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Japan party chiefs to square off in election debate

Posted on: Sunday, 28 August 2005, 22:24 CDT

By Linda Sieg

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese party leaders were to square off in a televised debate on Monday, one day before the official start of a dramatic campaign for a general election that Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi says is a referendum on reform.

Koizumi called the September 11 election after rebels in his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) joined the opposition this month to kill bills to privatize the postal system, the core of his reform agenda to lessen government interference in the economy.

The campaign, in which Koizumi has been cast by media as a feudal lord sending "assassins" to destroy "traitors" in his own party, has gripped Japan's normally politically apathetic public.

Financial market players are also watching for clues to whether Japan will proceed with vital economic reforms, with many positing that a ruling camp victory would keep reform on track.

Koizumi's forceful tactics and pledges of reform -- the same promises he made when he swept to power four years ago -- appear to have resonated with many voters, bolstering support for the LDP to about twice that for the main opposition Democratic Party.

Two surveys published over the weekend, however, showed that support for the Democratics has risen slightly, especially among "floating voters" who shun any party ties.

The televised debate, to run about two hours from 0400 GMT, pits Koizumi and his coalition partner, New Komeito leader Takenori Kanzaki, against the heads of five opposition parties, including the Democrats and two tiny groups formed by former LDP rebels.

Democratic Party leader Katsuya Okada, who argues true reform is possible only by ousting the LDP, has challenged Koizumi to a U.S. presidential style debate. But Koizumi has rejected the idea, saying it would be "unfair" to other opposition parties.

Koizumi has said he will resign if the LDP and New Komeito fail to win a majority in the 480-seat lower house. Okada has also promised to quit his post if the Democrats can't take power.

LAST MINUTE DECISIONS?

The LDP, which has ruled alone or in a coalition for most of the past half century, had 249 seats in the chamber before it was dissolved, while the Democrats had 175.

But the LDP refused to recognize as official candidates 37 incumbents who voted against Koizumi's bills to privatize the postal system, a sprawling giant with some $3 trillion in assets that has long been a source of funds for wasteful public works.

Most of those candidates still plan to run against LDP official candidates, many of them women handpicked by Koizumi.

The Democrats and other opposition parties argue that issues such as pension reform -- which tops the list of voters' policy priorities in most surveys -- matter more than postal reform.

With a hefty group of voters undecided -- about 40 percent according to an Asahi newspaper poll -- analysts said it was difficult to predict how much the tide could shift.

Unaffiliated voters are especially prone to decide at the last minute.

"There are an awful lot of floating voters who make up their minds three seconds after they enter the polling booths," said Steven Reed, a political analyst at Chuo University near Tokyo.

Source: REUTERS

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