Word of the Day: Laissez-faire
There has been a lot of media coverage about Renho, the new leader of The Democratic Party in Japan and the fact that she had dual Taiwanese-Japanese nationality. It was also reported that the Japanese government had taken a laissez-faire attitude towards dual citizenship in Japan.
Although officially Japanese citizens should give up their other nationality and possess only Japanese citizenship on their 22nd birthday, the Japanese government has not enforced this rule.
They have taken a laissez-faire attitude towards dual nationality and shown that they are not willing to get involved in an individual’s choice regarding citizenship.
This is what laissez-faire means: an unwillingness to become involved with or try to influence other people’s activities.
When people take a laissez-faire approach to something, they keep their hands off, and they don’t get involved.