Shinzo Abe: There is nothing that does not move with sincerity.

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Member of the House of Representatives, Shinzo Abe
September 21, 1954
He was born as the second son of Shintaro Abe and Yoko Abe.
Graduated from the Department of Political Science, Faculty of Law, Seikei University in March 1977. Studied abroad at the Department of Political Science, University of Southern California.
November 1982: Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Secretary to Abe Shintaro).
July 1991: As the successor to the late Shintaro Abe, Shinzo Abe established supporter offices in various locations.
He was first elected to the House of Representatives in July 1993, and has been elected four times in a row since then.
In August 1993, he was appointed to the Foreign Affairs Committee. In July 2000, he became Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary in the second Mori Cabinet.
January 2001: Appointed Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary in the Second Mori Cabinet Reshuffle.
In April 2001, he became Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary in the Koizumi Cabinet.
In October 2002, he became Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary in the Koizumi Cabinet reshuffle.
In September 2003, he became Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party.
In September 2004, he became Deputy Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party and also headed the party's reform promotion headquarters.

When it's time to make a decision, be prepared!

There is no need to act in haste. The time to make a decision comes to everyone. That's why it's important to think things through so that you can make a firm decision when the time comes. After seeing my father's last year, I decided to risk my life and become a politician.

I think today's students are thinking about a lot of different things.

When I was a university student, around 50, shortly after the end of the university student protests, a strong public backlash against current politics was in the air, and political awareness seemed to have risen sharply. Compared to then, today's university students may appear somewhat less interested in politics, but I don't think that's necessarily true. My rebellion against politics as a student was a temporary backlash, perhaps due to the immaturity of youth. This is because, while that rebellion has not necessarily led to positive outcomes for the nation, I believe that today's students, while not necessarily taking prominent actions, are thinking deeply about politics and Japan's future. While I don't think there's any need to rush into action right now, the reality is that Japan's population will peak next year, and with that, various issues, such as pensions and elderly medical care, will become more apparent. These are all major issues that will directly affect our future. Therefore, I think it is important for students to have a clear understanding of various issues on a daily basis and to be able to make their own decisions when the time comes.

Being a politician is a life-threatening job

I believe my father had a major influence on my decision to become a politician. After graduating from university, I joined Kobe Steel, Ltd. My work there was going smoothly and I enjoyed every day, but when my father became Minister for Foreign Affairs, he gave me the advice, "If you're going to become a politician, now might be the best time." Both my father and grandfather became secretaries when they became Ministers for Foreign Affairs, and looking back, he says that decision was extremely beneficial for my father's life. Hearing this made me very hesitant, but with the advice of my father, someone I had admired since childhood, I decided to quit my job and become his secretary. However, I still had some reservations about becoming a politician. This is because I witnessed the great hardship my family endured when my father lost an election when I was in the second grade of elementary school. What finally put an end to my hesitation was the last year of my father's life, when he was bedridden. During that year, despite his poor health, he worked hard as a politician, running to campaigns and supporting his opponents until the very end. This ultimately shortened my father's life, but seeing him like that made me realize that being a politician is a job worth risking your life for. And so I solidified my decision to go into politics.

　I really like the words of Confucius: "He who is sincere and unmoved is not yet." These are words that were also favored by Yoshida Shoin, whom I respect. As these words say, I believe that there is nothing we cannot do if we act with conviction and with the hope of improving the country in which we all live, with the good of our country in mind.

"Memories from when I was a student"

　Both my grandfather and father were politicians, so politics was something I was familiar with from my student days. After graduating from a university in Japan, I studied abroad at a university in the United States for about two years. I studied political science at both universities, but at my Japanese university, I had the impression that I studied more of a classical political science. In contrast, at my American university, I was able to learn not only basic political science but also modern politics. This was extremely practical and very interesting, such as analyzing presidential politics and learning about the unique American White House system. As for my life in the United States at that time, I was boarding at an Italian-American home, so I was immersed in an Italian atmosphere even while in the United States. During those two years, I gained a wide-ranging education while experiencing firsthand the true essence of America as a "melting pot" of different races.

From the August 2005 issue of the Student Newspaper