2016 Country Review
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Japan 2016 Country Review http://www.countrywatch.com Table of Contents Chapter 1 1 Country Overview 1 Country Overview 2 Key Data 4 Japan 5 Asia 6 Chapter 2 8 Political Overview 8 History 9 Political Conditions 11 Political Risk Index 66 Political Stability 81 Freedom Rankings 96 Human Rights 108 Government Functions 110 Government Structure 112 Principal Government Officials 117 Leader Biography 120 Leader Biography 120 Foreign Relations 122 National Security 152 Defense Forces 154 Chapter 3 157 Economic Overview 157 Economic Overview 158 Nominal GDP and Components 162 Population and GDP Per Capita 164 Real GDP and Inflation 165 Government Spending and Taxation 166 Money Supply, Interest Rates and Unemployment 168 Foreign Trade and the Exchange Rate 169 Data in US Dollars 170 Energy Consumption and Production Standard Units 171 Energy Consumption and Production QUADS 173 World Energy Price Summary 174 CO2 Emissions 175 Agriculture Consumption and Production 176 World Agriculture Pricing Summary 179 Metals Consumption and Production 180 World Metals Pricing Summary 183 Economic Performance Index 184 Chapter 4 196 Investment Overview 196 Foreign Investment Climate 197 Foreign Investment Index 202 Corruption Perceptions Index 215 Competitiveness Ranking 226 Taxation 235 Stock Market 236 Partner Links 237 Chapter 5 238 Social Overview 238 People 239 Human Development Index 242 Life Satisfaction Index 245 Happy Planet Index 257 Status of Women 266 Global Gender Gap Index 268 Culture and Arts 278 Etiquette 278 Travel Information 281 Diseases/Health Data 291 Chapter 6 297 Environmental Overview 297 Environmental Issues 298 Environmental Policy 299 Greenhouse Gas Ranking 300 Global Environmental Snapshot 311 Global Environmental Concepts 323 International Environmental Agreements and Associations 337 Appendices 361 Bibliography 362 Japan Chapter 1 Country Overview Japan Review 2016 Page 1 of 374 pages Japan Country Overview JAPAN Japan's first contact with the Western world came in 1542 when a Portuguese ship landed on its shore. During the 17th century, Japan saw traders and missionaries from Portugal, the Netherlands, England and Spain. Suspecting those traders and missionaries were forerunners of a military conquest by European powers, Japan's shogunate (military dictatorship) put more and more restrictions on the foreigners. This resulted in an isolation policy that lasted for 200 years, until Commodore Matthew Perry of the United States Navy negotiated the opening of Japan to the West with the Convention of Kanagawa in 1854. Within several years, renewed contact with the West profoundly altered Japanese society. The shogunate resigned, and the emperor was restored to power. The "Meiji restoration" of 1868 initiated many reforms. The feudal system was abolished, and numerous Western institutions were adopted, including a Western legal and educational system and constitutional government along parliamentary lines. However, parliamentary government was not rooted deeply enough to withstand the economic and political pressures of the 1930s, during which military leaders became increasingly influential. As a result, Japan withdrew from the League of Nations in 1933 and allied itself with Germany during World War II. Japan started a full scale of invasion of China in 1937 after its invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Dec. 7, 1941. In August 1945, the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan's Hiroshima and Nagasaki. On Sept. 2, 1945, the country surrendered to the United States aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Harbor. After the war, Japan was placed under international control of the Allies to ensure that it would become a peaceful nation and establish a democratic government. Political, economic, and social reforms were introduced, and the country's constitution took effect on May 3, 1947. The United States and 45 other Allied nations signed the Treaty of Peace with Japan in September 1951. The post-World War II years saw tremendous economic growth in Japan driven by a high rate of investment and efficient industrial techniques. Today, Japan is the second-largest economy in the world. Although the economy experienced a major slowdown starting in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth, Japan still remains a major economic power, both in Asia and globally. Japan Review 2016 Page 2 of 374 pages Japan Japan Review 2016 Page 3 of 374 pages Japan Key Data Key Data Region: Asia Population: 126919656 Climate: Varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north. Languages: Japanese Currency: yen (Y) Holiday: Birthday of the Emperor, 23 December (1933), Constitution Day is 3 May Area Total: 377835 Area Land: 374744 Coast Line: 29751 Japan Review 2016 Page 4 of 374 pages Japan Japan Country Map Japan Review 2016 Page 5 of 374 pages Japan Asia Regional Map Japan Review 2016 Page 6 of 374 pages Japan Japan Review 2016 Page 7 of 374 pages Japan Chapter 2 Political Overview Japan Review 2016 Page 8 of 374 pages Japan History According to the traditional Japanese legend, Emperor Jimmu, the ancestor of the present ruling imperial family, founded Japan in 600 B.C.E. About 405 C.E., the Japanese court officially adopted the Chinese writing system, and Buddhism was introduced in Japan during the sixth century C.E. From then on, Japan was under a long period of Chinese cultural influence. From 710 to 1867, various emperors of the Yamato dynasty were only figurehead leaders of the country. Japan was actually ruled by powerful court nobles, regents or military governors called "shoguns." Japan's first contact with the Western world came in 1542 when a Portuguese ship landed on its shore enroute to China. During the 17th century, Japan saw traders and missionaries from Portugal, the Netherlands, England and Spain. Suspecting those traders and missionaries were forerunners of a military conquest by European powers, Japan's shogunate put more and more restrictions on the foreigners. This resulted in an isolation policy of Japan, with all foreigners forced to leave the country and all relations with the outside world barred. The only exceptions were commercial contacts with Dutch and Chinese merchants at Nagasaki, but they were still under severe restrictions. Finally, in 1854, the isolation ended with Commodore Matthew Perry of the U.S. Navy, who forced the opening of Japan to the West with the Convention of Kanagawa. Along with the renewed contact with the Western world, the Meiji Restoration of 1868 brought about great changes to Japan. The shogunate was forced to resign, and the emperor came to power again. Men who had sided with the emperor dominated the Meiji government. They believed Japan needed a unified government as well as constitutionalism to achieve military and material equality with the West. Thus, the feudal system was abolished and various European-style institutions were adopted. One of the primary goals of the Meiji leaders was to achieve equality with the West. Treaty reform Japan Review 2016 Page 9 of 374 pages Japan to end the foreigners' judicial and economic privileges provided by extra territoriality and fixed customs duties were sought as early as 1871. In 1898, the last of the "unequal treaties" with the Western countries was removed, which paved the way for Japan to become a world power in later years. In the late 19th century and early 20th centuries, Japan was at war with China -- 1894-1895, and with Russia in 1904-1905 over the Korean Peninsula, which the Japanese considered a dagger pointed at the heart of Japan. Winning both wars, Japan formally annexed Korea in 1910. As a victor in World War I, Japan's influence in Asia was strengthened and its territory in the Pacific was expanded. At the Versailles Peace Conference in 1919, Japan was recognized as one of the Big Five countries of the new international order. In the 1920s, Japan was on its way to establish a democratic system of government. But in the 1930s, when the parliamentary government was not in its full growth, the military leaders in Japan became more influential amid a world economic crisis. As a result, Japan withdrew from the League of Nations in 1933 and allied itself with Germany during World War II. Japan started a full scale of invasion of China in 1937 after its invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Dec. 7, 1941. In August 1945, the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan's Hiroshima and Nagasaki cities. On Sept. 2, 1945, the country surrendered to the United States aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Harbor. Japan was put under international control of the Allies after the war, and it lost all of its overseas possessions. From 1945 to 1952, Japan was under Allied military occupation headed by the Supreme Commander General Douglas MacArthur. The essence of the policies (such as those embodied in the Potsdam Declaration) during the occupation period was demilitarization and democratization of Japan. Under the leadership of the cooperative Japanese and MacArthur's government, Japan began political, economic and social reforms, which brought about the country's rapid economic growth and social changes. A new constitution went into effect May 3, 1947. In September 1951, the United States and 45 other Allied nations signed the Treaty of Peace with Japan, and Japan regained full sovereignty April 28, 1952. Note on History: In certain entries, open source content from the State Department Background Notes and Country Guides have been used. A full listing of sources is available in the Bibliography. Japan Review 2016 Page 10 of 374 pages Japan Political Conditions Political Chronology The 1990s In the postwar years, Japan's political system had been dominated by the Liberal Democratic Party, or LDP. Domination of the Liberal Democratic Party, or LDP, in Japan's politics since the mid-1950s came to an end in 1993, when the party failed to win a majority in the Diet's House of Representatives elections.