菅義偉Yoshihide Suga Japan’s new leader：從幕後走向台前 ；Japan opts for continuity with Yoshihide Suga。 安倍晉三首相志未酬：主張 Shinzo Abe應改稱為Abe Shinzo，姓氏在前，名字隨之。

 

What’s in store for Japan’s new leader

The Japanese Parliament on Wednesday elected Yoshihide Suga to be the prime minister, replacing Shinzo Abe, who led the country for nearly eight years. I talked to Motoko Rich, our Tokyo bureau chief, about the man taking the helm of the world’s third biggest economy.

Was Yoshihide Suga a well-known figure in Japan before becoming prime minister?

Motoko: Mr. Suga was the chief cabinet secretary, effectively the chief of staff, to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. In that role, Mr. Suga gave two daily press conferences, so he is a familiar face on the news. He also gained prominence last year when he unveiled a calligraphic rendering of “Reiwa,” the name chosen for the incoming era of Emperor Naruhito, earning him the nickname “Uncle Reiwa.” There are spoofs all over the internet.

Yoshihide Suga at a news conference in Tokyo after he was elected prime minister on Wednesday.   Pool photo by Carl Court

Do you sense any trepidation among the Japanese?

Mr. Abe resigned because of ill health, and he and the Liberal Democratic Party kingmakers effectively handed the reins to his right-hand man. Mr. Suga has said he will keep all of Mr. Abe’s signature policies in place. He has retained the majority of Mr. Abe’s cabinet. So in that sense, it is very much the status quo.

What will be his toughest challenge?

Like virtually every other leader in the world, he has to get the coronavirus under control and help a battered economy. But he also faces rising security threats from North Korea and China, Japan’s largest trading partner.

Then there are the long-term structural issues: a low birth rate, an aging population, climate change and women who had been promised empowerment under Mr. Abe but are still waiting on many fronts.

And his first order of business?

To try to get the economy back on its feet. And to decide whether to call a snap election that could consolidate his power and give him a chance at being more than a caretaker leader.

日本下一任首相菅義偉：從幕後走向台前 MOTOKO RICH, MAKIKO INOUE 菅義偉是安倍實質上的幕僚長及政府發言人，也是重大變革的催化劑，在輔佐安倍期間磨煉出了嫻熟的政治技巧。也有批評人士認為，他是安倍較為威權衝動做法的背後設計者。

安倍晉三首相志未酬：主張 Shinzo Abe應改稱為Abe Shinzo，姓氏在前，名字隨之。(西方某些國家和阿拉伯國家，也採此系統。Wikipedia 也有點猶疑.......)

這主張，在LIN YUTANG林語堂等情形成功了，但要用 Abe Shinzo可不容易。這是習慣。

Japan opts for continuity with Yoshihide Suga

Mr. Suga, the longtime chief cabinet secretary to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, swept an election for the leadership of the conservative Liberal Democratic Party — all but assuring that he will become prime minister after a vote in Parliament in the coming days.

Mr. Suga, 71, should have little trouble sliding into the job, our correspondents write. He has vowed to pick up where Mr. Abe left off.

A bland politician?: While most leading Japanese lawmakers come from elite political families, Mr. Suga is the son of a strawberry farmer and a schoolteacher from the rural north. But in many ways, he seems like yet another in a long line of dour Japanese politicians. The most exciting recent revelation about Mr. Suga, a teetotaler with a sweet tooth, was that he starts and ends each day with 100 situps.

Challenges ahead: One major question is just how long he will last. Though he is seen as a safe pair of hands to grapple with the country’s economic and strategic challenges, Mr. Suga’s longevity may be determined by his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the postponed Tokyo Olympics and the country’s increasing tensions with China.