ABSTRACT
A CARTOON in the Asahi Shinbun dated 11 August 1993 shows the leaders of the seven political parties participating in the Hosokawa coalition government formed two days before. They are wielding samurai swords and standing triumphant on the inert body of a dinosaur labelled ‘single party control’. One of the leaders is holding a banner that reads: ‘Next is political reform’, and the caption to the cartoon expresses the following sentiment: ‘By launching [the new Cabinet], ‘One Great Task’ has been completed’ (Asahi Shinbun, 11 August 1993).
