On September 4, a campaign rally for the DPJ President’s election was held at Shinjuku station in Tokyo. Approximately 3500 spectators heard Ichiro Ozawa and Naoto Kan make passionate appeals for dramatically changing the shape of Japan.
Nearly 500 spectators had already gathered at the site of the rally more than an hour before it was due to start, and when the two candidates appeared they were greeted with a huge cheer. Many of those attending the rally were keen to receive the election pamphlets, and this illustrated the high level of interest in the election.
Each candidate used up their allotted time of 15 minutes and called for the need to dramatically change Japan, referring to such themes as government led by politicians, measures to deal with the strong yen and employment-related issues.
|