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Waving or drowning?

By Gillian Handley - posted Friday, 18 November 2011


Japan is important to Australia both economically and strategically. She has contributed to Australia's economic prosperity in the past and she is still an important trade partner. In 1957 a cooperative agreement between the two nations gave Australia a leg-up, economically speaking, in the Asia-Pacific region. Japan became Australia's key export destination – a role she held until she was recently overtaken by China. Japan and Australia have also strengthened political and security cooperation, which has made them strategic partners in the Asia-Pacific region.

Disasters can serve as catalysts in Japan. Seiichiro Yonekura, professor of innovation at Hitotsubashi University, has suggested that the earthquake that levelled Tokyo (then called Edo) in 1855 marked the beginning of the end of more than two centuries of isolation. Another quake in 1891 prompted Japan to question its Meiji-era adoption of Western influences when many of the European-style brick buildings fell down. In 1923, says the professor, the Great Kanto Earthquake helped spark a political crisis that ultimately led to militarism and the Second World War.

Rebuilding Japan will require overcoming economic, financial and political problems in a world of shifting global power. The central Japanese government has been weak and ineffective. The strength and commitment shown by local communities as they deal with the fallout of the recent catastrophe, as well as other, more longstanding problems, suggests the answer may lie in the decentralisation of power. Japan's regions might successfully manage their own economies for the benefit of all, if given the chance. These economies are not small. Tohoku, for example, has a GDP the size of Argentina's while Kyushu's economy is the same as Norway's. Perhaps the 2011 triple catastrophe will prove to be the catalyst that sparks Japan's most dramatic rebirth yet.

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Any visitor to Japan cannot help but be moved by the dignity and pride of the people in the face of adversity. Modern Hiroshima celebrates the human capacity to overcome unfathomable tragedy. A common reaction to the 2011 disaster has been the belief, and the hope, that if any country could rise above such a body blow, it would be Japan. This may be so but she will need help. As much as we admire their resilience and their spirit, we cannot leave the Japanese to bear such a burden alone. Japan may take this opportunity to sweep away bureaucratic stagnation and revitalise the nation. The elements are there; it is up to us to provide help and support and to be there for the long haul. We owe it to her as a friend.

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About the Author

Gillian Handley is a freelance journalist based in Sydney, Australia.

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