Foreign Minister proposes voting rights for permanent residents

[nahadef]

I don't expect it to happen, but yeah, for the amount of taxes I pay year after year, I'd love to be able to vote.

茂木外相「２１世紀の日本を『多様性のある多民族社会」』に」「定住外国人に地方参政権を与える 」

e-デモクラシー ～若手政治家の気概を問う～ 「茂木としみつの回答」

sn-jp.com

 

[Lothor]

No, I don't expect it to happen either. Especially considering that the LDP were extremely vocal in protest when Hatoyama, the short-lived Democratic Party PM in 2009, tentatively suggested that foreigners with a PR should be allowed to vote in local elections. Nice to hear of a Japanese politician standing up for us lowly gaijin though.

 

[thomas]

I imagine that most foreign residents holding PR would never in their lives vote for the LDP, so this will never happen. However, I agree with @Lothor that it’s very encouraging to see that some politicians think out of the box.

 

[Lomaster]

I imagine that most foreign residents holding PR would never in their lives vote for the LDP

Interesting. What makes you think so, Thomas? LDP seems like the lesser of evils on the current political stage. At least they are bold enough to take unpopular yet farsighted decisions (think about unavoidable consumption tax raise or restarting nuclear plants despite the protests) Whenever i hear other parties agenda - they just sound overtly populistic to me.

 

[thomas]

@Lomaster, you are right, perhaps I was projecting my opinion onto others. However, when I look at the LDP, I see the following (off the top of my head):

• a party that's been in power for over six decades (apart from a short DP interlude) with fossilised structures and officials
• a blatant lack of vision (increasing the consumption tax is not exactly bold but a necessity and restarting the nukes is not only unpopular but madness)
• corruption and cronyism on the highest level (Moritomo Gakuen, Kake Gakuen, Kurokawa gambling scandal, casino bribery case, KEPCO scandal, Kawai vote-rigging, Abe sakura party, etc.)
• hawkish and nationalist agenda (attempted revision of Art. 9 of the Constitution, State Secret Law, etc.)
• countless derogatory statements of LDP officials against foreign residents, the LGBT community, childless couples, single-educating mothers, etc. (I don't have the time now to look up every case) and so on...

Sadly, I cannot see any significant change in policy and political style under the new PM, who is clearly lacking in the communication department (see the science council debate). However, there is hope in some of the younger members of the cabinet (Motegi, Kono).

Just my 2 yen worth.

 

[nahadef]

I like the consumption tax, I think it's important for infrastructure, but the conservative hawk attitude of those old boys is always going to be a turn off

 

[kaspersky]

I don't expect it to happen, but yeah, for the amount of taxes I pay year after year, I'd love to be able to vote.

Ah...americans and the good old slogan No taxation without representation always gives me the feeling that US citizens in Japan are acting like colonists and see Japan as a new colony. A lot of citizens coming from countries where foreign permanent residents are NOT allowed to vote often want to vote in Japan. Green card holders can't vote, right? Even if they earn a lot as actors for example.

How many times did I heard about Americans of Brits wanting to vote here and knowing perfectly well that Japanese who lived in the US or UK for decades are not allowed to vote there. With the exception of South Korea which country among those that have lot of their citizens in Japan are allowing foreign residents to vote:
- China: Nooooooo... (letting Chinese vote in Japan sounds like a joke)
- Philippines: No
- North Korea: No
- Thailand: No
- Indonesia: No
- Malaysia: No
- Taiwan: No
- Brazil: No (Only Portuguese citizens are allowed to vote)
- USA: Nooooooooooooooooo
- Australia: No
- UK: No
- France: No

If voting rights is based on reciprocity, most of you are S.O.L and I can hardly imagine Japanese letting Chinese citizens meddling in Japanese elections.

 

[thomas]

@kaspersky, I'm not sure what triggered your blast, but it was the Japanese FM who suggested voting rights for permanent residents, not nahadef (who isn't even American) or resident "colonists" with delusions of entitlement.

I support the right to vote in local elections and would be glad to see it implemented for permanent residents in my home country, too.

We had the same discussion before:

Koike party not granting foreigners right to vote

The right to vote in local elections, that is. Not that I’d ever seriously expected such right to be granted, but categorically denying it out of “national interest” (read below) wiped out the last sympathies I’d harboured for her...

jref.com

 

[nahadef]

Thomas has that covered, but yeah, that was a totally ridiculous thing to write.

 

[mdchachi]

if I’m not mistaken I’m the first American to comment on this thread.

 

[Lothor]

Ah...americans and the good old slogan No taxation without representation always gives me the feeling that US citizens in Japan are acting like colonists and see Japan as a new colony. A lot of citizens coming from countries where foreign permanent residents are NOT allowed to vote often want to vote in Japan. Green card holders can't vote, right? Even if they earn a lot as actors for example.

How many times did I heard about Americans of Brits wanting to vote here and knowing perfectly well that Japanese who lived in the US or UK for decades are not allowed to vote there. With the exception of South Korea which country among those that have lot of their citizens in Japan are allowing foreign residents to vote:
- China: Nooooooo... (letting Chinese vote in Japan sounds like a joke)
- Philippines: No
- North Korea: No
- Thailand: No
- Indonesia: No
- Malaysia: No
- Taiwan: No
- Brazil: No (Only Portuguese citizens are allowed to vote)
- USA: Nooooooooooooooooo
- Australia: No
- UK: No
- France: No

If voting rights is based on reciprocity, most of you are S.O.L and I can hardly imagine Japanese letting Chinese citizens meddling in Japanese elections.

Shinzo Abe also believed in no taxation without representation. Or said he does.

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