In Japan, they invented a word. THE sanakatsu. Literally: “to live in Sanae”. Young Tokyo women appear with their bag, the Grace Delight Tote, a tote bag from the Japanese leather goods manufacturer Hamano Leather Crafts, a house founded over one hundred and forty years ago and known for its luxury products. His pink Mitsubishi pen is out of stock. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s cookie-cutter formulas are on repeat on social networks.
On February 8, the sanakatsu turned into a number. Three hundred and sixteen seats out of 465 in the Lower House. A supermajority. By choosing early dissolution, the Prime Minister succeeded in her bet. Eight months earlier, the Liberal Democratic Party was in agony, worn down by internal scandals. Takaichi reversed the dynamic by personalizing the campaign to the extreme. By promising to revive the economy, reduce taxes on food products, and review the country’s security posture. THE sanakatsu is not just a fad. It translates a request for authority. Takaichi embodies a right free of post-war cautions (not to say complexes).
Adolescent smile, military lexicon defying Beijing
At 62, with her teenage smile and her military lexicon, she doesn’t take gloves. In South Korea, on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, she dared to challenge Xi Jinping. Sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands, the security of Japanese nationals: everything goes. “Quite frankly”she said soberly to the press. On Taiwan, she goes where her predecessors did not set foot. A crisis in the strait? A “survival-threatening situation” from Japan. An open door to Japanese military involvement.
Takaichi never gets lyrical. She repeats her formula over and over again: “Work, work, work, work, and work”. A promise of effort. Brutal and effective. Because the archipelago is tired. Inflation persists. Demographic aging threatens everything. She promises a suspension of the food tax and support for SMEs. Polls gave her 70% favorable opinions at the end of January. Unheard of in a country where a popularity rating of more than 30% is already considered high. After his victory, the curve climbs further.
It crystallizes the aspirations of an uninhibited right
Sanae Takaichi crystallizes the aspirations of an uninhibited and nationalist right in the forms. Yasukuni, she’s not going. Not yet anyway. This Tokyo shrine where Japanese war criminals convicted in 1945 are honored is a diplomatic wound reopened with each visit by a Japanese leader. Cautious…
At a time when the hard right is making significant gains, from Italy to Argentina, Japan, discreet and excessively civilized, has produced its own version. Donald Trump, who never fails to salute the victories of his potential allies, praises his “determination and strength”. A mix of kawaii and nostalgia for the heyday of Imperial Japan. For now, the pen is selling.
