Japan's economy: On a mission. A rare reformist zeal is emerging in post quake Japan. The government ignores it at the country's peril. THERE is something awe inspiring about the Japanese on a mission. During Golden Week holidays this month, thousands of volunteers helped to sift through the muddy wreckage left by the March tsunami. Stricken roads, bullet trains and factories have returned to normal with astonishing speed. In people's ardour to rebuild, once taboo ideas are emerging on how to reform and deregulate not just the damaged areas but the country at large. The government urgently needs to develop a sense of mission, too. The combined power of a quake, tsunami and full scale nuclear accident has jolted whatever sense of complacency the Japanese had about the resilience of their country. The ham fisted efforts of Tokyo Electric Power( TEPCO) to stem the crisis at the Fukushima Dai ichi nuclear power plant have exposed the company for what it is: an inept monopoly so big it could co opt or run rings around its regulators. It should be broken up. Meanwhile, the smashed up fishing fleets and sea swamped rice paddies in the north east have prompted discussion on bringing private investment into these heavily protected areas which no longer provide a future for the young. Many are championing the idea of special economic zones in the north east, which would free the area from the cat's cradle of rules imposed from Tokyo that hamper free enterprise.
