The Politics of Agriculture in Japan (The Nissan Institute Routledge Japanese Studies Series)

Agriculture is one of the most politically powerful sectors in Japanese national politics. This book provides the first comprehensive account of the political power of Japanese farmers. This definitive text analyses the organisational and electoral bais of farmers' political power, including the role of agricultural interest groups, the mobilisation of the farm vote and links between farmers and politicians in the Diet. Agrarian power has helped to produce the distinctly pro-rural, anti-urban bias of postwar Japanese governments, resulting in a general neglect of urban consumer interests and sustained opposition to market opening for farm products. This book represents a major study of Japanese agricultural organisations in their multifarious roles as interest groups, agents of agricultural administration, electoral resource providers and mammouth business groups. It describes the policy issues that engage farmers' concerns and identifies the agricultural commodities that carry the greatest political significance. Book Cover......Page 1 Half-Title......Page 2 Title......Page 6 Copyright......Page 7 Dedication......Page 8 Contents......Page 9 Figures......Page 10 Tables......Page 11 Series editor’s preface......Page 13 Preface......Page 14 Agriculture in the domestic economy......Page 18 Japanese agricultural policies in comparative perspective......Page 19 Farmers......Page 20 2. Gross output (by value)......Page 21 3. Planted area......Page 28 2. Production geography......Page 29 3. Income dependence......Page 30 4. Production efficiency......Page 31 5. Producer subsidy equivalents......Page 32 Farmers’ organisations......Page 33 MAFF and the legislative framework......Page 35 MAFF-sponsored administrative groups......Page 36 Advisory councils......Page 37 Basic approach and methodology......Page 38 The agricultural societies (nogyokai)......Page 40 The farmers’ unions (nomin kumiai)......Page 42 The rural youth leagues......Page 43 The agricultural cooperatives......Page 45 The structure and functions of the Nokyo organisation79......Page 46 The unit co-ops......Page 47 The Nokyo federations......Page 48 Nokyo’s policy leadership groups......Page 50 Nokyo’s historical, organisational and legal heritage......Page 54 The agricultural committee organisation......Page 56 Agricultural mutual aid associations......Page 59 Land improvement industry groups......Page 62 Farmers’ political leagues......Page 63 Farmers’ commodity groups......Page 68 Other farmers’ political leagues......Page 69 The farmers’ unions revisited: Zennichino......Page 70 The JCP’s farmers’ union organisations......Page 72 Speaking with one voice?......Page 73 Institutional interest groups in the agricultural sector......Page 76 Public corporations, special juridical persons, or special corporations (tokushu hojin)......Page 77 Public interest corporations, or juridical persons for public benefit (koeki hojin)......Page 80 A corporatised sector?......Page 90 The balance of power: state dependence versus organisational independence......Page 93 Implications for the corporatist, elitist and pluralist paradigms......Page 103 Conclusion......Page 104 Historical traditions of political representation and party alignment in the countryside......Page 106 Early postwar representation of farmers’ organisations......Page 107 The farmers’ unions and the socialist party......Page 108 Cooperative parties......Page 109 The rural youth leagues......Page 113 The failure of farmers’ parties......Page 114 Political alignments towards the end of the first postwar decade......Page 117 Farmers’ political leagues......Page 118 The increasing dominance of the LDP-Nokyo connection......Page 121 Conclusion......Page 126 Nokyo’s organisational ‘sides’ and ‘faces’......Page 128 Membership......Page 131 Nokyo’s ‘related groups’......Page 134 The nokyo ‘detached corps’:115 the women’s and youth divisions......Page 135 Nokyo’s businesses......Page 136 Nokyo’s companies......Page 140 Profits versus cooperativism......Page 141 Generalist versus specialist......Page 143 Rural versus urban......Page 144 Nokyo’s economic stake in the Food Control system......Page 146 Nokyo’s economic stake in domestic livestock production......Page 149 Nokyo’s vested interest in small-scale, high-cost agriculture......Page 151 Increasing divisions amongst Nokyo’s farm membership......Page 154 The debate about Nokyo (nokyoron)......Page 156 Nokyo-bashing......Page 157 Nokyo’s financial and management crisis......Page 159 Intensifying competition in marketing and purchasing......Page 164 Vertical restructuring......Page 167 Agricultural cooperative mergers......Page 169 Functional disaggregation and other proposals......Page 172 Conclusion......Page 173 The national agricultural electorate......Page 177 The impact of changing rural society on farm votes......Page 183 Continuing socio-economic and demographic changes......Page 186 Changing constituency classifications......Page 187 Commodity constituencies......Page 190 The livestock electorate......Page 191 Individual electorates for speciality products......Page 192 Electoral malapportionment and farmers’ voting power......Page 193 Farmers as LDP supporters......Page 196 The ruling LDP as the farmers’ party......Page 201 LDP dependencies on constituency types......Page 205 The impact of party defections......Page 209 The impact of Lower House electoral reform......Page 216 The 1996 and 1998 general elections......Page 219 Conclusion......Page 222 The historical tradition of vote-gathering in rural areas......Page 224 The evolution of rice-roots mechanisms of vote-gathering......Page 225 Unofficial electoral activities: individuals......Page 226 Unofficial electoral activities: organisational......Page 227 Official electoral activities......Page 232 Distinctive features of Nokyo’s electoral activities......Page 234 Electoral activities of other agricultural organisations......Page 236 Criteria of electoral support......Page 238 Direct and indirect organisational connection......Page 239 Party affiliation......Page 242 Evaluating Nokyo’s vote-gathering powers......Page 247 Demonstrations of farmers’ and Nokyo’s voting power......Page 254 Nokyo’s diminishing powers of vote control......Page 262 The impact of LH electoral reform426......Page 264 The 1996 LH election......Page 270 Conclusion......Page 271 Categories of agricultural representation......Page 273 Measuring agricultural representation in the Diet......Page 275 The party alignment of agriculture-related Diet members in 1990......Page 278 The impact of party defections......Page 282 Factional affiliation of agriculture-related Diet members......Page 283 Direct representation of agricultural organisations......Page 284 Nokyo’s direct representation......Page 285 Categories of Nokyo representation......Page 290 Direct representation of other agricultural organisations......Page 292 Land improvement industry groups......Page 295 Other statutory agricultural interest groups......Page 301 Commodity representation......Page 302 Agricultural representation and electoral reform......Page 303 Dilution of Agricultural representation......Page 304 An institutional framework of interest group politics......Page 306 Positions of influence in policymaking......Page 308 Diversity of interest representation......Page 312 Conclusion......Page 313 Appendix A Agricultural interest groups represented in the Diet by their leaders in 1990 (excluding Nokyo)......Page 316 Appendix B Diet members’ leagues listed by respondents to the questionnaire survey......Page 318 Appendix C Non-agricultural interest groups with which agricultural representatives have leadership ties......Page 320 Appendix D Interest groups providing electoral support for respondents to the questionnaire survey......Page 324 Nokyo’s nosei katsudo......Page 327 Deciding demands......Page 330 Sharing the policy representation function......Page 334 The main foci of Nokyo’s nosei katsudo......Page 337 The producer rice price campaign......Page 339 Nokyo’s livestock price campaign......Page 342 Nokyo’s budget campaign......Page 344 Nokyo’s anti-agricultural trade liberalisation campaign......Page 346 Nokyo’s producer price strategy......Page 349 Nokyo’s anti-agricultural trade liberalisation strategy......Page 352 Nokyo’s policy influence......Page 355 Nokyo’s changing relationship with the MAFF and the LDP......Page 358 Policy demands for a new era......Page 360 Conclusion......Page 365 9 Conclusion......Page 369 Notes......Page 373 Bibliography......Page 472 Index......Page 484 Agriculture Is One Of The Most Politically Powerful Sectors In Japanese National Politics. This Book Provides A Comprehensive Account Of The Political Power Of Japanese Farmers. This Text Analyses The Organisational And Electoral Basis Of Farmers' Political Power, Including The Role Of Agricultural Interest Groups, The Mobilisation Of The Farm Vote And Links Between Farmers And Politicians In The Diet. Agrarian Power Has Helped To Produce The Distinctly Pro-rural, Anti-urban Bias Of Postwar Japanese Governments, Resulting In A General Neglect Of Urban Consumer Interests And Sustained Opposition To Market Opening For Farm Products.--jacket. 1. Introduction -- 2. Interest Group Politics -- 3. Farmers' Politics -- 4. Organisational Politics -- 5. The Political Demography Of Agriculture -- 6. Electoral Politics -- 7. Representative Politics -- 8. Policy Campaigning -- 9. Conclusion. Aurelia George Mulgan. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [808]-829) And Index. "Agriculture is one of the most politically powerful sectors in Japanese national politics. This book provides a comprehensive account of the political power of Japanese farmers. This text analyses the organisational and electoral basis of farmers' political power, including the role of agricultural interest groups, the mobilisation of the farm vote and links between farmers and politicians in the Diet. Agrarian power has helped to produce the distinctly pro-rural, anti-urban bias of postwar Japanese governments, resulting in a general neglect of urban consumer interests and sustained opposition to market opening for farm products."--BOOK JACKET. This book provides the first comprehensive account of the political power of Japanese farmers. It analyses their organisational and electoral bias, the role of agricultural interest groups, and the farm vote