[War] Japan: "Setting the Agenda"

[Ian Martell]

"Setting the Agenda"
Prime Minister Shunichi Sato
Japan
Mar 7th 2013


Cabinet meetings Sato mused were something like diving into a tank of 
sharks. Hungry, portfolio holding sharks who had gotten fat off the niches 
they'd carved for themselves in the early years of the DPJ's rise to power 
ones they had yet to be dislodged from.

Sato opened the door to the cabinet room and took the plunge with a relaxed 
smile and an easy gait. The men and women around the table stood up and 
clapped. Sato smiled and held up his hands to quiet them. They continued a 
few second longer and Sato walked around the table shaking hands with a few 
of his key allies and his enemies too and nodded to the rest as he sat down.

"Well, firstly let me say, you're all keeping your jobs," Sato said good 
naturedly. "My old seat, Transport and Infrastructure will be handled by 
Daisuke Kimura."

There were murmurs from around the table at that news; Kimura was from the 
Upper House and one of those members of it that would be facing re-election 
this summer.

He filled in where there thoughts were going. "Yes that means I am serious 
about making up our losses that we suffered after the whole Kurils 
incident."

Jonouchi, the Foriegn Minister, frowned he had been a part of that ill fated 
summit.

"What do you plan to do about that treaty?" asked Imura the Finance 
Minister, one of Jonouchi's political rivals.

"Well I for one won't vote for it," Sato said with a smile. "I am going to 
leave it to a free vote of the Diet, no party discipline, everyone votes 
their conscience."

They nodded. That would insure the treaty would almost certainly receive no 
support. It would be suicide to vote for it in the current climate without 
the cover of party discipline.

"Fortunately however, President Nemerenko and I have come to an 
understanding in regards to the other treaties. Inukai," he looked to his 
defence minister. "You'll have your missiles, Jonouchi, you'll have your 
trade agreement."

Both men nodded satisfied of the results.

"What do you have in mind for the legislative agenda?" asked Imura.

"Firstly we pass bill for the Akita clean up funds, ratify our ends of the 
trade and military treaty with Russia, and sign our anti-piracy agreement 
with our partners in South-East Asia."

"What about Singapore?" asked Jonouchi. "They've been insistent about being 
included."

Sato nodded. "If your ministry could arrange a meeting between myself and 
their ambassador I will manage this myself."

"Yes Mr. Prime Minister," Jonouchi replied taking notes on his little hand 
held computer.

"After that, I'd like us to focus internally and by that, I mean, workforce, 
pensions and healthcare."

The three areas most threatened by the decline and aging of the population. 
Most of those ministers with internal portfolios looked at their pens or at 
some point on the wall behind the man acrross from them shifting 
uncomfortably.

Sato knew why, they were big issues, and ones that made changes that would 
not be popular and nobody, especially those in the Upper House, wanted to do 
that.

Sato did though, it was critical, not just for Japan but for this 
government's survival, that some meaningful effort be put into these 
problems.

"The LDP danced around this issue for much of the last decade, and we've 
been dancing around it since this one began. Sooner or later, we're going to 
have to face the fact that the systems we built were not ready for this," he 
paused and looked around the room meeting the eyes of those Ministers who 
would stop fidgeting and look up. He noted the ones who did, and the ones 
who didn't.
Sato was about to continue when Imura spoke up.

"But Mr. Prime Minister, do you think policy that essentially admits that is 
a good idea now of all times? Some of us have seats to hold on to."

"What do we have to be afraid of; we didn't build these systems the LDP did, 
while we make the changes we need to do. And make no mistake we need to make 
changes to how things are done in these three areas. We will remind the 
people over and over again, yes, these changes are hard, yes these changes 
are unpopular but at the same time ask them, who is it better to direct your 
anger at, us, the people who are making these changes or the LDP, who let 
things get this bad in the first place?"

The cabinet nodded, though a little hesitantly in some quarters. Sato was 
satisfied with that, Japanese politicians were cautious people, they had to 
be, or they ended up like Sakai.

Sato checked his watch. "I am sorry but this is all the time I have today," 
he said. "But we'll meet again when I return from Beijing; in the meantime 
I'd appreciate if the respective ministries would get serious proposals 
together about the three issues I mentioned. Thank you."

With that Sato got up and walked back to the door as the Cabinet watched him 
and he watched them. Some of those men weren't very happy, others seemed 
curious and others, more senior men were inscrutable. He suspected he was in 
for an interesting time when he got back.

He paused at the door. "Also, I am rescinding our pay cut," he says. "I 
expect this cabinet will not need publicity tricks to gain the people's 
confidence."

Actions:

1> Put the Kuril treaty up to a free vote in the diet. Each member may vote 
how he likes on the treaty (and can be responsible to his own constituents 
for it). Sato, makes it clear both in private and publicly that the treaty 
is bad for Japan.

2> Confirm the party's support for the economic and military treaties with 
Russia.

3> Confirm the new government's commitment to the anti-piracy plan, and make 
plans to sit down with Singapore about being cut in on it.

4> Restore cabinet salaries to previous levels.

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