By Suvendrini Kakuchi
TOKYO, Apr 19 2004 (IPS)

As shocking as the hostage-taking of Japanese nationals is in Iraq, it has also signalled Japan’s entrance – if cautiously at first – onto the world stage and is testing its mettle, analysts here say.

”Sending troops to Iraq marks the first time Japan has moved away from its traditional chequebook-diplomacy contributions to international conflicts,” says Kiichiya Kobayashi, critic and author on Japanese politics.

At the same time, it tests Japan’s determination because ”the hostage crisis manifests the danger from this new diplomacy,” he adds.

Demanding that Japan withdraw its Self Defence Forces (SDF) from Iraq, abductors released three Japanese civilian captives on Apr. 15, following a week of negotiations during which tearful family members pleaded with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to help save the hostages’ lives. Koizumi did not give in, but negotiations led to the hostages’ release.

Two more Japanese hostages were released on Sunday. Earlier, South Koreans and Chinese workers in Iraq were also taken hostage and some of them have been released.

In most cases, the abductors sought to weaken support extended by Asian governments to the U.S. government, which leads the occupation forces in Iraq. But other Asian nations are also continuing to give backing to the U.S. government.

But experts say the ramifications of the hostage crisis – as a ‘price’ of Japan’s larger involvement in global affairs – will be felt long after this and may have long-term implications on Tokyo’s traditional support for the United States, a long-time security ally that some critics feel has now become a liability.

Professor Akira Kato of Obirin University points out that the kidnap of civilians has forced the Japanese, content up to now to stay on the sidelines during a war, to review the merits of their support for the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq.

”The kidnappings have pit supporters of the SDF dispatch against those who blame Koizumi for endangering the lives of civilians on humanitarian missions,” he says.

Thousands of people carrying placards demanding that Koizumi withdraw the SDF and save the lives of Japanese civilians took to the streets in protests last week soon after the news of the kidnappings.

They denounced Koizumi, calling him a puppet of Washington for supporting the bombing of Iraq, much against Japan’s pacifist principles.

”Japanese aid workers are no longer safe because of Koizumi’s policies to blindly support the United States,” says Reiko Inoue of the Pacific Asia Resources Centre, a respected non-governmental organisation.

But not everyone thinks this way. While some think that the hostage crisis showed the downside of being with the U.S. government, others say it is precisely the reason why Tokyo should stand up on its own two feet when it comes to global affairs.

The ‘Yomuiri’ newspaper, Japan’s largest, in an editorial on Sunday argued for Japan’s right to be a ”normal” country, be strong enough to have its own military and play an active role on par with Washington in international conflicts.

But for the moment at least, the release of the Japanese hostages has helped strengthen Koizumi and his goal of having Japan shake off constitutional limits to building an active role overseas.

A poll conducted by the Japanese television network NHK last week showed that the hostage saga has hardly dimmed support for Koizumi. This still stands at 48 percent, just one point lower than before the hostage crisis.

The same survey indicated that almost half of those polled did not resist the idea of changing Japan’s Constitution to empower the country to contribute actively to global conflicts. This is although the support rate was less than 40 percent for changing the peace clause that now restricts military engagement in the Constitution.

”Despite sympathy for the kidnapped, the underlying viewpoint is that for the sake of national interest, Japan must throw its weight behind the United States. After all, we depend on American military power to protect us against a foreign attack,” says Kobayashi.

”Emboldened by the rescue of the hostages and the support he has gained, Koizumi is keen not to lose the momentum and will pursue an active role for the SDF,” adds Kobayashi.

But author and media commentator Hidenori Itagaki says that despite Koizumi’s strong showings so far, most Japanese remain suspicious of military expansion of the sort reflected in U.S. unilateralist foreign policy.

”The hostage episode has put the public at a crossroads. They are unhappy at becoming targets for negotiation as what happened in Iraq,” he says in an interview. ”There is now much needed soul-searching on how to enter international politics more carefully.”

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