Former Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka's resignation from the Diet on Friday was a surprise even though her political fortunes had waned visibly in recent months amid a smoldering money scandal. Did she take responsibility for the "trouble" she had caused? Was she unable to bear the brunt of public criticism?
At a brief press conference, Tanaka gave two reasons: First, she had been deprived of political freedom, like a "bird with clipped wings," because of a two-year suspension of her membership in the Liberal Democratic Party. Second, with a cloud of doubt still hanging over the scandal in spite of her efforts to clear herself, she had no choice but to resign to help restore public confidence in politics.
Her resignation recalls the arrest of her father, the late Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka, on bribery charges 26 years ago. On that hot July day, the nation had a rude awakening to money politics. It is a great irony of fate that his daughter now finds herself in political limbo for essentially the same reason.