2017: The Global Rightist Turn

Nationalism in the Abe Era
The Asia-Pacific Journal | Japan Focus Volume 15 | Issue 10 | Number 1 | Mai 2017
Mit freundlicher Erlaubnis von Japan Focus

The Global Rightist Turn, Nationalism and Japan

By Karoline Postel-Vinay , Sciences Po, Paris

Abstract:
This article looks at contemporary Japanese nationalism in the context of growing far-right movements within democratic societies around the world, notably in Europe and North America, and the general rejection of the “happy globalization” narrative that has shaped the international order since the end of the Cold War. Japan, which witnessed the birth of the “borderless world” metaphor in the 1990s, is now contributing in its own way to the early twentyfirst century worldwide longing for strong borders and an aggressive military posture. The rise of ultra-conservatism in democratic societies cannot be reduced to a “Western problem”; by taking into account the political transformation of a country such as Japan it is possible to consider a truly global phenomenon with far-reaching consequences.

Download pdf