VOA慢速英语2014 Shinzo Abe's Victory Likely Raises Conflict with Neighbors

 

AS IT IS 2014-12-18 Shinzo Abe's Victory Likely Raises Conflict with Neighbors

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his allies easily won a two-thirds majority in Parliament on Sunday.  The victory was large although the Japanese economy has fallen into recession under his conservative policies.

 Mr. Abe’s win will permit him to continue economic reforms.  At the same time, he can also pursue policies likely to increase tensions with Japan’s neighbors.

Prime Minister Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party and its ally, the Komeito Party, increased their majority in Japan’s House of Representatives.

He praised the victory. 

“I am relieved that we have managed to continue our ruling coalition¹ with the Komeito party.  But at the same time this is also a great responsibility.”

Mr. Abe says this victory shows that voters support continuing his economic program, known as Abenomics.  The program raised taxes to control the nation’s large public debt, pushing the economy into recession.  The election win will make it easier to pass unpopular reforms like deregulating labor² and farm policies.

It also will probably let Mr. Abe follow a nationalist program likely to annoy South Korea and China.  In the last year, Mr. Abe angered his northeast Asian neighbors by visiting a place honoring military service members.  They included war criminals who died in World War Two.

His administration’s efforts to amend³ school history books involving Japan’s actions during the war also have caused other countries to protest.  The administration has tried to remove mention of the military’s enforced use of women as sex slaves.

Park Hwee-rhak teaches political science at Kookmin University in South Korea.  He says seeing Mr. Abe move away from these strong emotional issues would ease tensions.

He said, “I think northeast Asia – China, South Korea and Japan – is not ready to view history objectively.  So I hope (Mr.) Abe will emphasize practical policies which can guarantee peace or mutual⁴ prosperity in northeast Asia and not focus on the history.”

Japan also has competing claims with both South Korea and China over two different chains of islands in the East China Sea.  

Its closest neighbors are worried about Mr. Abe’s support for changing the country’s constitution to make the military more assertive⁵.  The document is based in pacifism – a belief that conflicts should be settled through peaceful measures.

Sejong University political science professor Hosaka Yuji says Japan is more concerned about China’s growing military strength.

He says Japan also needs to increase its armaments so it will not lose in an arms competition with China, which is gaining military ability.  He says Japan needs to have its own military, but that requires a change to its constitution.

The United States supports the expansion of the Japanese military so it can take a larger part in the alliance between the two nations. But American officials have criticized attempts to whitewash⁶ Japan’s wartime history.   

Words in This Story

pursue – v.  to try to get or do (something) over a period of time

deregulating -  v., gerund  giving up control of (something such as an industry) by removing laws

annoy – v. to cause (someone) to become slightly angry

mention -  n.   a short statement about someone or something

assertive – adj.  confident in behavior or style

whitewash – v.  to prevent people from learning the truth about (something bad, such as a dishonest, immoral, or illegal act or situation)

1 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

2 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

3 amend   

vt.修改，修订，改进；n.[pl.]赔罪，赔偿

参考例句：

• The teacher advised him to amend his way of living.老师劝他改变生活方式。
• You must amend your pronunciation.你必须改正你的发音。

4 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

5 assertive   

adj.果断的，自信的，有冲劲的

参考例句：

• She always speaks an assertive tone.她总是以果断的语气说话。
• China appears to have become more assertive in the waters off its coastline over recent years.在近些年，中国显示出对远方海洋的自信。

6 whitewash   

v.粉刷，掩饰；n.石灰水，粉刷，掩饰

参考例句：

• They tried hard to whitewash themselves.他们力图粉饰自己。
• What he said was a load of whitewash.他所说的是一大堆粉饰之词。