Japan Numero Uno

The new top man pledges reform

The latest chapter in Japan's influence-peddling scandal came to a close last week as Foreign Minister Sousuke Uno was named Prime Minister. Uno replaces Noboru Takeshita, who resigned to save his ruling Liberal Democratic Party from further embarrassment over the scandal. Uno promised political reform and pledged to "regain the confidence of the people."

He'll have a way to go. Opposition leaders and some L.D.P. members have criticized the choice of Uno, a former member of the faction led by ex-Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone, during whose administration (1982-87) the Recruit Co. helped line politicians' pockets by offering to sell them stock...

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