Security in Japanese History, Philosophy and Ethics: Impact on Contemporary Security Policy

Abstract

The Japanese term for security is ‘anzen-hosho’, a highly politically-charged term employed usually only in national or international policy and diplomacy. ‘Anzen’ by itself means safety or freedom from damage, while ‘hosho’ means guarantee, and accordingly anzen-hosho is not used about people’s security, thus the expression ‘ningen-no’ (human) ‘anzen-hosho’ (security) sounds a little strange. Real security should belong to the people rather than to the state, but for human security a certain discrepancy exists between the interest of the state and that of the people. In Japanese politics, major political decisions are made by the triad of political party, bureaucracy, and business circles where people are often out of sight. Thus, human security is a reminder of the importance of ‘people’ -centred national and world politics.