History
In 1854 the United States forced Japan to either agree to trade in peace, or suffer the consequences in war, ending Japans 200 years of self-imposed isolation. In 1868 Japans military government, the shogunate resigned In 1868 and the emperor Meiji’s imperial power is restored, which is known as ‘’The Meiji Restoration ’’.
After the Meiji Restoration, Japan transformed to a developed industrial nation. Many Japanese scholars were sent to the United States and European capitals to study their schools, practices, industrial techniques and most particularly, their forms of constitutional government .
The Japanese were quick learners; by the mid 1880’s they succeeded in establishing a western-style central bank, a network of railroads and a uniform national currency, the yen . Japan’s leaders sought to create a constitution that would define Japan as a capable, modern nation deserving of Western respect while preserving their own power. Their effort resulted in the Meiji constitution , which was operative from 1889 until 1947.
Even though the Meiji constitutions aim was to protect the imperial sovereignty, a national assembly , or Diet, was established through it. Political parties were formed around this assembly and the political power shifted from the oligarchic clique under the emperor to the political parties . The Japanese cabinets functioned until 1932 as a parliamentary form of government .
During the transformation of Japan towards a parliamentary form of government, the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05) occurred. In both wars Japan emerged as the victor. The wars were instigated by conflicts of interest in Korea by the countries, resulting in the annexation of Korea by Japan.
In 1937 Japan goes to war with China for the second time since 1894, which will be remembered as the "Rape of Nanjing ", in which up to 300,000 Chinese civilians were killed.
In 1941 Japan attacked the US Pacific fleet at Pearl Harbor, ending in the US forces dropping two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
The Allied Forces occupied Japan shortly after the attack by the US. Japans new constitution comes into force In 1947, whereby the emperor exclusively serves as a state symbol and elected politicians have real decision-making power.
After regaining her independence in 1952 , Japan is continuously led by the LDP since 1953, except for a short period in 1993, and one from 2009 to 2012.
Religion
‘Born Shinto, die Buddhist’, this phrase demonstrates that the Japanese are not submitted to one religion, but practice multiple religions subsidiary to their ritual necessity.
Shinto and Buddhism are Japan's two major religions. Shinto is the native religion of Japan, while Buddhism officially arrived in Japan in the 6th century .
Nowadays religion is not a dominant factor in the daily life of the Japanese people, but it has been otherwise in the past.
Religion in Japan was once enforcing diversity, in particular the discrimination against the Burakumin by the Buddhist priesthood. The Japanese learned from these missteps and see the earlier religions today as a hindrance to achieving a fully spiritual condition . Nowadays the Japanese consider themselves rather spiritual than religious.
Tradition
Japanese live according to hierarchy in social settings. Everybody is considered born equal and capable getting ahead in life as long as he works for it. That the Japanese society is powered by competition and striving to be the best, complements the fact that the Japanese want to utilize their full potential. Standing out is considered a very good thing. Furthermore, they cherish their traditions and customs and want to preserve it. They are not considered religious, but still apply the customs of Shinto. Honor is a cornerstone of the Japanese culture and the people have a strong sense of shame for losing face. Over 500 military officers committed suicide right after Japan surrendered .
Comparing with the HMM
The culture dimensions of Hofstede are reliable instruments to analyse a country or the similarities and differences between two countries. The results of this world value research, conducted in countries all over the world, are linked to an index number per dimension for each of the participating countries. The practices of the dimensions can be different compared to the results. Therefore the dimensions are used as a starting point to examine the similarities and differences between Afghanistan and Japan.
Because none of the dimensions were specific measured for Afghanistan, some useful comparisons can be made using Hofstede’s index for the “Arab World”.
The index numbers of Afghanistan and Japan are compared for the following dimensions: Power Distance Index (PDI), Individualism (IDV), Masculinity (MAS), Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI). These scores are presented in the bellowing table (Table 1):
Tabel 1: The HHM research scores of Arab ctrs and Japan
Japans score of 54 for PDI means Japan is a hierarchical society. Still, it is not as hierarchical as most of the other Asian cultures. Japan has constantly been a meritocratic society. Everybody is born equal and anyone can get ahead and become anything if he works hard enough according to the Japanese education system. Hofstede’s study provides composite scores for the “Arab World” that shows a high PDI of 80. The higher the PDI, the greater the expectation and acceptance of inequality among the members of society in forms of laws, rights and rules.
Japan scores 46 on the IDV dimension. Certainly Japanese society has many of the traits of a collectivistic society: such as putting harmony of group above the expression of individual opinions and people have a strong sense of honor. However, it is not as collectivistic as the Arab World, who scores 38 on IDV and is considered as a collectivistic society. This manifests in a close long-term commitment to the 'group'.
Japan is one of the most Masculine societies in the world with a score of 95. This dimension indicates that the society is fuelled by competition, achievement and success. A low score on the dimension means that the dominant values in society are caring for others and quality of life. The Arab World scores 53 on this dimension, and as this is an intermediate score. The Arab World has a bit of preference for Masculinity.
With a score of 92 Japan is one of the most uncertainty avoiding countries on earth. This is often attributed to the fact that Japan is threatened by natural disasters. Another reason is that they copy religion with uncertainty. The Arab World has a high UAI of 68, because they are not open to unfamiliar foreign forces.
So why are these factors still influential to this day when we look at the democracy in Japan and Afghanistan ?
In 2004 the Afghanistan’s first presidential election was held, and president Karzai was elected for office . But still, after his reign and now under president Ashraf Ghani, Afghanistan is still in disorder .
Democracy requires a certain degree of education and civilization of the people. The individual needs to be aware of the political problems in the country, and must understand the power of his vote, so he can elect a proper representative.
But nowadays the population of Afghanistan has a literacy rate of 38,2% , which is one of the lowest in the world. This result in decision-making by the majority of the people that is not based on knowledge. The majority in Afghanistan does not have the capacity to comprehend the many problems the country is facing. Also, because of the brain drain most of the educated and professional people, who truly understand democracy, are still leaving Afghanistan, making it even more difficult for democracy to succeed.
As far as possible, education should be free, so citizens can learn to understand qualities such as sacrifice, solidarity, discipline and devotion to the nation.
The literacy in Japan is of a different order, which is 99%. Japanese children even lead the world in literacy due to Japans educational system .
Also, the freedom of expression, profession, religion and press are essential in a democracy, these freedoms enable citizens to expand their mind and personality. If the press can’t be free and fearless in a country, citizens can’t criticize the government, which won’t result in the full enjoyment of their freedom.
The Japanese embrace their media and there is significant press power . People read a newspaper daily in Japan.
On the other hand, in Afghanistan the media freedom is threatened and is a casualty of ongoing conflict
To protect the individual freedom, a written constitution can serve, but it also needs to be properly brought in practice.
The economy in Afghanistan is struggling for decades and is challenged by high levels of corruption and a weak government capacity, which results in difficulty in extending rule of law to all parts of the country .
The law enforcement in Japan is applied strictly and does not bat an eye .
A democracy also supports on high moral standard and honesty of the citizens and the government.
Afghanistan has nearly one million adult drug users, which is twice the global average . With this much drug abuse in Afghanistan, there is much dishonesty and corruption, making it difficult for democracy to function and flourish.
Due to their low indulgence score the Japanese don’t give in to their desires and stay on the right path. They strive to become the best they can and are even cornered about the next generations. Where the Afghans try to survive, the Japanese try to live.
In a democracy there needs to be social, economic and political equality, everybody is equal before law and there is no discrimination on any basis.
Looking at the religious intolerance and the treatment of women in Afghanistan, it is clear that there is still much inequality.
The Japanese education system focuses on the fact everybody is born equal, although there is a big gender gap in Japan. But as in a good democracy it is getting the attention it deserves . Furthermore, to avert power abuse, the separation of power into a legislature, executive, and judiciary is in order. A country needs a strong government that secures the country by law and order, both internal and external.
Remaining, to make democracy a success, a lively spirit of tolerance is needed for constructive criticism and healthy discussion.
In Afghanistan there are many tribes acting as superiors towards each other, which hinders the process of realizing unity in the nation. But in Japan the intellectual and political elements were already present long before the Second World War. And rebuilding the country afterwards even strengthened the bond of unity in the country.
Democracy is a great form of goverment, but a nation needs to grow towards it, instead of get it imposed on. Due to the lack of knowledge and unity, Afghanistan is not fit for a democracy as Japan is.