Japan and the Pacific Rim - Essay Example

Japan and the Pacific Rim Japan, Korea, and China are very similar in terms of geography, yet there are remarkable differences in terms of the economy and local government. The Japanese economy was for years the largest economy within Asia. After the end of the Second World War, the Japanese realized that they had to modernize in order to keep up with the rest of the civilized world. A decision was made to reduce the powers of the emperor so that he was seen as one of the people. He was still allowed to keep his title, although he does not hold as much power as he used to.

In terms of modern day politics, the Japanese political system is quite messy, with prime ministers not lasting very long before resigning due to some scandal. Overall, Japan is considered a good place to do business because of its relatively stable economy and friendly local people. The Japanese economy has now slipped behind China in terms of GDP, although it is still considered a large economic force within Asia and the world as a whole. China is a strange case because their governmental systems and economic choices do not necessarily match up.

The Chinese government is very strictly Communist, although over the last couple of decades, the ruling party has seen the need to bring about capitalist reform in order to propel China to become an economic superpower. Today, China has a great deal of political clout in such organizations as the United Nations because of its tremendous size. Other countries have picked up on this and realize how important trade can be with China. As such, many countries choose not to go against many Chinese economic decisions.

China was not always the way it is today though. After China fell to the Communists in 1949, Mao Zedong led China through an era that ultimately proved unsuccessful. Millions of people died of starvation through China’s eccentric Communist policies. It took a long time for those in power in China to realize that capitalism may be a better option for a number of reasons. Korea used to be unified as one country; however, due to the Korean War in the early 1950’s, there is the Communist-backed North and the Democratic South.

The economic differences between these two neighbors are vast and it can be put down to the difference between Communism and capitalism. The North Korean government is extremely secretive and rarely releases information to the outside world. On the other hand, South Korea can be considered as one of the success stories of Asia. In the late 1950’s, after the end of the Korean War, South Korea’s literacy rate was extremely high in conjunction with a very low average GDP per capita. It took a vast amount of modernization and new technology to help bring South Korea into the modern era.

The largest contributor to this rapid growth has been education. Today, South Korea’s education system is well-known for being one of the best in the world. The attitude of the Korean people is hard working and very loyal. Many experts now consider South Korea to be part of the first world.