{"id":13663,"date":"2015-12-09T13:54:26","date_gmt":"2015-12-09T23:54:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.debito.org\/?p=13663"},"modified":"2015-12-10T13:25:45","modified_gmt":"2015-12-10T23:25:45","slug":"jt-anti-war-student-organization-sealds-to-disband-after-upper-house-poll","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/?p=13663","title":{"rendered":"JT: Anti-war student organization SEALDs to disband after Upper House poll in 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"

Books, eBooks, and more from Dr. ARUDOU, Debito (click on icon):
\n\"Guidebookcover.jpg\"<\/a>\"japaneseonlyebookcovertext\"<\/a>\"Handbook<\/a>\"\"<\/a>\"\u300c\u30b8\u30e3\u30d1\u30cb\u30fc\u30ba\u30fb\u30aa\u30f3\u30ea\u30fc\u3000\u5c0f\u6a3d\u5165\u6d74\u62d2\u5426\u554f\u984c\u3068\u4eba\u7a2e\u5dee\u5225\u300d\uff08\u660e\u77f3\u66f8\u5e97\uff09\"<\/a>\"sourstrawberriesavatar\"<\/a>\"debitopodcastthumb\"<\/a>\"FodorsJapan2014cover\"<\/a>
\nUPDATES ON TWITTER: arudoudebito
\nDEBITO.ORG PODCASTS on iTunes, subscribe free
\n“LIKE” US on Facebook at http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/debitoorg<\/a>
\nhttps:\/\/www.facebook.com\/embeddedrcsmJapan<\/a>
\nhttp:\/\/www.facebook.com\/handbookimmigrants<\/a>
\nhttps:\/\/www.facebook.com\/JapaneseOnlyTheBook<\/a>
\nhttps:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BookInAppropriate<\/a>
\nIf you like what you read and discuss on Debito.org, please consider helping us stop hackers and defray maintenance costs with a little donation via my webhoster:
\n\"Donate<\/a>
\nAll donations go towards website costs only. Thanks for your support!<\/i><\/p>\n

Hi Blog. Now here’s something I find profoundly disappointing. One bright outcome of Japan’s Right-Wing Swing<\/a> was the reenergizing of the Grassroots Left, with regular public demonstrations promoting anti-racism and tolerance<\/a>. However, one group that attracted a lot of attention for opposing PM Abe’s policies, the Students Emergency Action for Liberal Democracy (SEALDs), made an announcement (at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan, no less) last October that their leadership wasn’t just stepping down due to graduation from university — they were disbanding the entire group within a year.<\/p>\n

That makes the leadership comes off as human-rights hobbyists. There is no need to make what should be a handing over of the reins to the next generation into a public spectacle of disbandment. Alas, they’re quitting, and taking the brand name\u00a0with them. Abe must be grinning in great satisfaction. From eroding Japan’s democratic institutions<\/a> to making investigation of government chicanery illegal<\/a> to marching Japan back to its martial past<\/a> (while decimating Japan’s Left in formal Japanese politics<\/a>), Abe is\u00a0truly winning this fight. He’s even got these brave kids running scared. \u00a0Dr. ARUDOU, Debito<\/p>\n

\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/<\/p>\n

Anti-war student organization to close shop after Upper House poll<\/strong>
\n BY TOMOHIRO OSAKI, THE JAPAN TIMES, OCT 28, 2015<\/strong>
\nhttp:\/\/www.japantimes.co.jp\/news\/2015\/10\/28\/national\/politics-diplomacy\/anti-war-student-organization-close-shop-upper-house-poll\/<\/a><\/p>\n

A pro-democracy student group behind this summer\u2019s massive youth protest against Prime Minister Shinzo Abe\u2019s security legislation plans to dissolve after next year\u2019s Upper House election, members said Wednesday.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Students Emergency Action for Liberal Democracy (SEALDs) gained widespread attention over the summer for a series of anti-war rallies held near the Diet building to protest the administration\u2019s push to allow the nation\u2019s military to fight abroad for the first time since the end of World War II.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Known for its unconventional demonstrations, which included rap-influenced music and stylish placards, the group was hailed for leading a resurgence in youth activism that sparked hopes in society that the nation\u2019s politically apathetic youngsters may be changing.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cSince we started our activities as an \u2018emergency action,\u2019 and many of our members are slated to graduate from universities soon, SEALDs will dissolve after next summer\u2019s Upper House election,\u201d group member Mana Shibata, 22, revealed during a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents\u2019 Club of Japan in Tokyo.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAfter that, if individual persons want to take action or create another movement, they are free to do so.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Before their movement became SEALDs, many members protested the state secrecy law \u2014 contentious legislation championed by Abe that many said would impinge on people\u2019s right to know or discover crucial government information. That group called itself SASPL, or Students Against Secret Protection Law.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

After the security bills were rammed through the Diet last month, SEALDs will now focus its activities on gearing up for next summer\u2019s Upper House election, members said. Its newest mission: to call on opposition parties to form a united front against the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Noting that the passage of the bills signals Japan\u2019s democracy is \u201con the verge of collapse,\u201d member Takeshi Suwahara, 22, said: \u201cWhat is happening is a crisis. I know opposition parties have their own conflicting interests. But they must listen to voices of the public and cooperate with each other.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Dismayed at an ever-decreasing voter turnout among the young, SEALDs will also ramp up efforts to encourage younger people to vote in elections.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The nation\u2019s 18- and 19-year-olds will now for the first time be allowed to cast ballots in accordance with a legal revision in June.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Aside from making continued efforts to organize related rallies and symposiums, members will try to establish voting booths in places such as train stations, shopping malls and universities, they said.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cDemographically speaking, young people in Japan are underrepresented and as a result it\u2019s difficult for their voices to be reflected in politics and fulfill their needs for education and social welfare. I believe this election is a chance to change such a trend,\u201d Suwahara said.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

ENDS<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Now here’s something I find profoundly disappointing. One bright outcome of Japan’s Right-Wing Swing was the reenergizing of the Grassroots Left, with regular public demonstrations promoting anti-racism and tolerance. However, one group that attracted a lot of attention for opposing PM Abe’s policies, the Students Emergency Action for Liberal Democracy (SEALDs), made an announcement (at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan, no less) last October that their leadership wasn’t just stepping down due to graduation from university — they were disbanding the entire group within a year.<\/p>\n

That makes the leadership comes off as human-rights hobbyists. There is no need to make what should be a handing over of the reins to the next generation into a public spectacle of disbandment. Alas, they’re quitting, and taking the brand name with them. Abe must be grinning in great satisfaction. From eroding Japan’s democratic institutions to making investigation of government chicanery illegal to marching Japan back to its martial past (while decimating Japan’s Left in formal Japanese politics), Abe is truly winning this fight. He’s even got these brave kids running scared. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54,28,22,5,26,53],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pinprick-protests","category-anti-discrimination-templates","category-cultural-issue","category-human-rights","category-ironies-hypocrisies","category-unsustainable-japanese-society"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13663","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13663"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13663\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.debito.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}