I think the argument that they make for it is very compelling. If 81% of their production comes from outside of Japan, they need a common language to unite their work forces. In the modern world, English is pretty much the de facto common language.
Agreed, and I think it's something we'll see more Japanese companies do in the coming years as I don't know how their economy can continue to support massive international companies. Here are various depressing graphics around growth (or lack thereof), debt and population. Here is (another depressing) report from the IMF about the projected health care costs (>15% of GDP by 2030), which combined with the previous information really doesn't paint a pretty picture for the future.
It mostly consists of sticking their head in the sand and pretending the problems don't exist. :-) Not really, but it seems that way sometimes. The overall plan is called "Abenomics", named after the current prime minister who put the plan together. The Council on Foreign Relations does a decent job on covering the major points and has a good additional resource list to boot. In short, though, it's a three pronged approach. There was a stimulus package, which really didn't stimulate much, quantitative easing with a target of 2% inflation, which has only caused small bumps of inflation followed by more deflation and increases in public debt, and structural reforms, for which there is little real political appetite. There have also been some laughable attempts to attract more foreign skilled workers, but again, there's little political will to fix the issue. Honestly, at this point, I don't know if even a massive wave of immigration would be enough to save the country. They should have been focusing on small groups that could be integrated into society starting decades ago, but foreigners are still the big scary other in Japan. This is despite the rather low occurance of foreign crime there. In summary, too little, too late and without the political or social will to really make much of a difference at this point.
Aren't native Japanese people in general not very open to immigrants? Wouldn't such programs upset them?There have also been some laughable attempts to attract more foreign skilled workers, but again, there's little political will to fix the issue. Honestly, at this point, I don't know if even a massive wave of immigration would be enough to save the country.
In general, yes. Actual studies in English are hard to come by, but here's one that actually goes in depth and shows breakdowns by age and region. Here's a more recent survey that shows a slim majority actually support increasing immigration, despite a vast majority (76%) saying that it would lead to at least somewhat more crime. Overall, though, Japan has backed itself into a situation where it's going to have to choose a path that will upset a substantial portion of the population, be that increased immigration, increased taxes or austerity. It's currently going with the middle option, but an increase in consumption tax isn't going to solve their woes.
Major in Asian Studies with a concentration on Japan, studied at a Japanese University for a year, lived and worked there for a few years, and I work in banking so I keep up on the economic news. It's one of the few subjects I can speak somewhat intelligently about for long periods of time without totally embarrassing myself. :-)