These days, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been a source of inspiration for Japanese leaders, especially female ones, after Germany has passed the ordeal of "Corona" safely, and Germany has always been a source of inspiration for Japan since the country opened its borders to foreign powers in 1868. Its impact ranges from state governance to Medicine and philosophy. Since the end of World War II, Tokyo has felt a special relationship with Germany, which is the Germans seeking to recover from defeat. The Japanese continued to admire the Germans in their success as the strongest economy in Europe.
For the time being, Merkel may be the one that inspires Japanese leaders, especially females, as Merkel considers Japanese lawmakers a role model, in the path they may shape for themselves in the male-dominated world of politics.
According to the World Economic Forum, Japan ranks 121 in the Global Gender Gap Index, compared to 10th in Germany. When it comes to political representation, Japan's performance is worse, with it ranked 165th in terms of female representation in elected positions, and at the same time, Germany is ranked 47th.
This approach made the 67-year-old mayor of Yoriko Koike, the only woman to have the highest public office, seek to demarcate Merkel's platform of ascending the political ladder. This woman began her career as a journalist, having fluency in speaking and writing in English, and also in Arabic after her graduation from Cairo University, in the first years of her political life, and later attracted a great deal of Japanese interest in her appearance and capabilities. The ladder of fame has since escalated to become a formidable political force in Japan. It is widely seen as treating the pandemic much better than Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. In fact, some have compared her to the controversial New York governor, Andrew Como, while viewing Abe as closer to US President Donald Trump on the fight against Corona. She is being criticized for her looks more than her policy, which ranges from her makeup, through her choice of clothes, to the various face masks she wears in the era of "Corona". In 2007, Koike briefly worked as Japan's first defense minister, before her resignation in the midst of an internal conflict, and she spent three years later as the environment minister. Former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and heavyweight politician Ichiro Ozawa consider her political role models in Japan.
Change loyalties
Yuriko Koike has changed her party loyalties six times during her political life. As a result, it is seen as either absolute pragmatism or opportunistic.
Also among its advantages is the rise and aspiration of leadership without any family support, in a country of 30% of all its elected members are children of politicians, where politics in Japan is seen as a family business. This is especially true of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, where more than 40% of its members are descendants of parliamentarians. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe himself with "blue blood", his father was a foreign minister, and he found him a former prime minister.
Female members of parliament are often from prominent political families, such as Yoko Obuchi, the daughter of former Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, briefly served as economy minister in 2014, before she was forced to resign as a result of a bribery scandal. For aspiring politicians in Japan, Merkel's approach to climbing the political ladder by not focusing on gender issues is beneficial to them, at least because it is the most practical way to reach the top.
Hope Party
Despite her closeness to senior political figures, Yoriko Koike has enjoyed lukewarm support in the ranks of the Liberal Democratic Party and failed to take over his leadership.
When she ran for Tokyo Governor in 2016, the LDP backed yet another candidate.
But Tokyo residents supported her enthusiasm for reform and elected her as the first ruler of the Japanese capital, home to more than a tenth of Japan's population.
The following year, she risked launching the new "Hope Party", but his support waned after a promising start that at the time seemed to present a major challenge for Abe. However, following her decision to remain governor of Tokyo, she raised doubts about who will take over as prime minister if her party wins the national elections, and was severely defeated in the poll. Abe and Koike, the two ally allies, maintained a friendly working relationship while preparing together for the Tokyo Olympics, which would have been an important political legacy for both of them. However, the Olympics were postponed due to the "Covid-19" epidemic after costly preparations.
Koike soon turned her focus on combating the epidemic, providing daily briefings to the media, and sending warnings to the people of Tokyo that the worst is yet to come. She repeated her striking slogans to fight the virus during her televised remarks to encourage Japanese people to stick to their homes and avoid crowds.
In her bid to win a second term, Koike comfortably ran an independent online campaign amid public support from prominent Liberal Democratic Party members. Tokyo-AFP
- Merkel is considered for the Japanese legislators a model, in the path that may Asgnh for themselves in the world of politics , which is dominated by the male.