Nuclear policy decision making and deliberative democracy a comparative analysis of deliberative poll in Japan and Korea

Abstract

A deliberative poll（DP）is a new type of democratic process in which citizens selected at random from the voters are educated on and discuss given political issues, and then the results are reflected in policy. An example of this occured in 2012 when the Japanese government conducted a DP on nuclear power generation goals for 2030. As a result, support for abolishing nuclear power increased significantly. On the other hand, in 2017, the Korean government conducted a DP on the construction of the Shin-Gori nuclear reactors and on future nuclear policy. As a result, support for the continued construction of the reactors and phase out of nuclear power was strengthened. In Japan's DP compared with that of Korea's, Japan's selected citizens were far less representative of the population, stakeholder's involvement was nonexistent, and the government was much less committed.