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Article: As I was saying, perhaps. (Japanese politicians say one thing and mean another)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- March 12, 1988
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1988 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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JAPANESE politicians are expert at saying one thing and meaning any one of several others. minister replies to a proposal with "Shincho ni kento shimasu" ("You have raised an important matter"), it is impossible to tell if he is implying that there is no chance, some chance or a good chance of the matter being taken up. His listeners have to guess his meaning from the context of his words and the feeling of the moment. Japanese politics is described by Mr Toshio Kamo, professor of politics at Osaka City University, as the politics of atmosphere".
One politician, Mr Kazuhisa Inoue, from Komeito, the opposition party set up to promote the idea of franker (and ...