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Takashi Kawamura (politician)

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For other uses, see Takashi Kawamura (disambiguation).
The native form of this personal name is Kawamura Takashi. This article uses Western name order when mentioning individuals.
Takashi Kawamura
河村 たかし
Kawamura in 2017
Member of the House of Representatives
Incumbent
Assumed office
27 October 2024
ConstituencyAichi 1st district
In office
19 July 1993 – 7 April 2009
ConstituencyAichi 1st district
Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party of Japan
Incumbent
Assumed office
17 October 2023
LeaderNaoki Hyakuta
Preceded byPosition established
Leader of Genzei Nippon
Incumbent
Assumed office
26 April 2010
Preceded byPosition established
35th Mayor of Nagoya
In office
28 April 2009 – 15 October 2024
Preceded byTakehisa Matsubara
Succeeded byTBD
Personal details
Born (1948-11-03) November 3, 1948 (age 76)
Nagoya, Aichi, Japan
Political partyCPJ (2023–present)
Genzei Nippon (2010–present)
Other political
affiliations		DSP (until 1983)
LDP (1990–1992)
JNP (1993–1994)
NFP (1996–1998)
LP (1998)
DPJ (2000–2009)
Independent (1992–1993; 1998–2000; 2009–2010)
TPJ (2012)
SpouseNaoko Kawamura
Children1
Alma materHitotsubashi University
WebsiteOfficial website

Takashi Kawamura (河村 たかし, Kawamura Takashi, born 3 November 1948) is a Japanese politician who has served as a member of the House of Representatives representing Aichi 1st since October 2024, a position he had previously held from 1993 to 2009. Prior to this, he served as the 35th mayor of Nagoya from 2009 to 2024. Kawamura is the current Deputy Leader of the far-right Conservative Party of Japan,[1] as well as the founder and leader of the Nagoya-based regional party Genzei Nippon.

Kawamura's antics have earned him a peculiar reputation outside of Nagoya, but local voters see him as an exponent of Nagoya's unique culture who constantly speaks in strong dialect (Nagoya-ben).[2][3] As of 2021, he has been elected for 4 terms as mayor, and there are 12 members of his Genzei Nippon party on the Nagoya City Council.[4]

Kawamura denies the Nanjing Massacre.[5][6]

Biography

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Family

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The family is from Kodekimachi in Higashi-ku, Nagoya. Kawamura's father Kaneo had served in the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) as a corporal (伍長) in the 101st Division, which was part of the Shanghai Expeditionary Army, taking part in the Battle of Nanjing. After the war ended in August 1945, he remained at the Qixia Temple outside of Nanjing until January 1946, and was repatriated in March of that year. In 1948 Kaneo started the family business of paper recycling, which continues to this day.[7]

Education

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In 1967 he graduated from Aichi Prefectural Asahigaoka Senior High School, where he had been a member of the badminton club. After a year spent studying to improve his test scores, he was accepted into Hitotsubashi University in 1968, where he studied business, graduating in 1972. After graduating, he joined the family business, eventually becoming CEO, a position which he passed on to his eldest son in 2002.[8]

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From 1977 Kawamura aspired for a career as a public prosecutor, taking night school classes at Chukyo Law College, studying statutory interpretation and public administration for ten years. After nine attempts sitting for the bar examination, which then had a pass rate of 10-15%, [9] he passed the first round of testing four times.[10] Although his grades in a legal cram school were good, he was never able to pass the second round of tests.[11] He changed his plans and became involved in politics, joining the Democratic Socialist Party and acting as secretary to Ikkō Kasuga, but he "rubbed the dragon's scales the wrong way"[clarification needed] and left the party.

Political career

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With Hideaki Ōmura and Shinzō Abe (at the Prime Minister's Official Residence on October 21, 2016)

Kawamura was elected for the first time in 1993 as a member of Morihiro Hosokawa's Japan New Party after an unsuccessful run in 1990. He resigned from his office as a member of the House of Representatives, and ran for mayor of Nagoya, being elected in April 2009.

On February 6, 2011 he won a landslide re-election victory, gaining three times more votes than his DPJ rival. Three-quarters of voters have also supported a referendum to dissolve the sitting Nagoya assembly, after the mayor clashed with the assembly repeatedly on issues such as devolution and the cutting down of some of the generous diets and retirement packages of assembly members, in order to reduce costs for taxpayers.[12]

The mayor announced plans in 2009 to completely reconstruct in wood the main towers of Nagoya Castle that were destroyed during the Second World War, just as in the original structure.[13][14][15]

Kawamura was elected for his fifth term in April 2021, amid his role in a recall campaign scandal against Aichi governor Hideaki Omura.[16][17]

Controversy

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Denial of Nanjing Massacre

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On 20 February 2012, while serving as the Japanese representative of Nagoya, Mayor Takashi Kawamura made denialist statements about the Nanjing Massacre while receiving an official Chinese delegation from Nanjing.[18] The incident led to the suspension of all official exchange between the two cities of Nagoya and Nanjing on 21 February.[6]

Some Nagoya citizens opposed Takashi Kawamura's denial by organizing lectures and setting up a website.[19]

Hugging underage voice actress

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At the opening ceremony for the 2014 World Cosplay Summit, held on July 26 at Chubu Centrair International Airport, Mayor Kawamura was on stage with 17-year-old voice actress Miku Itō. In front of a crowd of cosplayers from over 30 nations, Kawamura unexpectedly put his arms around her shoulders and gave her a hug. Having appeared on the covers of children's magazines and other products aimed at young audiences, her fans remembered the surprise on her face, followed by a forced smile (nigawarai). Even though the fans booed, Kawamura paid them no attention, and even claimed to be one of "Mikku's" fans.[20]

Removal of comfort woman statue

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In August 2019, Kawamura demanded the removal of an art exhibition[21] in the Aichi Triennale art exhibition because it depicted Korean 'comfort women', Korean women who worked in Japanese military brothels in WWII, often under violent and involuntary conditions. The statue was made by a South Korean artist. The exhibit itself was titled After "Freedom of Expression"? and the artists' description was as follows:

"This may seem like a little exhibition inside an exhibition. For one reason or another, due to censorship or self-censorship, most works presented here were not exhibited in the past in Japan. Although the reason for their removal varies, it shows that there is no simple dynamic in regard to "freedom of expression (speech)."

"Freedom of expression" is one of the essential ideas in democracy and basic human rights. However, nowadays freedom of expression which originally means the right to criticize authorities is a subject not only limited to policy-makers. With "freedom of expression" now also regulated to some extent when it may violate the human rights of others.

The exhibition provides you with information on who regulated these works, through which criteria and how, along with the background to each work, such works were censored."

Kawamura complained, saying on August 2, "Views that the matter (of comfort women) isn't factually correct are strong. It's unrelated to a lack of freedom of expression. It doesn't have to be displayed at a venue funded with a massive amount of taxpayers' money."

Additionally citing phone complaints and fears of threat of a terrorist attack, the artistic director decided to close down that section of the Aichi Triennale.

Olympic gold medal biting incident

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During a press conference honoring Miu Goto, the softball pitcher from Nagoya who led the Toyota Red Terriers to win a gold medal during the 2020 Summer Olympics, Mayor Kawamura removed his COVID-19 mask and bit the gold medal belonging to Ms. Goto without her consent,[22] to test if the medal was made of real gold. Additionally, Kawamura was accused of sexual harassment after asking Goto, "Are you prohibited from having romantic relationships?" His actions drew more than 7,000 complaints to city officials.[23][24] Kawamura says that he will personally bear the expense of replacing the bitten medal and apologized for "making her uncomfortable."[25]

On August 16, 2021, Mayor Kawamura made a formal apology, repeatedly bowing, and saying "I feel like such a pathetic person and am deeply ashamed."[26] In his apology, Kawamura said, "My behavior is inexcusable" (mōshi wake gozaimasen (申し訳ございません)) five times.[27] He announced his intention to take a 100% pay cut for three months; saying that he would submit a bill to the municipal assembly in September to implement the pay cut.[26] His salary was 500,000 yen/month.[27] Kawamura had originally offered to pay for a new medal, but under the Olympic Charter, this would fall into the category of a "political donation", which is prohibited.[26]

Gold-biting incident of April 9, 2021

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The Olympic Medal incident is not the first time that Mayor Kawamura has displayed an urge to bite into a golden emblem in the presence of news media and photographers. In order to generate tourist activity, it was decided to remove the two golden shachihoko (mythical half-tiger, half-fish creature) from the roof of Nagoya Castle and put them on temporary display. The shachihoko were removed by helicopter on March 8.[28] These shachihoko are important emblems of the city of Nagoya. At a special exhibition on April 9 in Sakae Plaza, Mayor Kawamura removed his COVID mask, placed his hands on the male shachi, and leaned forward to press his mouth, opened widely as though taking a large bite from the nose of the golden shachi. Guests had been asked to wear masks, disinfect their hands, and touch only the shachi's nose, but Mayor Kawamura placed his hands on other parts of the shachi as well.[29]

References

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  1. ^ "河村たかし名古屋市長は「南無阿弥陀仏」 「日本保守党」共同代表就任でくすぶる国政復帰の観測（メ〜テレ（名古屋テレビ））". Yahoo!ニュース (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2023-10-19. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
  2. ^ "これぞ「美しい名古屋弁」…女優・山田昌さん(91)が名古屋市長に喝「河村さん、大概にしとかないかんよ」" ["Beautiful Nagoya-ben": Actress Masa Yamada (91) admonishes Nagoya Mayor "Now, Kawamura-san, You mustn't get carried away!"]. One News (in Japanese). Tōkai Television Broadcasting. May 20, 2021. Retrieved August 14, 2021.
  3. ^ "「信長に「名古屋ことば」を 河村市長、ＮＨＫに要望」]" [Mayor Requests NHK to have Oda Nobunaga speak in Nagoya lingo]. The Asahi Shimbun. September 26, 2014.
  4. ^ "地域政党・減税日本の増田名古屋市議が離党「組織のガバナンス改善ない」代表の河村市長「問題はない」" [City Counselman Masuda splits with local political party Genzei Nippon, citing "lack of improvement in organization governance" but has "no problems" with Mayor Kawamura]. Tōkai Television Broadcasting. June 15, 2021.
  5. ^ Armstrong, Paul (2012-02-23). "Fury over Japanese politician's Nanjing Massacre denial". CNN. Retrieved 2023-10-03.
  6. ^ a b Wang, Chuhan (22 February 2012). "Nanjing suspends official contact with Nagoya". CNTV. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2012.
  7. ^ Japanese Diet Minutes of Questions Asked regarding the so-called Rape of Nanjing (2006 June 13) いわゆる南京大虐殺の再検証に関する質問主意書 衆議院] (accessed August 13, 2021).
  8. ^ 中日新聞2011年1月3日 Chunichi Shimbun, January 3, 2011
  9. ^ 年度別旧司法試験第二次試験出願者数及び短答式試験合格者数調 法務省。(Ministry of Justice website)
  10. ^ 平成19年3月20日衆議院法務委員会議事録
  11. ^ 河村たかし氏（昭和47年商・衆議院議員「欧米に女性議員が多い理由（わけ）〜議員非職業化と党議拘束撤廃〜」 Archived 2009-07-30 at the Wayback Machine 一橋大学ジェンダー社会科学研究センター。
  12. ^ The Economist. Grass-roots revolt in Japan: Maverick as hell. Grass-roots revolt in Japan. February 10, 2011.
  13. ^ "名古屋城天守閣に木造復元構想 シャチホコも揺れる｜旅行・レジャー｜Nikkei Style". Archived from the original on 2016-01-11. Retrieved 2015-04-12.
  14. ^ "「天守閣」復元にかける夢 名古屋城建て替えで論争". 14 November 2012.
  15. ^ "中日新聞：名古屋城いまむかし：中日新聞の本（CHUNICHI Web）". Archived from the original on 2013-06-18. Retrieved 2013-06-18.
  16. ^ "Kawamura wins Nagoya mayoral race despite Aichi recall scandal | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis". The Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 2021-08-14.
  17. ^ "2 indicted over faking signatures to oust governor of Aichi in recall | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis". The Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 2021-08-14.
  18. ^ Wang, Chuhan (22 February 2012). "Nanjing to suspend official exchanges with Nagoya". CNTV. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2012.
  19. ^ Joseph Essertier and Ono Masami, David vs. Goliath: Resisting the Denial of the Nanking Massacre, Japan Focus 2014/2/21.
  20. ^ "河村たかし・名古屋市長 7年前にも未成年声優への「抱きつきセクハラ」" [Seven years ago Nagoya mayor Takashi Kawamura hugged and sexually harassed underage voice actress]. Shukan Posuto (Weekly Post) (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. August 16, 2021. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  21. ^ Onishi, Takehiko (3 August 2019). "Nagoya mayor demands removal of 'comfort women' statue on display at Aichi arts festival". Mainichi Japan.
  22. ^ Rhea Mogul (13 August 2021). "Olympics to replace Japanese athlete's gold medal after mayor bites into it". CNN. Retrieved 2021-08-14.
  23. ^ "Japanese Olympian's 'germ medal' to be replaced after Nagoya mayor bites it". NextShark. August 12, 2021. Retrieved August 13, 2021.
  24. ^ "Olympic gold medal bitten by Nagoya mayor to be replaced". Kyodo. Nagoya. August 12, 2021. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
  25. ^ "河村たかし市長、会見での投げやり姿勢に厳しい声続出「半ば開き直りのよう」「ふてくされている感がやばい」" [Vociferous Voices Denounce Reckless Attitude of Mayor Takashi Kawamura: "Seems like sulkiness," "Horrific Irresponsibility"]. Yahoo News. Nagoya. August 12, 2021. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved August 12, 2021.
  26. ^ a b c Oka, Masakatsu (August 16, 2021). "Nagoya mayor who bit Olympian's gold medal to take 100% pay cut for 3 months". Mainichi Shimbun. Nagoya. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  27. ^ a b "河村市長"メダル噛み"でお詫び文「申し訳ございません」５度 後藤への直接謝罪願う" [Mayor Kawamura "Medal Chomping" apology statement: repeats moushi wake gozaimasen five times, hopes to apologize to Goto directly]. Yahoo News Japan (in Japanese). August 16, 2021. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  28. ^ "Golden statues removed from Nagoya Castle for temporary exhibition". Kyodo News. Nagoya. March 8, 2021. Retrieved August 14, 2021.
  29. ^ Article is in Japanese, but worth clicking on photo to enlarge. "河村名古屋市長、４月に「金しゃち」もがぶり 特別展で" [Nagoya Mayor Kawamura also chomped on a Gold Shachi at a Special Exhibition in April]. Sankei Shimbun. August 7, 2021. Archived from the original on October 11, 2021. Retrieved August 14, 2021.
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Political offices
Preceded by Mayor of Nagoya
28 April 2009 – present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
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