| ID | 073600 |
| Title Proper | Local level political and institutional changes in Japan |
| Other Title Information | an end to political alienation? |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Foljanty-Jost, Gesine ; Schmidt, Carmen |
| Publication | 2006. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | Background In Japan, a steady increase of non-voters is evident on the national and local levels over the past few decades. However, since the mid-1990s, a new wave of political participation at the local level has attracted politicians as well as social scientists. Citizen participation is increasing in terms of the number of non-profit organizations, participatory procedures, and engagement in new political networks. Citizens growing involvement in local politics coincides with institutional changes that offer new autonomy in respect of local policy-making.
Objectives In this paper, we will argue that these local trends might have an impact on national politics through the repolitization of citizens. However, preconditions are, ceteris paribus, the restoration of political trust through participation and institutional changes that support citizen involvement in politics.
The authors have been engaged in a project on “Civil Society in Japan: Partnership as a New Item of Japan’s Local Politics” since 1 March 2006. The project is located at the Department for Japanese Studies at the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg (Germany) and financed by the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG). |
| `In' analytical Note | Asia Europe Journal Vol. 4, No. 3; Sep 2006: p381-397 |
| Journal Source | Asia Europe Journal Vol: 4 No 3 |
| Key Words | Japan ; Political Participation |