Sawt Falasteen - Japan PM calls snap election to 'create a new Japan'

Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior coalition partner are almost certain to be re-elected on October 27, with the premier banking on his honeymoon popularity and a fragmented opposition to secure a majority.

At a press conference, he said that beefing up spending on poorer regions hit by Japan's demographic crisis was not just a rehashing of old ideas.

"This is an attempt to create a new Japan that will drastically change the nature of Japanese society. In order to boldly carry out this major change, we need the confidence of the people," he said.

The LDP has governed Japan almost uninterrupted for decades, albeit with frequent leader changes.

But Ishiba, named prime minister just last week, wants to shore up his mandate to push through policies that include more spending on defence.

"As exemplified by China and Russia's airspace incursions and North Korea's repeated missile launches, Japan is facing the most severe, complex security environment since the end of World War II," he said.

Ishiba will now embark on his first foreign trip as leader to Laos for the ASEAN summit where he will hold talks on the sidelines, reportedly with China's premier among others.

"Tonight I will leave for the ASEAN leaders' summit, where I will build relationships with the leaders of ASEAN countries, China and India," he said, vowing to "lead efforts to further secure the stability and safety of the region".

- 'Momentum' -

Earlier Wednesday, the speaker of parliament read out a letter from Ishiba with the emperor's seal, formally dissolving parliament as lawmakers shouted the traditional rallying cry of "banzai".

The three-year government of Ishiba's predecessor Fumio Kishida suffered record-low approval ratings due to a slush fund scandal and voter discontent over rising prices.

Polls last week gave Ishiba's cabinet approval ratings of 45-50 percent, compared with 20-30 percent for the Kishida administration's final month.

Ishiba's backers hope the self-confessed defence "geek" and outspoken critic of the LDP establishment will boost the party's popularity, including by persuading disillusioned young people to vote.

By dissolving parliament now, the 67-year-old wants to put his party to the test before his "honeymoon" period ends, said Yu Uchiyama, a political science professor at the University of Tokyo.

"It makes sense that he wanted to call a snap election as soon as the 'face' of the party changed, while the momentum is still there," he told AFP.

Uchiyama added that Ishiba also wanted to catch opposition forces flat-footed, as the LDP's foes remain undecided about how to coordinate with each other in the election.

But the prime minister's decision to call an election this early was also criticised for contradicting his previous vows to prioritise facing the opposition in parliament.

Yoshihiko Noda, head of the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party (CDP), said Ishiba's "hastened" decision was to avoid being grilled over the funding scandal.

"This made me realise once again that even with the new prime minister, our politics will neither change nor be rectified," Noda told broadcaster NHK.

- Fresh promises -

Over the weekend, Ishiba announced that the LDP would not endorse some disgraced party members implicated in the scandal in the election.

The announcement reflected his desire to demonstrate to the public that he can be "strict", and aimed at "restoring public trust in him a bit", Uchiyama said.

To counter China, Ishiba has backed the creation of a regional military alliance along the lines of NATO, although he said on Monday it would "not happen overnight".

Analyst Yee Kuang Heng of the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Public Policy told AFP the idea sounded like a "blast from the past" reminiscent of the defunct SEATO (Southeast Asia Treaty Organization).

Japan is also facing a demographic crisis as its population ages and the birth rate stays stubbornly low -- a situation Ishiba has called a "quiet emergency".

He says his government will promote measures to support families such as flexible working hours.

Ishiba has also pledged to "ensure Japan's economy emerges from deflation", and wants to boost incomes through a new stimulus package as well as support for local governments and low-income households.

T.Samara--SF-PST