Tokyo, Sept 25: After shaking up his Cabinet and top rank of his ruling party, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has decided to dissolve the lower House of Parliament next month to call a snap general election on November nine, reports said today. Koizumi would dissolve the House of representatives, which convenes after the summer recess tomorrow, on October 10, after pushing a bill extending a special anti-terrorism law expiring November one through Parliament, Kyodo news agency said, citing a ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lawmaker.
Campaigning would begin on October 28, Kyodo said.
The Asahi Shimbun and the Nihon Keizai Shimbun dailies also ran similar reports saying Koizumi felt he would be able to get the anti-terrorist law extended before dissolving Parliament because the main opposition party, which is opposed to the bill had decided not to boycott debate on it.
The democratic party of Japan, which yesterday formally merged with the smaller liberal party, feels it is now well-positioned to take on the LDP at the ballot-box, Kyodo and the Asahi said.
On Monday, Koizumi reshuffled his Cabinet to stress his commitment to structural reforms in what the opposition and some analysts said was clearly an electioneering cabinet.
The reshuffle followed a shake-up of leading LDP posts on Sunday. Bureau Report