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Japan PM candidate Abe shows softer side to voters

Posted on: Monday, 22 May 2006, 01:39 CDT

By George Nishiyama

SAPPORO, Japan (Reuters) - TV cameras followed Shinzo Abe's every step, and families out for a day in the park snapped his photo with mobile phones, many rushing to shake the hand of the man who now leads the race to be Japan's next prime minister.

"Oh, he's so good-looking," exclaimed a young woman after she shook hands with the tall, dark-suited politician in Sapporo on Japan's northern island of Hokkaido, while others shouted, "Abe-chan," a diminutive used to show affection.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Abe, whose post as top government spokesman usually keeps him back in Tokyo, was taking a rare if well-scripted opportunity on Sunday to show that he's more than a diplomatic hawk whom fans admire for his tough stance toward China and North Korea but who critics fear would worsen ties with Japan's Asian neighbors.

Abe, 51, rose to prominence starting four years ago by taking a firm position against North Korea on the emotive issue of Japanese citizens kidnapped by Pyongyang decades ago, and has bolstered that image with an unyielding attitude toward China.

But Abe, a political blue-blood whose grandfather was a prime minister and whose father was a foreign minister, also has a softer image as a well-dressed, well-bred member of the elite and a devoted husband -- an image that appeals to many female voters.

"I wanted to see him and hear what he has to say, as he could be a future prime minister," said welfare worker Yohei Shimada, 25, relaxing in the park framed by a backdrop of distant snow-capped mountains.

In a day full of photo opportunities, Abe chatted with young entrepreneurs striving to overcome obstacles, strolled through the park and spent an hour at a "town meeting" pitching plans to help those who might lose out from the economic reforms implemented by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi during his five years in office.

"People might fail sometimes, but the important thing is to create a society in which they can try again," Abe said at the town meeting attended by about 400 local residents.

HAWK IMAGE TAKING TOLL

Koizumi's reforms have been criticized by opposition lawmakers as well as many within his own party for widening gaps in a society which has long prided itself on equality.

Abe leads the pack of four ruling party lawmakers expected to seek the premiership, but recent polls show his main rival, former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda, gaining ground.

In two weekend media surveys, about 40 percent of respondents said they support Abe as their next leader, but support for Fukuda -- a critic of Koizumi's Asian diplomacy for hurting ties with China and South Korea -- rose to around 30 percent.

Neither Abe nor Fukuda, 69, has announced his candidacy, but Japanese media have already zeroed in on the two politicians, highlighting their differences, especially over foreign policy.

Surveys show that Abe's image as a hawk may be taking a toll as those worried about a further deterioration in Tokyo's ties with Beijing pin their hopes on Fukuda.

Japan's relations with both China and South Korea have turned icy since Koizumi took office in 2001 and began annual visits to the Yasukuni shrine for war dead, seen by Beijing and Seoul as well as critics at home as a symbol of Tokyo's past militarism.

Abe has defended Koizumi's visits and criticized Beijing's refusal to hold a leaders' summit because of the pilgrimages as "absurd."

He has also said Yasukuni should not be an issue in the ruling party race, a sign that he may recognize he is vulnerable on issues of diplomacy.

Many voters in Hokkaido seemed more interested in Abe's image than his policies.

"I don't really know his thinking, but I think Abe's better than Fukuda as he's young. I also like his image," said Eriko Ozaki, 35, a computer trainer who had come to the park with her husband and their 4-year-old daughter, after listening to Abe.

Ryusuke Sakai, a 27-year-old working for a financial firm, said he also preferred Abe over Fukuda, but added that he hoped Abe would reconsider his stance on the Yasukuni visits.

"I think Abe's better than Fukuda, but I think he should avoid things that would get on others' nerves," he said after shaking Abe's hand.

Source: REUTERS

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