Goshi Hosono

Japan's battle-scarred main opposition party Wednesday began choosing a new leader as it seeks to recover from a disastrous showing in December's general election and from years of drift.

A Japanese cabinet minister apologised on Tuesday after appearing to suggest people in nuclear disaster-hit Fukushima could be persuaded to put up with contaminated waste if the government threw cash at them.

Japan's battle-scarred main opposition party Wednesday began choosing a new leader as it seeks to recover from a disastrous showing in December's general election and from years of drift.

A Japanese cabinet minister apologised on Tuesday after appearing to suggest people in nuclear disaster-hit Fukushima could be persuaded to put up with contaminated waste if the government threw cash at them.