Graham Smith
The Digital Administrative and Financial Reform Council recently held its eighth meeting in Japan, and the resulting documents paint a picture of digital rulership utilizing AI, drones, NFTs, robots, massive cloud-based data sharing, and even medical check-ups at train stations.
As the Western world dives further into infatuation and confusion over US politics with the latest, backtracking Trump cabinet appointments, Japan’s government is quietly but coercively pushing to upload the whole nation into a cloud-based data-sharing system.
Japanese public raises concern over the intentions of the 8th Council meeting
On November 12 (JST) the government’s Digital Administrative and Financial Reform Council held its eighth meeting, attended by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Digital Transformation (DX) Minister Masaaki Taira. Following the meeting, they released a document detailing their discussion, which reads like a page out of a Sci-Fi novel.
For some, repeated references to local digital currencies to revitalize economies, the use of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) to boost regional initiatives and other data-oriented projects, and the use of DAOs (decentralized autonomous organizations) seem to signal a bright future for the land of the rising sun. But not all are convinced the sugary-sounding plans are well-intentioned.
“For digitalization, we want a Japanese-made NEC system! … It is not okay to adopt systems made by China or South Korea!” one critic said on social media platform X.
As Cryptopolitan has previously reported, the push for “Digital Transformation” in Japan by figures such as DX minister Masaaki Taira and opposition leader Yuichiro Tamaki is reaching fever pitch. Combine this with newly selected “defense geek” (read: Warhawk) PM Shigeru Ishiba, and talk of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), and it’s clear to see why fears of dystopian takeover are on the rise.
The recently released agenda document from the eighth meeting of the council plans for, among other things:
- Use of local digital currencies to revitalize economies.
- “Expanding sales channels for agricultural products using NFTs.”
- Monitoring dairy farms with AI.
- Implementation of robotic care workers in healthcare facilities.
- Replacement of human jobs with robots/automation.
- Up-close bridge and infrastructure inspection with drones in place of humans on-site.
- Autonomous (self-driving) buses and taxis.
- Cloud-based data sharing of education system information ( school attendance, etc.).
- Cloud-based data sharing amongst major auto companies regarding CO2 emissions.
- Cloud-based data sharing of medical information.
- Expanded use of the catch-all ID “My Number” system.
- Medical check-ups conducted online at train stations and post offices.
- “Developing infrastructure to utilize a common system for determining where people are in times of emergency, even in peacetime.”
Japanese bite back at surveillance agenda
“The previous Digital Minister spoke with glee about the fact that a contract had been signed with an overseas company in Government Cloud dollars for system standardization, but how much has the weak yen increased costs?” one X user responded (translated by Google) to the post from the prime minister’s official account.
This would be in reference to Taro Kano, who has controversially advocated the centralized closure of unsuccessful businesses in recent months.
With fears of a draconian globalist agenda running hot, and Westernized local media refusing to see the writing on the wall (or hear the voices of the Japanese people) when it comes to issues like 15-minute cities, perhaps it is more than understandable people are angry.
Many of the country’s economically embattled, tourist-overrun residents don’t want grandma cared for by a robot or at the train station, even with the addition of shiny NFTs and lip service given to cryptocurrency for the sake of political gain.
