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Daily Express
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Express
Emulate Sarawak's decision to retain the youth age: LDP
Published on: Wednesday, July 16, 2025 Published on: Wed, Jul 16, 2025 Text Size: Chin believes that Sabah, which shares similar socio-economic structures, rural challenges and cultural values with Sarawak, must assert its own rights to decide youth policies that reflect its people's realities — not simply follow top-down federal directives. Kota Kinabalu: Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Secretary General Datuk Chin Shu Ying on Tuesday called on the State Government to emulate Sarawak's decision to retain the youth age definition at 40 years and to reject the Federal Government's move to lower it to 30 years starting Jan 1, 2026. Sarawak's Minister for Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development, Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, has made it clear that Sarawak will not follow the federal redefinition. Advertisement Instead, it will maintain its current policy, recognising youths as individuals aged between 15 and 40 years old. This position by Sarawak not only reflects the State's constitutional autonomy over youth matters under the Concurrent List but also demonstrates a sound understanding of its own social, economic and developmental context. Chin believes that Sabah, which shares similar socio-economic structures, rural challenges and cultural values with Sarawak, must assert its own rights to decide youth policies that reflect its people's realities — not simply follow top-down federal directives. 'In Sabah, many individuals only begin to settle into their careers, complete their education, or start families in their early to mid-30s. 'For them, the ages between 30 and 40 are a critical phase of personal growth, leadership development and contribution to society. 'Hence, reducing the youth age limit to 30 would result in the exclusion of these individuals from youth-related opportunities, including funding schemes, leadership roles in youth organisations, training programmes and public engagement platforms,' he said in a statement. Chin said such exclusion would not only hinder their development but also destabilise many existing youth organisations in Sabah, especially in rural and indigenous communities where age-based mentorship and intergenerational continuity are essential. He emphasised that youth development is not simply about chronological age — it is about capacity building, empowerment and readiness. Prematurely capping this group's access to support and participation could stunt Sabah's long-term human capital growth, he added. Sarawak's implementation of a flexible model — where 70pc of youth leaders are between 18 and 40 years old, and 30pc may be older — offers a pragmatic and inclusive formula. Therefore, Chin said he believes Sabah should adopt a similar approach to balance renewal with continuity. 'Sabah has every constitutional right to chart its own course in youth affairs. The Federal Constitution provides states with concurrent authority on youth matters, and like Sarawak, Sabah should act in the best interests of its people. 'In indigenous and rural Sabahan societies, individuals aged 30 and above are still regarded as young, active and deeply involved in local leadership. Their roles are indispensable in preserving culture, guiding younger generations, and stabilizing community networks,' he said. Chin warned that blindly adopting a West Malaysia-centric model risks weakening the foundation of Sabah's community leadership and excluding a generation still in transition. 'Good governance must be rooted in local adaptability — not rigid standardisation. Therefore, I propose three key actions. First, the Sabah Government should publicly reaffirm its decision to retain the youth age limit at 40. 'Second, it should consider adopting a flexible leadership quota similar to Sarawak's. 'Third, it should initiate a consultation process involving youth organizations, indigenous groups, and experts to draft a Sabah-specific Youth Development Blueprint. 'The State Legislative Assembly should also table this issue for debate, allowing all stakeholders to present data, views, and on-the-ground experiences. Policy should not be formulated in isolation but with open, inclusive dialogue,' he said. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
The Independent
12 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Japan's new system to manage 36.8 million tourists
Japan has established a new administrative body to mitigate the effects of overtourism and other issues involving foreign nationals, following a record 36.8 million tourists in 2024. The formation of this 'control tower' addresses concerns raised by residents regarding the rapid increase in foreign visitors and residents, including issues of crime and disorderly conduct. Policies concerning non-Japanese residents have emerged as a key issue in the upcoming national election, with the number of foreign nationals in Japan reaching a record 3.8 million last year. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party has proposed measures for 'orderly and harmonious coexistence,' including stricter requirements for foreign nationals obtaining driver's licenses and buying real estate. Public unease over the influx of foreigners has boosted the popularity of the populist Sanseito party, which advocates a 'Japanese First' agenda, potentially jeopardising the ruling coalition's majority in the upper house election.
Reuters
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Japan launches government body to address concerns over foreigners
TOKYO, July 15 (Reuters) - Japan on Tuesday set up an administrative body aimed at easing citizens' concerns over the rapid rise in the number of foreigners in recent years, as policies concerning non-Japanese residents emerge as a key issue in Sunday's national election. The body would serve as a cross-agency "control tower" to respond to issues such as crime and over-tourism involving foreigners, the government said. Japan has long sought to maintain a homogeneous population through strict immigration laws, but has gradually eased them to supplement its shrinking and ageing labour force. The number of foreign nationals hit a record of about 3.8 million last year, although that is still just 3% of the total population. The formation of the administration body comes after a group of lawmakers in Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party in June proposed measures to realise a "society of orderly and harmonious coexistence with foreign nationals". Those measures included adopting stricter requirements for foreigners switching to a Japanese driver's license and for buying real estate properties. "Crimes and disorderly conduct by some foreigners, as well as the inappropriate use of various administrative systems, have created a situation in which the public feels uneasy and cheated," Ishiba said at the kick-off ceremony. Concerns over the influx of foreigners, both temporary and permanent, have resonated with voters, with opinion polls showing a rapid surge in the popularity of tiny populist party Sanseito, which advocates a "Japanese First" agenda. Public opinion polls show the LDP and its junior coalition partner Komeito are in jeopardy of losing their majority in the upper house election on July 20. (This story has been refiled to fix formatting in paragraph 3)
Japan Times
13 hours ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
Prodigal Hokkaido son returns to campaign trail for last run in Upper House election
In an Upper House election where many candidates and parties are striving to win over voters in the major cities, 77-year-old Hokkaido native Muneo Suzuki, running as a Liberal Democratic Party proportional candidate, says his campaign strategy is decidedly different. 'I traveled to Yonaguni, in Okinawa, the westernmost part of Japan. The suffering, sadness and hardship of the remote islands, as well as the harshness of living on the border of Japan requires political action,' Suzuki told a crowd in Sapporo last Saturday. On July 3, the kickoff day for the Upper House election, Suzuki cheered other LDP candidates in Sapporo, flew to Nosappu Cape adjacent to the Northern Territories — the four islands of Kunashiri, Etorofu, Habomai, and Shikotan off the coast of Hokkaido that Russia seized from Japan at the end of World War II — and flew down to Okinawa Prefecture. The next day, he began his campaign in Yonaguni and other islands next to Taiwan, visited Naha, and then traveled to Kobe and Osaka for stump speeches. Suzuki is running in the nationwide proportional representation system, where people vote for a party and the parties distribute seats won among their candidates based on the number of votes it received. In Yonaguni, he told his Sapporo audience, everyone asked him why he chose to come, as the island has only 1,390 votes. 'I've been involved in political activities in such places (as Yonaguni) for 43 years, and my mindset is that one vote in Yonaguni is worth 500 votes in Tokyo,' he said. While other candidates under the proportional representation system prioritize major cities and social media, Suzuki has long pursued grassroots strategies. In the 2019 Upper House election, he won over 220,000 votes as a proportional representative for Nippon Ishin no Kai. In the same Sapporo speech, Suzuki also touted Hokkaido's indigenous Ainu population as a key local cultural reason why the prefecture is attracting more international attention. 'As an indigenous minority group, the Ainu people have long valued and protected the environment, something the world is paying attention to,' he said. Suzuki's personality and past actions make him a divisive political figure. During his long career, he became known as an expert on Hokkaido and Okinawa, as well as foreign affairs and defense issues. He served in parliamentary vice minister posts for defense and for foreign affairs, and was state minister for the Hokkaido and Okinawa Development Agency. Suzuki was also known as a strong advocate of Japan's relationship with Russia, and worked to promote visits by the former residents of the Northern Territories to their ancestral graves, as well as people-to-people exchanges between Russians and Japanese. He was also often at the center of controversy. In 2002, following a bribery scandal, Suzuki quit the LDP. He was then forced to resign from parliament in 2010 after a final conviction for bribery and other offenses. Suzuki went to prison but was released on parole in December 2011 and lost the right to run or vote in an election until 2017. He did not return to parliament, however, until the 2019 Upper House election, as a proportional representative for Nippon Ishin no Kai, winning more votes than any of the party's other proportional candidates. However, Suzuki got into trouble in October 2023, when he traveled to Moscow in the hope of realizing direct visits by the aging former islanders to the Northern Territories, which had been suspended after Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The visit drew criticism from Nippon Ishin, and Suzuki resigned from the party that same month. The upcoming Upper House race marks a homecoming of sorts for Suzuki, who returns to the LDP after 23 years, in the latest twist in a political career that began with winning a Hokkaido Lower House district seat in 1983. Suzuki said he decided to return to the LDP because it was the party that helped rebuild Japan in the post-World War II period, and that, as a conservative politician supporting those efforts, he wanted to help the party regain public trust. But in Hokkaido, his supporters remain loyal less for his foreign policy expertise or relationship with Russia and more for his past success in getting central government money for building Hokkaido roads, bridges, dams and other projects. In his stump speech last Saturday in Sapporo, Suzuki touched on this by saying that he would push for more money for further developing Hokkaido's expressways. 'Suzuki is one of the last traditional pork barrel politicians. In Hokkaido, there are areas that lag behind urban areas in infrastructure development. He has met the expectations of local voters by obtaining large central government budgets for such projects,' said Kentaro Yamamoto, a political scientist at Kokugakuin University. 'Although LDP politicians from local areas are more or less pork barrel types, it's rare to find one who has been as thorough and effective in working with voters as Suzuki," he added. "Voters may also be influenced by their own bias towards the difficult path in life Suzuki has walked." But as Sunday's election grows closer, it remains unclear whether past loyalties among voters in Hokkaido, Okinawa, or elsewhere will be enough to secure him a seat as a party proportional candidate. He admitted the LDP was in a tough position and that his chances of winning were said to be borderline, but that, regardless of what happened, this was his last election. If Suzuki loses and does retire, it would be the end of an era, but not the end of the Suzuki family in Hokkaido and Japanese politics. His 39-year-old daughter Takako, a LDP Lower House member representing a Hokkaido district that includes Kushiro and Nemuro, is continuing her father's legacy.
Business Recorder
14 hours ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
Japan's super-long bonds rise after heavy selloff
TOKYO: Japan's super-long government bonds rose on Wednesday, as investors bought back the bonds after a heavy selloff this week. The 40-year JGB yield fell 8 basis points to 3.4%. The 30-year JGB yield fell 2.5 bps to 3.135%. Yields move inversely to prices. The 30-year bond yield hit a record high in the previous session amid concerns about the nation's fiscal health ahead of a closely-monitored upper house election at the end of this week. The market weighed the risk of the defeat of the Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner Komeito, as a potential defeat could empower opposition parties, which are seeking to cut or abolish the sales tax. 'The market has priced in the defeat of the LDP coalition and the expansion of Japan's spending,' said Takashi Fujiwara, chief fund manager at Resona Asset Management's fixed income investment division. 'So from now until the end of the week, investors may start buying the bonds to cover short positions. The 30-year bond yield may not rise further from the current level of about 3.1%,' he said. Japanese government bonds fall as 30-year auction tests demand The 20-year JGBs have not been traded yet, after the yield rose to its highest since November 1999 on Tuesday. The 10-year JGB yield rose to as high as 1.595%, and was last flat at 1.585%. The two-year JGB yield was flat at 0.785% and the five-year yield rose 1.5 bps to 1.095%.
