Kizuna Party
| Kizuna Party 新党きづな Shintō Kizuna | |
|---|---|
 | |
| President | Akira Uchiyama |
| Founded | December 30, 2011 |
| Ideology |
Liberalism Anti-nuclear power Anti-TPP Postal privatization |
| Councillors |
0 / 242 |
| Representatives |
9 / 480 |
Kizuna Party (新党きづな Shintō Kizuna, New Party Kizuna) is a center-left Japanese political party in Japan created by nine lawmakers of the House of Representatives who resigned from the Democratic Party of Japan led by Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on December 30, 2011, as protest to the latter's decision to raise to country's consumption tax rate from 5% to 10% in two years.
The new party was formed on January 4, 2012 and led by Akira Uchiyama of Chiba Prefecture.
The party opposes both the proposed consumption tax and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Free Trade Agreement.
Motions against Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda
On August 3, 2012 the Kizuna Party in concert with six other minor opposition parties (People's Life First, Japanese Communist Party, Social Democratic Party, Your Party, New Party Nippon (which has no lower-house lawmaker) and the New Renaissance Party) agreed to submit a no confidence motion against Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda in an effort to block the passage of the bill raising Japan's consumption tax from 5% to 10%. In the Japanese diet the support of 51 lawmakers is required to submit a co-confidence motion to the lower house.[1] The motion was submitted to the lower house on August 7, along with a censure motion against Noda. The main opposition Liberal Democratic Party was also considering its own no-confidence motion and censure motions if Noda did not agree to call a general election.[2] The no-confidence motion was voted down 246 to 86, with the DPJ voting against and the LDP and its partner New Komeito deciding to be absent from the vote after Noda agreed to hold elections "soon".[3]
On August 29, 2012 the House of Councillors passed a censure motion against Noda based on the one previously submitted by the seven opposition parties. The LDP and New Komeito had also been preparing their own censure motion but in the end the LDP, which had supported Noda's consumption tax increase, supported the censure motion of the other seven parties, while New Komeito abstained.[4] While the censure motion was non-binding, the opposition parties planned to boycott the remaining sitting days before the diet session finished on September 8, preventing further legislation from being passed.[5]
Party Dissolution
On November 15, 2012, after Noda called an early election for December 16, 2012, the Kizuna party decided to dissolve and merge with People's Life First, the new party founded by Ichirō Ozawa in July 2012. However, party leader Akira Uchiyama decided not to do so, instead planning to cooperate with former People's New Party leader Shizuka Kamei to form a third force in national politics.[6]
External links
- ↑ The Daily Yomiuri Parties band together against Noda August 4 2012 Retrieved on August 13, 2012
- ↑ The Daily Yomiuri 6 parties hit Noda with no-confidence motion August 8 2012 Retrieved on August 13, 2012
- ↑ The Daily Yomiuri Reform bills set to pass Diet today / No-confidence motion easily voted down August 10 2012 Retrieved on August 13, 2012
- ↑ The Daily Yomiuri Upper house OK's censure against Noda August 30, 2012 Retrieved on September 1, 2012
- ↑ The Japan Times Censure motion against Noda OK'd August 30, 2012 Retrieved on September 1, 2012
- ↑ Jiji Press Kizuna Party to Merge into People's Life First November 15, 2012
- Kizuna Party Home Page (Japanese)
| |||||||||||||||||
