The election for the House of Councilors in Japan, held on the 20th, clearly confirmed a trend of right-wing extremism in Japanese society. Taking advantage of the power vacuum left by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party losing its majority, far-right and populist parties that put 'Japan first' made significant gains.
On the 21st, Kyodo News identified the far-right newcomer party Sanseitō (National Rebirth Party) as one of the unusual outcomes of this election.
Sanseitō is a party founded in 2020 through YouTube. Previously, it held only 2 seats, but it secured more than 14 seats in this election, indicating that it has risen to the status of a negotiating group able to submit bills independently.
Sanseitō explicitly states 'a nation where the emperor rules over a partnership of the military and the citizenry' and advocates for the revival of the 'Education Imperatives,' which symbolize militaristic education. It has put forth an overtly regressive constitutional draft with the intention of 'returning to the old Japan based on the emperor system before the defeat in the Pacific War.'
In this election, Sanseitō also put forward policies that incite xenophobia while championing the slogan 'Japan first.'
The party leader, Kamiya Sohei, remarked, 'Globalization is the root of Japan's poverty,' shifting the blame for social problems onto foreigners. Key pledges included restrictions on foreign real estate purchases, regulations on the influx of unskilled laborers, and the cessation of welfare support for foreigners.
In the recent House of Councilors election, several far-right figures notorious for their 'anti-Korean' remarks also successfully entered the legislature.
The Japan Conservative Party, led by far-right writer Hyakuta Naoki, secured 2 proportional representation seats, marking its first acquisition of seats in the House of Councilors.
Representative Hyakuta has made infamous remarks in the past, such as asserting, 'In wartime, we could crush and kill Koreans residing in Japan,' and has claimed that the Nanjing Massacre was fabricated.
As the situation became increasingly concerning, established parties also began to mention regulations related to foreigners.
The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan argued, 'There is a need to curb foreign real estate purchases.' It also presented pledges for researching the actual status of foreign social security enrollment and operational adequacy, as well as regulations on foreign land acquisition.
Experts noted that the rise of right-wing populism in Japan has emerged due to dissatisfaction with economic difficulties and fatigue with established politics. There is an analysis that younger voters, exhausted by high prices and declining real wages, chose far-right parties as an alternative.
They added that the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's support rate plummeted due to scandals related to slush funds and its passage of the sexual minority (LGBT) recognition law, which caused a loss of support from conservative voters.
The rise of far-right parties raises concerns across Japanese society. Civic groups criticized that 'each party is engaging in a competition to incite exclusionary nationalism.'
The Japan PEN Club warned, 'We must not forget the history where unfounded rumors and incitement of discrimination led to the massacre of Koreans during the Great Kanto Earthquake.'