The Politics of Interest Representation in the Japanese Diet
The Case of Agriculture
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2855833 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Aurelia George (UNSW Sydney, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1991 |
| Volume | 64 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 506 |
| Publication date | 1991-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Pacific Affairs (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0030-851X • E-ISSN: 1715-3379 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/2759858 |
| OpenAlex | W2313810512 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 5 |
T HE RECENT GATT URUGUAY ROUND of agricultural trade negotiations has focussed attention on the domestic origins of trade problems and in particular on the political causes of agricultural protection. One of the most important issues raised at the GATT talks has been the closed nature of Japan's rice market. Throughout the negotiations on agricultural trade, Japan's official position on this issue has remained clear and consistent: rice remains a prohibited import because of the threat that liberalization poses to the nation's food security and the livelihood of Japanese rice farmers. Although various signs indicate that the domestic political ground is gradually being prepared for eventual market opening, in the short term the Japanese government has been able to take advantage of lack of agreement on reducing agricultural protection between the two major protagonists, the United States and the EC, in perpetuating its resistance to rice market opening. Furthermore, the visible reluctance of theJapanese government to liberalize rice unless compelled to do so by a general agreement of the GATT parties underlines the continuing strength of protectionist forces within Japanese domestic politics. 1 The political explanation forJapan's agricultural protection has traditionally emphasized the disproportionate power of the farm vote, the electoral alliance between farmers and the governing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the organized influence of the agricultural cooperative movement and the succesful campaign by the farm lobby to equate food security with agricultural protection. Less well understood is the question of howJapanese agrarian power is manifested in the Diet. This paper will analyze in detail the nature and strength of agricultural representation in the Diet, focussing on the connections between farmers, agricultural interest groups and Diet politicians which work to facilitate the articulation of agricultural interests
Agricultural economics · Agriculture · Archaeology · Economics · Geography · Interest group · Political science · Politics · Representation (politics) · Japanese History and Culture · Law
| Unique citing works | 5 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,17 |
| Citation span | 1997 - 2015 (19) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 5 |