Mizuno Land Scandal

The Mizuno Land Scandal was a major Yamataian political scandal that occurred in 2003. Yamataian government officials were found to be taking large bribes from the Hanabishi-kai Gokudo group.

Following the murder of an anti-corruption officer, a probe by the Yamataian National Police Agency into the Hanabishi-kai's activities eventually uncovered a large-scale corruption ring that reached as high as Itaya Keiichi, the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism at the time. Corrupt officials in the Land Ministry provided the Hanabishi-owned Mizuno Land and Development Company with favourable land prices and development contracts for government infrastructural upgrade projects, as well as assisting the criminal organisation with evicting existing land owners.

The scandal heavily impacted Yamataian politics. Since 1997, the government had been led by Watanabe Tadao and the Democratic Party of Yamatai, the opposition to the traditionally dominant Yamatai Restoration Party, and had been achieving very good public confidence due to the Watanabe cabinet's strong and sustained response to the aftermath of the 1997 Hasukuni earthquake, an improving economy, and upgrading of public infrastructure. Foreign analysts also believed that the DPY's leadership of Yamatai would usher a new era of Yamataian foreign policy, due to the DPY's centre-left political leanings.

In the aftermath of the scandal, Watanabe and his cabinet resigned, and the Yamatai Restoration Party regained their leadership of Yamatai in the subsequent elections under Morito Tatsuya.