View from The Hill: Albanese tried to be ‘hip’, only to let diplomacy slip
- Written by: Weekend Times
Anthony Albanese has been delivered a stinging rebuke from a former Japanese ambassador to Australia over some tasteless joking on a podcast about his prime ministerial counterpart’s gift of two highly valued
melons.
In a blunt article, Shingo Yamagami, ambassador to Canberra from 2021 to 2023, wrote, “Prime Minister, please enjoy Japan’s sweet and juicy melons without thinking about a women’s anatomy”.
Yamagami’s article in The Australian has elevated the affair into an even more awkward issue for Albanese, with the opposition on Monday calling for an apology to the Japanese PM.
It all goes back to Albanese’s ill-judged decision to invite comedian Nikki Osborne to The Lodge for a podcast. With a stuffed likeness of his dog Toto by his side and a bottle of North of 7 Canadian whisky in view, Albanese, who regularly slides away from awkward questions at news conferences, descended into relaxed, incautious frankness.
There was quick public blowback to his opting for Kylie Minogue when presented with a multiple-choice question about who he’d choose to “shag”. A statement of apology was issued.
The melons have been more of a slow-burn.
When she visited Australia in May, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi had presented Albanese with two large royal melons. These are frequent diplomatic gifts, each worth about $270.
On the podcast, Osborne asked Albanese what had been “the most crap gift you’ve ever received on an overseas jaunt?”
The PM pivoted to “something I got recently here that was pretty strange, but ended up being quite good. […] The Japanese prime minister brought a melon”.
After some banter Albanese referred to receiving a “couple of melons”.
He gestured in front to his chest to describe the size of the fruit. “She brought two, as you do”.
Osborne said, “She just came in looking like Pamela Anderson”, referring to the actress who had breast enhancement and a long run of appearances in Playboy.
“She brought two, and they’re beautiful,” said Albanese.
It was quickly clear that what seemed a bit of low-rent levity to some in Australia was deeply offensive to some in Japan.
An article in the Japan Times by Waka Ikeda, a Japanese journalist based in Europe, noted that only weeks before Albanese had defended (then) Victorian premier Jacinta Allan over a billboard calling her a witch, saying it was “completely unacceptable to demean, objectify, belittle or offend women”.
Now has come Yamagami’s attack.
“Politicians come and go”, he wrote. “Some are remembered for their accomplishments, while others are remembered for their gaffes. However lighthearted it was intended to be, the recent joke delivered by PM Anthony Albanese at the expense of Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi is how he might be remembered by Japanese who most value the friendship with Australia.”
Yamagami highlighted Albanese’s apparent ignorance. “Although Albanese recalled it as ‘quite strange’, there is nothing strange about Takaichi’s gesture. A crown melon is the most prized fruit in Japan and treasured as something special.”
And then, “What dismayed some was that Takaichi has recently been subject to derogatory remarks about her body and gender,” he wrote, referring to insults from a Chinese consul-general in Osaka and from Japanese opposition politicians.
“With all this, the last thing she expected was to be so casually mocked by the trusted leader of Japan’s special strategic partner.”
Yamagami also noted Albanese’s absence from a recent dinner in Canberra to mark an anniversary of the Japan-Australia Basic Treaty of Friendship and Co-operation, and said more widely there was an “apparent paucity of strategic thinking”.
It should be noted that Yamagami and Labor have scratchy history. He has previously written that in opposition, Penny Wong, then shadow foreign minister, had summoned him in 2021 for a meeting to caution him over being so outspoken about China. After Labor came to power, he did not finish his term in Canberra.
Those around Albanese are fighting back over the melons affair, insisting the PM did not say anything derogatory of Takaichi, with any provocative comment coming from the host, and saying he often used his hands when he talked. They said that previously the Japanese embassy had reached out, understanding the melon affair was a media beat-up. The two leaders had had a good conversation after the recent Japanese earthquake, the sources said.
Cabinet minister Tanya Plibersek, a strong feminist, stood by Albanese on Monday, totally rejecting the former ambassador’s interpretation of the podcast. She insisted it was a “complete misinterpretation”.
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor said Albanese should directly apologise to Takaichi. The prime minister doesn’t intend to do that.
The only winner out of the controversial podcast appears to have been Osborne – the PM’s problems have ensured her maximum publicity.
Albanese, who has not made a bilateral visit to Japan since taking office (although he did attend a Quad meeting in Tokyo immediately after winning in 2022) will encounter Takaichi during the coming “summit season”, which will take him to the United Nations and the G20 as well as various other meetings.
No doubt she will be unfailingly polite. Presumably there will be no mention of melons.
Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
