Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Futenma May deadline a political time bomb

    THE ASAHI SHIMBUN

    2010/04/20

    Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama will face intense pressure to step down if his government fails to reach a decision on relocating the Futenma air base in Okinawa Prefecture to an island in southern Japan by his self-imposed end of May deadline.

    In a move largely seen as driven by desperation, the government has started the groundwork to officially seek consent from local leaders on Tokunoshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture to relocate elements of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa.

    It's a high-stakes gamble, and the cards are stacked against Hatoyama.

    "If the decision is not made to relocate the functions to Tokunoshima, the Cabinet will have to resign en masse," said a Democratic Party of Japan Upper House member who is up for re-election this summer.

    A middle-ranking DPJ lawmaker said the prime minister "finds himself driven into a corner--and it is he who is shooting himself in the foot."

    Time is running out for the prime minister, and pressure is mounting on his administration that appears to be out of options.

    As the slew of bad news bombarded the government, Hatoyama read the headlines and lost his temper.

    "(The reports are) totally unfounded," he reportedly grumbled in front of an aide.

    The news concerned Hatoyama's promise to resolve the issue of relocating the Futenma facility by the end of May.

    Organizers of a rally in Tokunoshima on Sunday said 15,000 people gathered to oppose the government's plan.

    A slide in the Cabinet's support rate didn't help matters.

    But what really got under Hatoyama's skin was a media report suggesting that U.S. President Barack Obama questioned his ability to "follow through" on his promises during informal talks in Washington last week.

    "President Obama never said such a thing," sources quoted an exasperated and angry Hatoyama as saying during a meeting Sunday.

    Washington has insisted the Futenma base be relocated to the Henoko area of Nago in Okinawa Prefecture under a 2006 Japan-U.S. agreement.

    However, that option appears closed with the election of an anti-base mayor in Nago earlier this year.

    The Japanese side planned to hold working group talks involving Japanese and U.S. officials, and then convey their decision to the candidate site for the relocation.

    Washington, however, maintains that it cannot discuss a relocation plan without consent from local authorities affected.

    The mayors of three municipalities on Tokunoshima island, as well as Kagoshima Governor Yuichiro Ito, have all opposed the plan.

    Hatoyama told reporters Sunday's rally on Tokunoshima island is only "one expression of the public opinion."

    Cabinet members have begun preparations to present an official request to Tokunoshima after April 25, when a new rally is slated in Okinawa Prefecture to protest any Futenma relocation plans within the prefecture.

    Some government officials are making various simulations, including moving ahead a DPJ presidential election from September, on the assumption that Hatoyama may resign before the Upper House election.

    Hatoyama said he would "risk his life" over the Futenma issue. But he also said that stepping down would only undermine public faith in a DPJ government.

    "I will certainly not abandon the administration," Hatoyama has been quoted saying.

    Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano said at a news conference Monday that even if a conclusion cannot be reached by the end of May, Hatoyama would not have to resign.

    Some officials said the government's failure to inform local authorities of its intentions concerning Futenma has led to confusion in these communities.