"Japan historic change" Part 2 : Now, they take vacations !

Shonan Beach, 90 minutes from Tokyo

Crowded with kids and teens

Japan's first-ever "Silver Week" holiday, resulting

from a few days of continued public holidays in

September this year, jammed expressways, flights and

shinkansen bullet trains, crowded with people heading

to their hometowns and resorts under clear skies

almost across the nation.

Respect for Senior Citizens Day on Monday, observed

each year on the third Monday of September, Autumnal

Equinox Day on Wednesday, astronomically determined

but usually observed Sept 23 and the Kokumin no

Kyujitsu holiday added between them on Tuesday

Expressways were congested from the morning, with

vehicles backed up for tens of kilometers on

Expressways. Stations and airports are crowded with

travelers, including families with large bags, with

many people wearing masks as a preventive measure

against the new type of influenza H1N1.

Some choose culture and nourish their leisure time

with philosophy as these tourists I met in Kyoto late

15th century Ryoanji "Temple of the Peaceful Dragon".

The temple's main attraction is its rock garden, the

most famous of its kind in Japan. The simple Zen

garden consist of nothing but rocks, moss and neatly

raked gravel. The meaning of the garden's arrangement

is unknown and up to each visitor's interpretation.

Ryoan-Ji, Kyoto

Others, true fans of Mickey, go to Tokyo Disneyland

with children, many others go back hometown take care

of their parents with such a long spell of holidays in

autumn only this year.

Shonan Beaches are always jammed.

Temperature today: 20 to 27 °C, maybe more.

(Images from raretr. blog)

Good weather announced in many parts of Japan during

Silver Week event though a typhoon flies far south in

the Pacififc ocean, unlikely to approach the Japanese

archipelago, according to the Japan Meteorological

Agency.

See you next week.

Tokyo Int'l film festival: "Action for Earth"!

Yoshino Kimura, Actress & TIFF Ambassador and Tom Yoda,

Chairman, Tokyo International Film Festival were our guests

at FCCJ press luncheon event http://www.fccj.or.jp/node/4877

22nd TIFF Ambassador Yoshino Kimura

Chairman Tom Yoda

Tom Yoda, a Meiji Daigaku graduate, was appointed

chairman of the Tokyo film festival in March 2008. He has

been in the entertainment-content business since 1988 and

has been chairman of the film distribution/production

company Gaga Communications Inc since 2004, and since this

July majority owner and president/CEO. He owns and heads

other entertainment companies and sits on several outside

boards. He holds or has held posts on many other

entertainment industry representative groups.

Tokyo Int'l film festival http://tiff-jp.net/en/

Yoshino Kimura debuted as the lead actress in NHK drama

"Genki wo Ageru" ("I'll Cheer You Up") in 1996. The

following year she won the Japan Academy Prize

rookie-of-the-year award for her first movie role,

"Shitsurakuen" ("Paradise lost"). She won the Academy's

best actress award in 2006 for her role in "Semi Shigure"

(released with English sub-titles as "The Samurai I

Loved"). She has starred in a Hollywood film, "Dream

Cruise," and appeared in more than 50 TV, film and stage

productions. As a singer, she has released singles and

albums.

The 22nd Tokyo International Film Festival will continue

its push for environmental awareness and screen the

controversial documentary “The Cove,” a film which shows

the butchering of dolphins in a small Japanese fishing

town, Taiji. Chairman Tatsumi “Tom” Yoda, a Meiji Daigaku

graduated in business management, said at a press luncheon

on Thursday at The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan.

"It is very important for the festival to not only screen

high-quality films from around the globe but to also

educate the world about environmental issues. We live in

this world together, and those of us in the film industry

count on the environment — that is the message we want to

send.”

The event starts October 17 with the magnificent

documentary “Oceans” by Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzaud.

TIFF’s week-long run will feature roughly 130 films at

theaters in the Shibuya and Roppongi entertainment

districts of Tokyo. The closer will be Pixar’s “Up,” an

animated adventure up in the sky directed by Pete Docter.

In competition will be four world premieres, including

Jinsei Tsuji’s “Acacia,” starring famous ex-wrestler

Antonio Inoki, “Manila Skies” by Raymond Red and “Snowfall

in Taipei,” a Taiwanese love story by Huo Jianqi. The jury

president will be Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (”Babel”).

Twenty minutes of footage from “Avatar,” the James Cameron

3-D sci-fi feature, and “Sideways,” a Japanese remake of

the Alexander Payne story of love and wine California, are

slotted into the “Special Screenings” section.

Just as last year, the fest will push for ecological

awareness via a “green carpet,” the use of recycled

materials and the distribution of awards for

non-competition films that evoke environmental themes.

“The Cove” had been widely reported to have been refused by

TIFF, but it was confirmed just prior to the finalization

of the lineup. The film, shot by National Geographic

photographer Louie Psihoyos, displays footage of dolphins

being corralled and then killed by sharpened poles in

Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture. It has not yet been screened

in Japan. Regarding the documentary, the chairman said

that TIFF very strongly believes in freedom of expression.

“We were subjected to some criticism from some parts of the

media about perhaps engaging in censorship,” he said. “I

would like to make it absolutely clear that we do not

censor any works in any way.” Yet the film will be

accompanied by a disclaimer that will not hold TIFF liable

should any dispute arise during its screening.

Yoda noted that thirty percent of the event’s budget comes

from government sources. The chairman does not expect the

recent change to Japan’s political landscape in which the

Liberal Democratic Party was removed from power during last

month’s lower house victory by the Democratic Party of

Japan — to have an impact on TIFF’s budget allocation,

adding that the fest should be able to maintain at least

this year’s level of support going forward. The arts, Yoda

said, transcend political boundaries. “I believe very

strongly that whether it is the LDP or the DPJ in power

that culture is fundamentally non-partisan.” End of quotes

Kimura-san and I chatted during luncheon, about London,

about Cannes film festival, and I was impressed with her

excellent English and her sparkling personality, typical of

young Japanese women. Here we are watching pictures of her

movie on my Mac: "Killer Virgin Road". Mark Schilling

wrote in Japan Times about this movie : "Are most single

women obsessed with marriage despite their protests to the

contrary? Disappointed in love, do they fall to insecure

pieces, taking solace in late-night cartons of ice cream?"

From what I can see, Yoshino-san is a star on the rise.

Scene of Yoshino Kimura and Juri Ueno in "Killer Virgin Road."

Hatoyama cabinet: "I am excited by the prospect of changing history"!

Yukio Hatoyama (C), Japan Prime Minister

"We will probably face some trial and error, but I

want to ask people to stay with us, patiently," he

said. Reaffirming his campaign promise to build a

gentler, more "fraternal" society, Hatoyama said: "We

have to shift the country toward a people-oriented

society. Toward that end, I will lead the way."

Yuu - ai ideogram (Fraternity)

"Japanese Parliament convened in a special session on

Wednesday to formally select Hatoyama, whose Democrats won

a landslide in parliamentary elections last month to take

control of the body's lower house, ousting Prime Minister

Taro Aso's Liberal Democratic Party, which is conservative

and staunchly pro-U.S. In Wednesday's parliamentary vote

to choose the prime minister, Hatoyama won 327 of the 480

votes in the lower house. He needed a simple majority of

241 votes. Hatoyama, who has a Ph.D from Stanford

University and is the grandson of a conservative prime

minister, had a limited pool of seasoned politicians to

choose from. His party, created a decade ago, has never

held power, and nearly half of the Democrats' members of

the lower house will be serving in their first terms in

parliament.

Although it has recently shown some signs of improvement,

Japan's economy remains deeply shaken by the global

financial crisis and unemployment is at a record high of

5.7 percent. The rapid aging of its population also

threatens to be a drag on public coffers as the number of

taxpayers decreases and pension responsibilities swell. "I

want to the people to feel that their pocketbook situation

is improving, even a little, as soon as possible," Hatoyama

said at a press conference. Voters expressed hope for

change and an upturn for the economy.

Hatoyama will also be tested quickly on the diplomatic

front. He has said he wants to attend the General Assembly

in the United Nations in New York next week and possibly

meet with Obama. Hatoyama has said he wants to build a

foreign policy that will put Tokyo on a more equal footing

with Washington, while keeping the U.S. as the

"cornerstone" of Japan's diplomacy. He is also seeking

closer ties with Japan's Asian neighbors, particularly

China." (Quotes: Agencies)

"... despite the DPJ's convincing triumph, many observers

in both Japan and the West remain doubtful about its

capacity to govern... "

Foreign Affairs http://preview.tinyurl.com/l6aet7

The Ozawa kids: Building the women's Republic

Mieko Tanaka, Ishikawa & Eriko Fukuda, Nagasaki

among 54 women MPs.

Mainichi shimbun focus is on the women politicians

newly elected, mainly from the Democrats:

"High hopes are held for the government as Japan

enters a new political era. At the same time, eyes

are on the record number of female Diet members and

the role they will play. A total of 54 women were

selected as members of the House of Representatives --

11 more than last time -- bringing the percentage of

female lawmakers in the Lower House to 11.3 percent.

It is the first time since women obtained the right to

vote in 1945 that the figure has passed the 10 percent

mark. On an international scale, Japan now ranks 95th

in terms of the percentage of female lawmakers, up

from 102nd place. Some may highlight the fact that

the figure remains at a "mere" 10 percent."

The report: http://preview.tinyurl.com/rcxzly

Xi Jinping, groomed as next China leader?

Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, a very popular

folk singer attached to the PLA General Department’s

song and dance troupe.

Party insiders say Vice-President Xi Jinping may be

promoted to the vice-chairmanship of the CCP's Central

Military Commission add that it will confirm Xi's

status as Hu's successor as party general secretary

and state president.

According to state news agency Xinhua, the 204-member

committee will discuss a draft document on "party

building" which covers everything from the battle

against corruption to recruitment for the 75

million-member party. The military commission is in

charge of the 2.3 million-strong People's Liberation

Army.

Fifth generation of leadership...

CHINA's Communist Party leaders will meet this week to elect

the nine-person Politburo standing committee, which rules the

country. The four-day meeting is expected to order direct

elections at the county or fourth level of government as part

of long promised plans to increase internal democracy.

In an additional plenary session of the party's central

committee, the party's 440 senior members are expected to

effectively confirm Vice-President Xi Jinping as President Hu

Jintao's successor in 2012, when up to seven new positions on

the top rung will be up for grabs.

But while strong hints on the fifth generation of Chinese

leaders will emerge, the meeting will focus on internal

reforms as the party prepares to celebrate 60 years in power.

History

"Xi's appointment to the Party Secretary post in Shanghai was

seen as a stepping stone for him to become an emerging member

of the fifth generation of Chinese leadership. This was

solidified by his appointment as a member of the nine-man

Politburo Standing Committee at the 17th Party Congress in

October 2007. Interestingly, Xi was ranked above Li Keqiang,

which made him the most likely candidate for China's next

core figure - the paramount leader. This assessment was

further supported at the 11th National People's Congress, Xi

was elected as Vice-President of the People's Republic of

China on March 15, 2008. Some suggest this was because Xi

had kept friendly relations with both Hu Jintao and the other

power figure in the central leadership, Zeng Qinghong. In

addition to these posts, Xi also held the top-ranking

membership of the Communist Party's Secretariat.

Since his elevation Xi has held a broad range of portfolios.

He was put in charge of the comprehensive preparations for

the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, as well as the central

government's leading figure in Hong Kong and Macau affairs.

In addition, he also became the new Principal of the Central

Party School, the cadre-training and ideological education

wing of the Communist Party. In the wake of the 2008 Sichuan

Earthquake, Xi went and visited disaster areas in Shaanxi and

Gansu. After the Olympics, Xi was assigned the post of

Committee Chair for the preparations of the 60th Anniversary

Celebrations of the founding of the People's Republic of

China.

Xi is considered to be one of the most successful members of

the Crown Prince Party, a quasi-clique of politicians who are

descendants of early Chinese revolutionaries. Senior leaders

consider Xi to be an emerging figure that is open to serious

dialogue about deep-seated market economic reforms and even

political reform, although Xi's personal political views are

relatively murky. He is generally popular with foreign

dignitaries, who are intrigued by his openness and

pragmatism. Founder of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, when asked

about Xi, said he felt he was "a thoughtful man who has gone

through many trials and tribulations." Lee also

commented: "I would put him in the Nelson Mandela's class of

persons. A person with enormous emotional stability who does

not allow his personal misfortunes or sufferings affect his

judgment. In other words, he is impressive". Xi was named

as one of the most influential people in the world in the

2009 Time 100 list." (Quotes of China Hour, Xinhua, Wiki,

T.Aus.)

Xi Jinping 习近平

Name translation:

-习 xí learn; habit; usual practic

-平易近人 píng yì jìn rén

"easy to approach to common people"

Xi’s wife 彭丽媛 Peng Liyuan

丽 lì beautiful – 媛 yuàn beauty

"And the Royal boat sails on..."

Emperor Akihito left (76) rows a 7 meter traditional Japanese

wooden boat named "Také" which his father, late Emperor

Showa, had used to collect sea animals for his research, as

Empress Michiko (75), second right, Princess Kiko and her son

Prince Hisahito enjoy a ride off Hayama Zushi in Kanagawa on

Monday. The royal family was spending their late summer

vacation in their villa in the seaside resort surrounded

early in the day by well wishers.

The Emperor and the Empress took Princess Kiko and her son

Prince Hisahito to the sea rowing the boat themselves.

Japanese Emperor Akihito (L) Empress Michiko (C) and Princess

Kiko's three-year-old son Prince Hisahito (R).

Commentators have endles waves of interpretations about these

late summer 2009 Japan Royal family images.