When Matsui went to play Major League Baseball, the Japanese media went into a feeding frenzy. A similar kind of furor surrounded Nakata when he first went to ply his trade in Seria A.
Now these two are both professional sportsmen and media celebrities, and whether right or wrong, the famous have come to expect such attention. Many of them indeed openly courting the media.
But now the Japanese Ground-Self-Defence Force (GSDF) have arrived in Iraq, they are being accompanied by an equal (if not greater) degree of hysteria and harassment.
From all accounts the tracking of the GSDF has been similar to a car chase. Like the paparazzi following a movie star. Apparently two cars amongst this trailing pack actually collided with each other, and another vehicle almost ran over an Iraqi child.
Due to Japan’s constitution, this is admittedly a historic (and very controversial) occasion, but similarly a very dangerous one. In this respect it certainly warrants in-depth coverage, but not the kind generally given to sport stars and singers.
Kev says
Wasn’t there a fight somewhere over this all happening, because it’s against the whole “self-defence force only” constitution that America helped enforce post-WWII?
Lee says
Yeah, it has caused a lot of debate and hand wringing. Sending Japanese troops there goes against the constitution, but as they are only there to help with transportation etc, the government has got around the problem.
The real problems will start if they are attacked. Once shots are fired it will be a whole new ball game. Probably resulting in a partial re-writing of the constitution.
The words can and worms spring to mind.
Kev says
The concept of rewriting the constitution, to allow an army, rather than an SDF, was covered in the comic “Sanctuary” by Sho Fumimura and Ryoichi Ikegami. When I read it, I quite liked the way they handled it, and their reasoning.
The thing is, they were flouting the constitution when they created the SDF, as the whole concept behind it was to prevent Japan from becoming a military power, and yet the “Self Defence Force” has quite a number of powerful military weapons, including US fighter-bombers. I don’t imagine anyone, other than Japan itself, is worried about them altering their constitution, as they have little need to invade other countries, or perform any offensive military actions of any kind.
Lee says
Yeah, in many ways the constitution is a joke. Japan is the world’s 4th largest military spender. That’s a mighty strong defence.
Whilst in reality there is no chance of Japan using its miltary power in any kind of aggressive manner, China and Korea would balk at Japan significantly altering its constitution in this way.
There’s still a lot of sensitvity in the region, and the government are going to have to tread very carefully. With right-wing hot-heads like Tokyo governor Ishihara waiting in the wings, small and tentative steps are what’s needed now I think.