Member of the House of Representatives, Takako Suzuki

2024.06.28

Politics is not something to look at, but something to use

Member of the House of Representatives　鈴木貴子(Takako Suzuki)

■ Profile

Takako Suzuki (State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Member of the House of Representatives of the Liberal Democratic Party)
Born on January 5, 1986 in Obihiro, Hokkaido. Graduated from Trent University in Canada in 2008. After working for NHK, he was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2013. Since then, he has been elected four times, serving as Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Defense, Deputy Secretary-General of the LDP, and State Minister for Foreign Affairs. He currently serves as Director of the LDP Youth Bureau.

First elected at the age of 27, House of Representatives member Suzuki Takako has worked on a wide range of issues as a politician, from foreign affairs and security to child and child-rearing policies. With the motto "Takako Suzuki will deliver that voice," she strives to advance in the world of politics every day, listening to the voices of the local community. We spoke to her about her career so far and her vision as a politician.

Looking back, studying for high school entrance exams was a major turning point in my thinking about my future. I had originally planned to attend a Japanese high school, but I was shocked when a teacher at my cram school told me, "Your answers are interesting, but they're not what the graders will accept." This incident made me reconsider taking the entrance exams and attending a Japanese high school altogether. Believing that internationalization would accelerate even more in the future, I decided to "learn English" and "go abroad to get to know Japan." I personally went to a study abroad placement center and got some materials... I decided on Canada, which had good public safety and low tuition fees, and persuaded my parents. I quit cram school and started attending English conversation classes instead.
Incidentally, Canada is described as a "racial salad bowl" where each culture, tradition, and value system is respected. I think it was precisely because of this environment that I was able to rediscover the greatness and potential of Japan, a country that at times felt restrictive.

■ Politics: Wanting to reduce "absurdity"~~Home~~On the path to

While living abroad, I sometimes felt uncomfortable with the differences between Japan and the US, such as the way the media thinks about political neutrality.
The North American media, which I often saw and heard about while studying in Canada, would, for example, report on elections by clearly stating which political party or candidate they supported. In Japan, however, the media does not publicly claim to support which political party or candidate.
If each media outlet were to clarify its "position," viewers would likely be more willing to compare media information rather than simply accepting it at face value. It's clear that media literacy is even more crucial in a world that is said to be flooded with information. To protect and develop Japanese democracy, both information providers and receivers need to maintain a sense of urgency, sometimes showing restraint and sometimes showing respect, but I felt that this is something that is still immature.
With this sense of crisis, after graduation I applied to work for Japanese media, particularly NHK, which broadcasts internationally. Initially, I wanted to be a reporter, but the interviewer told me that I was better suited to being a director than a reporter, so I reapplied for a director position and joined the station. Being a director, who considers how to present the information in an appealing way, is something that is relevant to my current job.
My father was a politician, so politics was always close to my family. However, as a politician, the public viewed my father in various ways, and I often felt the absurdity of the world. Even when I tried to convey the facts as facts, my voice was drowned out by the voices and power of society. I experienced firsthand how terrible this was. They say "everything is an experience," but I learned that there are "absurdities" that don't need to be experienced, and I wanted to speak out about them, so I went into politics.

In Japan, people say things other than "Congratulations" to their pregnancies

I was first elected at the age of 27. As my home town is the Kushiro and Nemuro areas of Hokkaido, I have been devoting my efforts to diplomacy and security since my election, with a view to resolving the Northern Territories issue and concluding a Japan-Russia peace treaty. Under the Abe administration, I was appointed Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Defense, and served as Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs in the first and second Kishida Cabinets. This is because, while there are parliaments at various levels, only Diet members, who are responsible for national politics, can be involved in diplomacy and security. In other words, I believe it is the responsibility of those responsible for national politics.
In my personal life, I got married at age 30 and had my first child at age 31. When I announced my pregnancy, I received many congratulatory messages, but some also said things like, "Getting pregnant while in office is like abandoning your duties," and "Has she thrown away her career?" I was deeply shocked by the reality that people would say anything other than "congratulations" when a new life is born. A country that cannot celebrate the birth of a new life is a sad place, no matter how economically developed it may be. From then on, I began to focus on policies such as child-rearing and education.
Having experienced pregnancy, childbirth, and child-rearing for the first time, I have insights and opinions about child-rearing, for example, but I am overwhelmed with the child-rearing that is right in front of me. There are many mothers who cannot find enough time for themselves. As a person directly involved, it can be difficult to speak up at times like these. The world of politics is still a "male-dominated world." This is why I am also working on child and child-rearing policies, in order to represent policies and opinions from the perspective of those directly involved.
Disaster prevention and mitigation are also my life's work. My constituency is affected by the Japan Sea/Kuril Trench earthquake, one of Japan's three major earthquakes, and I also experienced the Great East Japan Earthquake while working for NHK, covering the affected areas. Witnessing the threat of nature, I realized that even though we cannot eliminate earthquakes altogether, preparation is crucial, as it can mean the difference between life and death. I would like to express my feelings of repose in the spirit of disaster prevention and mitigation measures.
Other initiatives include sustainable primary industries, international cooperation, and combating loneliness and isolation.

■Message to students

I would like students to understand that politics is not something to look at, but something to "use."
In Japanese society, there's a feeling that talking about politics is taboo, but politics and life are inseparable. Even in schools, there isn't enough education about politics or citizenship, due to the pretext of "political neutrality." However, many people probably feel uncomfortable with the idea that as soon as they turn 18 and gain the right to vote, they are told that "voting is a duty." Also, in Japan, schools have their own set of school rules. At the school I attended in Canada, students were subject to "general social rules" rather than school rules. This fostered an awareness and self-awareness that "I am a member of society," which I felt led to an interest in social activities and politics as "stakeholders."
I would like all Japanese students to act with the awareness that it is they who can make society better or stagnate. I believe that if people take the initiative, the world will become more exciting, and that is how it should be. Society does not come to a halt when one person is missing. I would like to aim for a society, and politics, that is driven and revitalized by everyone.

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