Politics of the Japanese Financial Crisis in the 1990's: Blame Avoidance and Buck Passing

Speaker: Dr. Harukata Takenaka, 2003/2004 Shorenstein Fellow.

Dr. Takanaka will offer a political explanation for why Japan was delayed in dealing with its financial problems in the 1990s. He will explain why, after the Japanese financial system became unstable following the collapse of the bubble economy in the early 1990s - the government was delayed in developing institutions to secure the system's stability. Dr. Takanaka's talk will focus on the incentives of the political players involved in formulating financial policy, particularly the politicians and leaders of the ruling parties, and the Ministry of Finance.