Koizumi's Top-Down Leadership in the Anti-Terrorism Legislation: The Impact of Political Institutional Changes

Japan's response to the September 11 terrorist attack was quick and conducted through top-down leadership by Prime Minister Koizumi. It was seen as a sharp break from Japan's pacifism and slow, unclear response patterns of the past. As the lack of leadership became a focal issue for Japanese politics in the 1990s, three major institutional changes were introduced to shape the leadership of future prime ministers: the 1994 electoral system, the Diet and government reform of 1999, and Hashimoto's administrative reform efforts, which took place in January 2001. This paper analyzes the impact of these changes on crafting Japan's 2001 anti-terrorism legislation.