No compromise on island: Shinzo Abe
18 Dec 2012 6:59 AM IST
Incoming Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe came out fighting on Monday after his sweeping election victory, saying there can be no compromise on the sovereignty of islands at the centre of a dispute with China.
China reacted with alarm to Abe’s victory, after his conservative Liberal Democratic Party crushed opponents in national polls and he immediately restated Tokyo’s claims. ‘The Senkaku islands are Japan’s inherent territory,’ Abe told a press conference, referring to an archipelago Beijing calls the Diaoyus. ‘Japan owns and controls the islands... under international law. There is no room for negotiation on this point.’
Beijing declared itself ready to work with Japan on ‘further development of stable relations’ but expressed alarm at where Abe was taking Japan.
‘We are highly concerned about which direction Japan will take,’ foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a regular briefing. ‘The current task is now to properly handle the current issue’ of the territorial dispute, she added.
At home, Abe’s large electoral margin boosted hopes for the country’s problem-plagued economy, with investors pushing stocks up as the painfully high yen eased. The one-time premier has vowed to put the moribund economy back on track after years of deflation, made worse by a soaring currency that has squeezed exporters.
FEWER WOMEN ELECTED TO NEW HOUSE
The number of women elected to the House of Representatives in on Sunday’s general election fell to 38, accounting for just 7.9 per cent of the lower house’s 480 members, after hitting highs in the previous two races of 43 in 2005 and 54 in 2009. The decline was noticeable in the Democratic Party of Japan led by outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, which saw only three female candidates win seats, down from 40 in the 2009 lower house election, as the party suffered loss. The Liberal Democratic Party, had 23 female candidates win parliamentary seats.
China reacted with alarm to Abe’s victory, after his conservative Liberal Democratic Party crushed opponents in national polls and he immediately restated Tokyo’s claims. ‘The Senkaku islands are Japan’s inherent territory,’ Abe told a press conference, referring to an archipelago Beijing calls the Diaoyus. ‘Japan owns and controls the islands... under international law. There is no room for negotiation on this point.’
Beijing declared itself ready to work with Japan on ‘further development of stable relations’ but expressed alarm at where Abe was taking Japan.
‘We are highly concerned about which direction Japan will take,’ foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a regular briefing. ‘The current task is now to properly handle the current issue’ of the territorial dispute, she added.
At home, Abe’s large electoral margin boosted hopes for the country’s problem-plagued economy, with investors pushing stocks up as the painfully high yen eased. The one-time premier has vowed to put the moribund economy back on track after years of deflation, made worse by a soaring currency that has squeezed exporters.
FEWER WOMEN ELECTED TO NEW HOUSE
The number of women elected to the House of Representatives in on Sunday’s general election fell to 38, accounting for just 7.9 per cent of the lower house’s 480 members, after hitting highs in the previous two races of 43 in 2005 and 54 in 2009. The decline was noticeable in the Democratic Party of Japan led by outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, which saw only three female candidates win seats, down from 40 in the 2009 lower house election, as the party suffered loss. The Liberal Democratic Party, had 23 female candidates win parliamentary seats.
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