDP's chances for success were initially uncertain; the secretary general of
New Komeito
, formerly New Komeito and abbreviated NKP, is a conservative political party in Japan founded by lay members of the Buddhist Japanese new religious movement Soka Gakkai in 1964. Since 2012, it has served in government as the junior coalit ...
(a junior coalition partner with Koizumi's Liberal Democratic Party) said that his party would entertain forming a coalition government with the Democratic Party of Japan if the DPJ took a majority in the House of Representatives.
Koizumi's popularity rose almost twenty points after he dissolved the House and expelled rebel LDP members. Opinion polls ranked the government's approval ratings between 58 and 65 percent. The electorate saw the election in terms of a vote for or against reform of the postal service, which the Democratic Party and rebel LDP members were seen as being against.
The
September 2005 elections were the LDP's largest victory since 1986, giving the party a large majority in the House of Representatives and nullifying opposing voices in the House of Councilors. In the following Diet session, the last to be held under Koizumi's government, the LDP passed 82 of its 91 proposed bills, including postal privatization.
A number of Koizumi-supported candidates known as "
Koizumi Children
is a popular Japanese political term for the 83 LDP members of the House of Representatives first elected in the 2005 general election. The Koizumi Children are loosely organized into a political association called .
The term is a reference ...
" joined the Diet in this election and supported successive LDP governments until the
2009 elections
The following elections occurred in the year 2009.
* Electoral calendar 2009
* 2009 United Nations Security Council election
Caribbean
* 2009 Antiguan general election
* 2009 Aruban general election
* 2009 Caymanian constitutional referendu ...
, when most were defeated.
Retirement
Koizumi announced that he would step down from office in 2006, per LDP rules, and would not personally choose a successor as many LDP prime ministers have in the past. On 20 September 2006,
Shinzo Abe
Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍 晋三, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 20 ...
was elected to succeed Koizumi as president of the LDP. Abe succeeded Koizumi as prime minister on 26 September 2006.
Koizumi remained in the Diet through the administrations of Abe and
Yasuo Fukuda
is a former Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2007 to 2008. He was previously the longest-serving Chief Cabinet Secretary in Japanese history, serving in that role from 2000 to 2004 under Prime Ministers Yoshirō M ...
, but announced his retirement from politics on 25 September 2008, shortly following the election of
Taro Aso
Taro () (''Colocasia esculenta)'' is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and petioles. Taro corms are a food staple in Afric ...
as Prime Minister. He retained his Diet seat until the
next general election, when his son
Shinjiro was elected into the same seat representing the
Kanagawa 11th district
The is a constituency of the House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan (national legislature). It is located in Kanagawa Prefecture, and consists of the cities of Miura and Yokosuka. Former Prime Minister of Japan Junichiro Koizumi served as ...
in 2009.
[Koizumi to exit political stage]
, ''The Japan Times'', 26 September 2008. Koizumi supported
Yuriko Koike
is a Japanese politician who currently serves as the Governor of Tokyo since 2016. She graduated from the American University in Cairo in 1976 and was a member of the House of Representatives of Japan from 1993 until 2016, when she resigned to ...
in the
LDP leadership election held earlier in September 2008, but Koike placed a distant third.
Since leaving office as prime minister, Koizumi has not granted a single request for an interview or television appearance, although he has given speeches and had private interactions with journalists.
Anti-nuclear advocacy
Koizumi returned to the national spotlight in October 2013, after seven years of largely avoiding attention, when he gave a speech to business executives in Nagoya in which he stated: "We should aim to be nuclear-free... If the Liberal Democratic Party were to adopt a zero-nuclear policy, then we'd see a groundswell of support for getting rid of nuclear energy." He recalled Japan's reconstruction in the wake of World War II and called for the country to "unite toward a dream of achieving a society based on renewable energy."
Koizumi had been a proponent of nuclear power throughout his term as prime minister, and was one of the first pro-nuclear politicians to change his stance on the issue in the wake of the
Fukushima disaster of 2011. His dramatic remarks were widely covered in the Japanese media, with some tabloids speculating that he may break away from the LDP to form a new party with his son Shinjiro.
Economy Minister
Akira Amari
is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and a member of the lower house representing the Minami Kanto Bloc.
Personal life
Amari is a native of Atsugi, Kanagawa, where he attended Kanagawa Prefectural Atsugi High Schoo ...
characterized Koizumi's stance as pure but simplistic, while other LDP administration officials downplayed the potential impact of Koizumi's views. Former prime minister
Naoto Kan
is a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) from June 2010 to September 2011. Kan was the first Prime Minister since the resignation of Junichiro Koizumi in 2006 to serve for ...
, however, expressed hope that Koizumi's status as then-Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe
Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍 晋三, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 20 ...
's "boss" would help put pressure on the government to minimize or eliminate nuclear power in Japan.
Koizumi defended his change of stance, stating in November that "it is overly optimistic and much more irresponsible to think nuclear power plants can be maintained just with the completion of disposal facilities... We had failed to secure sites for final disposal even before an accident occurred," concluding that "it's better to spend money on developing natural energy resources--citizens are more likely to agree with that idea--than using such large amounts of expenses and energy to advance such a feckless project
s nuclear power" He explained that in August, he had visited a nuclear waste disposal facility in Finland, where he learned that nuclear waste would have to be sealed up for 100,000 years. A poll by the ''
Asahi Shimbun
is one of the four largest newspapers in Japan. Founded in 1879, it is also one of the oldest newspapers in Japan and Asia, and is considered a newspaper of record for Japan. Its circulation, which was 4.57 million for its morning edition a ...
'' in November 2013 found that 54% of the public supported Koizumi's anti-nuclear statements. Koizumi told one reporter that he felt lied to by the
Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan
A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a political union, union of partially Federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central #Federal governments, federal gover ...
, which characterized nuclear power as a safe alternative to fossil fuels, stating that "we certainly had no idea how difficult it is to control nuclear energy."
Koizumi reportedly approached Morihiro Hosokawa, who served as Prime Minister in an anti-LDP coalition cabinet in the 1990s, to run for Governor of Tokyo in the
February 2014 gubernatorial election on the platform of opposing the Abe government's pro-nuclear policy.
Hosokawa ran in the election with Koizumi's support, but lost to the LDP-supported candidate
Yōichi Masuzoe
is a Japanese politician who was elected to the position of governor of Tokyo in 2014 and resigned in June 2016 due to the misuse of public funds. He was previously a member of the Japanese House of Councillors and the Japanese Minister of Heal ...
. Koizumi and Hosokawa continued their collaboration in the wake of this defeat, organizing an anti-nuclear forum to be held in May 2014.
Koizumi traveled to the United States in 2016 in support of a lawsuit by
Operation Tomodachi
was a United States Armed Forces (especially U.S. Forces Japan) assistance operation to support Japan in disaster relief following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. The operation took place from 12 March to 4 May 2011; involved 24,000 U ...
participants who claimed illness from radiation exposure caused by the Fukushima disaster.
Personal life
Koizumi lives in
Yokosuka, Kanagawa
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region.
The city ...
.
Family
Koizumi married 21-year-old university student Kayoko Miyamoto in 1978. The couple had been formally introduced to each other as potential spouses, a common practice known as ''
omiai''. The wedding ceremony at the Tokyo Prince Hotel was attended by about 2,500 people, including
Takeo Fukuda
was a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan from 1976 to 1978.
Early life and education
Fukuda was born in Gunma, capital of the Gunma Prefecture on 14 January 1905. He hailed from a former samurai family and his father was mayor ...
(then Prime Minister), and featured a
wedding cake
A wedding cake is the traditional cake served at wedding receptions following dinner. In some parts of England, the wedding cake is served at a wedding breakfast; the 'wedding breakfast' does not mean the meal will be held in the morning, but ...
shaped like the
National Diet Building
The is the building where both houses of the National Diet of Japan meet. It is located at Nagatachō 1-chome 7–1, Chiyoda, Tokyo.
Sessions of the House of Representatives take place in the south wing and sessions of the House of Councillo ...
. The marriage ended in
divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
in 1982, as Kayoko was reportedly unhappy with her married life for several reasons.
[Japan's Destroyer]
" ''TIME'', 10 September 2001. After this divorce, Koizumi never married again, saying that divorce consumed ten times more energy than marriage.
Koizumi had custody of two of his three sons:
Kōtarō Koizumi and
Shinjirō Koizumi, who were reared by one of his sisters. Shinjiro is the representative for
Kanagawa's 11th district, a position his father has also filled, while Kotaro is an actor. The youngest son, Yoshinaga Miyamoto, now a graduate of Keio University, was born following the divorce
and did not meet Koizumi for many years. Yoshinaga is known to have attended one of Koizumi's rallies, but was turned away from trying to meet his father. He was also turned away from attending his paternal grandmother's funeral. Koizumi's ex-wife Kayoko Miyamoto also asked unsuccessfully several times to meet their two oldest sons. Yoshinaga met his father and brothers for the first time in 2010, at a meeting arranged by Shinjiro. Koizumi and his two elder sons also attended Yoshinaga's wedding in 2013.
Koizumi is known to have a cousin in Brazil, and was overwhelmed to the point of tears when he visited Brazil in 2004 and was met by a group of Japanese immigrants.
Interests
![Koizumi in Graceland 2006](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Koizumi_in_Graceland_2006.jpg)
Koizumi is a fan of
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
composer
Richard Wagner and has released a CD of his favorite pieces by contemporary Italian composer
Ennio Morricone. He is also a fan of the heavy metal band
X Japan
was a Japanese rock band from Chiba, formed in 1982 by drummer and pianist Yoshiki and lead vocalist Toshi. Starting as a predominantly power/speed metal band with heavy symphonic elements, they later gravitated towards a progressive soun ...
, with the LDP having even used their song "
Forever Love" in television commercials in 2001. It was also reported that he was influential in getting the museum honoring X Japan's deceased guitarist
Hide made.
Koizumi is also a noted fan of
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
, with whom he shares a birthday (8 January). In 2001, he released a collection of his favorite Presley songs on CD, with his comments about each song. His brother is Senior Advisor of the Tokyo Elvis Presley Fan Club. Koizumi and his brother helped finance a statue of Presley in Tokyo's
Harajuku
is a district in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Harajuku is the common name given to a geographic area spreading from Harajuku Station to Omotesando, corresponding on official maps of Shibuya ward as Jingūmae 1 chōme to 4 chōme. In popular refere ...
district. On 30 June 2006, Koizumi visited Presley's estate,
Graceland
Graceland is a mansion on a estate in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, which was once owned by rock and roll icon Elvis Presley. His daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, inherited Graceland after his death in 1977. Graceland is located at 3764 Elv ...
, accompanied by U.S. President George W. Bush, and First Lady
Laura Bush. After arriving in
Memphis
Memphis most commonly refers to:
* Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt
* Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city
Memphis may also refer to:
Places United States
* Memphis, Alabama
* Memphis, Florida
* Memphis, Indiana
* Memp ...
aboard
Air Force One, they headed to Graceland. While there, Koizumi briefly sang a few bars of his favourite Presley tunes, whilst warmly impersonating Presley, and wearing Presley's trademark oversized golden sunglasses.
Koizumi is also a fan of
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
composer
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often ...
. On 8 September 2006, he and Finnish Prime Minister
Matti Vanhanen
Matti Taneli Vanhanen (; born 4 November 1955) is a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland from 2003 to 2010. He was also Chairman of the Centre Party and President of the European Council in 2006. In his earlier career, he ...
visited the
Sibelius' home, where Koizumi showed respect to the late composer with a moment of silence. He owns reproductions of the manuscripts of all seven symphonies by Sibelius.
In 2009, Koizumi made a
voice acting
Voice acting is the art of performing voice-overs to present a character or provide information to an audience. Performers are called voice actors/actresses, voice artists, dubbing artists, voice talent, voice-over artists, or voice-over talent ...
appearance in an
Ultra Series
''Ultraman'', also known as the , is the collective name for all media produced by Tsuburaya Productions featuring Ultraman, his many brethren, and the myriad monsters. Debuting with '' Ultra Q'' and then ''Ultraman'' in 1966, the series is o ...
feature film, ''
Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy Legend The Movie'', playing the voice of
Ultraman King. Koizumi said he took on the role at the urging of his son Shinjiro. His political career is parodied in a
seinen manga, ''
Mudazumo Naki Kaikaku'', which re-interprets his life as a
mahjong master.
He has been compared many times to American actor
Richard Gere
Richard Tiffany Gere ( ; born August 31, 1949) is an American actor. He began in films in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in '' Looking for Mr. Goodbar'' (1977) and a starring role in ''Days of Heaven'' (1978). He came to prominence with ...
, because of their similar hair style. In 2005, he used the latter as a boost for his falling popularity, by staging an "impromptu ballroom dance performance".
Koizumi cabinets
Notes:
#
Makiko Tanaka
is a Japanese politician. She is the daughter of former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka and his official wife Hana.
Early life
Tanaka attended high school at Germantown Friends School in the United States and graduated from Waseda University. She s ...
was fired on 29 January 2002. Koizumi served as interim foreign minister until 1 February, when he appointed then-environment minister
Yoriko Kawaguchi to the post. Koizumi appointed Hiroshi Oki to replace Kawaguchi.
# Oshima resigned on 31 March 2003, due to a farm-subsidy scandal. He was replaced by Kamei, who was kept in the next reshuffle.
# Takenaka has also held the portfolio of Minister of State for Postal Privatization since the first Koizumi cabinet. He is the only person to serve on Koizumi's cabinet through all five reshuffles.
# Fukuda resigned on 7 May 2004, and was replaced by Hosoda.
See also
*
List of prime ministers of Japan
*
First Koizumi Cabinet
*
Second Koizumi Cabinet
*
Third Koizumi Cabinet
References
Further reading
* Envall, Hans David Persson. "Exceptions that make the rule? Koizumi Jun'ichirō and political leadership in Japan." ''Japanese Studies'' 28.2 (2008): 227-24
online
* Hoover, William D. ''Historical dictionary of postwar Japan'' (2011).
* Kaihara, Hiroshi. "Japan’s political economy and Koizumi’s structural reform: A rise and fall of neoclassical economic reform in Japan." East Asia 25.4 (2008): 389-405.
* Köllner, Patrick. "The liberal democratic party at 50: sources of dominance and changes in the Koizumi era." ''Social Science Japan Journal'' (2006) 9#2 pp 243–25
online
* Lee, Jeong Yeon. "Getting Japan Back on the Sustainable Growth Path: Lessons from the Koizumi Era." ''Asian Perspective'' (2015): 513-540
online* Mishima, Ko. "Grading Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi’s revolution: how far has the LDP’s Policymaking changed?." ''Critical Readings on the Liberal Democratic Party in Japan'' (Brill, 2018) pp. 1557-1578.
* Mulgan, Aurelia George. ''Japan's Failed Revolution: Koizumi and the Politics of Economic Reform'' (2013
excerpt* Otake, Hideo, Kosuke Mizuno, and Pasuk Phongpaichit, "Neoliberal populism in Japanese politics: A study of Prime Minister Koizumi in comparison with President Reagan." ''Populism in Asia'' (2009): 202-216.
* Pohlkamp, Elli-Katharina. "Public Opinion and Japanese Foreign Policy Decision-Making Processes During the Koizumi Administration" (PhD Diss. Universitätsbibliothek Tübingen, 2014
online in English
* Stockwin, J. A. A. "From Koizumi to Abe: Same Bed, Different Dreams?." ''Japanese Studies'' 27.3 (2007): 223-230.
* Uchiyama, Yu. ''Koizumi and Japanese politics: Reform strategies and leadership style'' (Routledge, 2010).
*
Reform in the Rising Sun: Koizumi’s Bid to Revise Japan’s Pacifist ConstitutionArchive. ''
North Carolina Journal of International Law and Commercial Regulation'' Vol. 32, p. 335-390.
External links
Speeches and Statements by Junichiro KoizumiYasukuni Shrine official website*
*
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, -
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koizumi, Junichiro
1942 births
Living people
Junichiro
People from Yokosuka, Kanagawa
Politicians from Kanagawa Prefecture
Prime Ministers of Japan
Presidents of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
Foreign ministers of Japan
Heisei period
Japanese Buddhists
Japanese expatriates in the United Kingdom
Japanese Shintoists
Members of Nippon Kaigi
Members of the House of Representatives (Japan)
Ministers of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan
Ministers of Health and Welfare of Japan
Right-wing populism in Japan
Keio University alumni
Alumni of University College London
21st-century Japanese politicians
21st-century prime ministers of Japan