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For me, a Japanese person born
in the Showa era,
the start of the "Heisei" era is etched in
my
memory as a very specific image:
Chief Cabinet Secretary Keizo Obuchi,
appearing on TV, holding a framed piece
of paper on which the Chinese
characters
"Heisei" are written with brush and ink.
It was Jan.
7, 1989. From the next day, the Heisei era started.
The word "Heisei" comes from the Chinese
classics, and translates
roughly as "achieving piece.
" But for the last 30 years, Japan
has experienced
ups and downs -- soaring on economic highs,
sliding into
stagnation and experiencing a series
of natural disasters. Japan is
getting older,
the population is shrinking and we have more
foreign
workers. And while Japan was not
involved in any wars during the Heisei
era,
there was no shortage of turmoil elsewhere,
including numerous
terrorists attacks.
The global order shifted dramatically.
And now the Heisei era is coming to a close.
Emperor Akihito is set to
abdicate on April 30, which will mark the end of Heisei. In this issue of
the
Nikkei Asian Review, Nikkei's political editor
come in the new era. He examined the
Heisei years from
various perspectives --
including through popular songs and musicians.
We
invite you to look at a detailed timeline of
key events of the last three
decades. Our package
Crown Prince Naruhito.
We hope you enjoy reading the
Nikkei Asian Review.
Sincerely yours,
Sonoko Watanabe, Editor-in-chief
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