Last Sunday’s general election in Japan delivered a landslide victory for the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) and an unprecedented defeat for the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has ruled the country almost continuously for 50 years.
The DPJ won 308 lower house seats to the LDP’s 119.
The DPJ was voted in on the hopes of millions of people who were abandoned by the previous government. Many hope the new government will deliver free education and support for unemployed workers.
The landslide reflects the impact of the world capitalist crisis on Japan – GDP has shrunk at an annual rate of 14.2 percent. Recent reports have suggested a small recovery in the Japanese economy but exports, vital to the Japanese economy, are around 35 percent lower than last year and unemployment remains the highest it has ever been.
Still continue the difficult economical situation in Japan.
