| 1 | The Empress Dowager of the Qing Dynasty attended to state affairs for several decades. | |
| 2 | This was the site of the well known 'power behind the throne' or 'behind the screen'. | |
| 3 | It's thought that during his last three years in the White House, his wife Edith made all presidential decisions. | |
| 4 | The DPJ is stuffed with backbenchers loyal to Ichiro Ozawa, an old-timer who resigned from the party leadership because of a fund-raising scandal but who still undermines Mr Kan. | |
| 5 | Thaksin made an emotional return from exile on Thursday, swearing to stay out of politics despite a widespread belief he would run the country from behind the scenes. |