Japanese Newspapers :: Friday, October 31, 2008

Daily Yomiuri Online  Click

• FTC: 4 Sapporo officials rigged bids
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 31, 2008)
  The Fair Trade Commission has notified the Sapporo municipal government of the names of four of the city's officials involved in alleged bid-rigging of 33 public works projects ordered by the municipality between 2003 and 2005. continued ...


• MSDF plane picked up sailor who injured self while drunk
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 31, 2008)
  A Maritime Self-Defense Force petty officer who sustained an injury after drinking to excess was transported by a P-3C patrol plane from an airbase in Iwoto island on Oct. 16, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned. continued ...


• Editorial: Aso faces tough battle with choices he made
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 31, 2008)
  Prime Minister Taro Aso has chosen financial and economic stimulus measures over a dissolution of the House of Representatives. To deal with the global financial crisis, which Aso described as a one that happens only once in a century, the government must implement measures quickly. continued ...

The Asahi Shimbun  Click

• Aso pledges 27 trillion yen to fire up economy
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 31, 2008)
  Prime Minister Taro Aso on Thursday announced a new economic stimulus package that will free up about 5 trillion yen in taxpayers' money to cushion the impact of the global financial crisis. continued ...

The Japan Times  Click

• Prime minister's crisis political, not financial
  (The Japan Times) Friday, Oct. 31, 2008
  By MASAMI ITO, Staff writer
  Prime Minister Taro Aso's desire to address the global financial crisis appears to be why a snap election won't be called anytime soon, but political analysts have another take: He just wants to avoid a losing battle. continued ...


• Economic mess arrived to trump election chance
  (The Japan Times) Friday, Oct. 31, 2008
  By MASAMI ITO, Staff writer
  Prime Minister Taro Aso announced his intention Thursday to postpone dissolving the Lower House and calling a snap election. continued ...


• Aso unveils ¥27 trillion stimulus package
  (The Japan Times) Friday, Oct. 31, 2008
  By TAKAHIRO FUKADA, Staff writer
  Prime Minister Taro Aso unveiled a fresh stimulus package Thursday that includes about ¥2 trillion in benefits payments to households, expressway toll cuts and record tax breaks on home loans. continued ...


• Tokyo police hope to put scare into Halloween train pranksters
  (The Japan Times) Friday, Oct. 31, 2008
  (The Associated Press) While many anticipate the appearance of ghosts and ghouls over Halloween, police and railway authorities in Tokyo have something more frightening to worry about: naked, drunken revelers. continued ...

Kyodo

• Opposition criticizes ASDF chief over controversial essay
  Oct 31 10:48 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 31 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Opposition parties on Friday criticized a controversial essay written by the top officer in the Air Self-Defense Force denying Japan's wartime aggression in other Asian countries and calling for the country's use of the right to collective self-defense to be authorized. continued ...


• Defense chief announces dismissal of air force chief over essay on war
  Oct 31 09:17 AM US/Eastern
  (AP) - TOKYO, Oct. 31 (Kyodo)—Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada announced Friday Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Gen. Toshio Tamogami will be dismissed over a controversial essay he wrote justifying Japan's aggression in other Asian countries such as China and South Korea. continued ...


• Defense chief to dismiss ASDF chief over essay: sources
  Oct 31 08:04 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 31 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada plans to dismiss Air Self- Defense Force Chief of Staff Gen. Toshio Tamogami for writing a controversial essay, government sources said Friday. continued ...


• ASDF chief justifies Japan's wartime aggression in Asia
  Oct 31 07:17 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 31 (AP) - (Kyodo) — Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Gen. Toshio Tamogami justifies Japan's military aggression in China and other Asian regions before and during World War II in an essay released Friday, saying it is "false" to accuse Japan of having been an aggressor nation. continued ...


• High court sees military involvement in Okinawa suicides, favors Oe
  Oct 31 05:31 AM US/Eastern
  OSAKA, Oct. 31 (AP) - (Kyodo)—The Osaka High Court recognized Friday that the Imperial Japanese Army was involved in the mass suicide of civilians during the 1945 Battle of Okinawa, dismissing an appeal by a former military officer and the kin of another in a libel suit against novelist Kenzaburo Oe and his publisher over descriptions in his book. continued ...


• U.S. Marines call off planned firing drill in Kyushu early next year
  Oct 31 04:59 AM US/Eastern
  OITA, Japan, Oct. 31 (AP) - (Kyodo)—The U.S. Marine Corps based in Okinawa Prefecture has called off live shell firing exercises scheduled from mid-January to mid- February at the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force's Hijudai firing range in Oita Prefecture, eastern Kyushu, Japanese Defense Ministry officials said Friday. continued ...


• Petition for retrial of 'Yokohama Incident' accepted
  Oct 30 09:18 PM US/Eastern
  YOKOHAMA, Oct. 31 (AP) - (Kyodo) — The Yokohama District Court on Friday accepted the petition for a retrial filed by the bereaved family members of a late journalist who was convicted in the so-called "Yokohama Incident," known as the nation's worst case of repression of free speech during the war, their lawyers said. continued ...

Marines call off January drill in Japan

Kyodo News Agency
Posted : Friday Oct 31, 2008 7:39:26 EDT

OITA, Japan — The Marine Corps based in Okinawa has called off live-shell firing exercises scheduled from mid-January to mid-February at the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force’s Hijudai firing range in Oita prefecture, eastern Kyushu, Japanese Defense Ministry officials said Friday.

U.S. military officials told the ministry Thursday that the Marine Corps has given up on the plan because of operational circumstances, the officials said.

The planned drill would have been the first since the Marine Corps signed an agreement with Japanese authorities in November 2007 allowing it to use small arms at the Hijudai firing range.

Okinawa-based Marines began to conduct live-shell firing exercises outside the prefecture in 1997, in a bid to lessen the burden on Okinawa, which is home to the bulk of U.S. military forces in Japan.

Japan Fires General Who Said a U.S. ‘Trap’ Led to the Pearl Harbor Attack

By NORIMITSU ONISHI
Published: October 31, 2008

TOKYO — A high-ranking Japanese military official was dismissed Friday for writing an essay stating that the United States had ensnared Japan into World War II, denying that Japan had waged wars of aggression in Asia and justifying Japanese colonialism.

The Defense Ministry fired Gen. Toshio Tamogami, chief of staff of Japan’s air force, late on Friday night, only hours after his essay was posted on a private company’s Web site. The quick dismissal seemed intended to head off criticism from China, South Korea and other Asian nations that have reacted angrily to previous Japanese denials of its militarist past.

The defense minister, Yasukazu Hamada, said the essay included an “inappropriate” assessment of the war, adding, “It was improper for a person in his capacity as air force chief of staff to publicly state a view clearly different from the government’s.”

In the essay, General Tamogami, 60, elaborated a rightist view of Japan’s wartime history shared by many nationalist politicians. But it was a rare formulation from inside Japan’s military, which, as Japan has been shedding its postwar pacifism in recent years, has gained a more prominent role.

Japan’s military — whose operations are restricted by the nation’s war-renouncing Constitution — should be allowed to possess “offensive weaponry” and widen its defense activities with allies, the general also wrote.

The article was posted on the Web site of a real estate developer called Apa Group after taking the $30,000 first prize in an essay-writing contest sponsored by the company.

General Tamogami wrote that Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941 and thereby drew the United States into World War II after being caught in “a trap” set by President Roosevelt.

“Roosevelt had become president on his public pledge not to go to war, so in order to start a war between the United States and Japan, it had to appear that Japan took the first shot,” he wrote.

He denied that Japan had invaded China and the Korean Peninsula, arguing that Japanese forces became embroiled in domestic conflicts on the Asian continent.

“Even now, there are many people who think that our country’s aggression caused unbearable suffering to the countries of Asia during the Greater East Asia War,” he wrote, using the term favored by Japan’s right to refer to World War II. “But we need to realize that many Asian countries take a positive view of the Greater East Asia War. It is certainly a false accusation to say that our country was an aggressor nation.”

Since the mid-1990s, the Japanese government has officially apologized for its wartime past and acknowledged its aggression in Asia. But in recent years, nationalist politicians belonging to the right wing of the long-governing Liberal Democratic Party have waged a campaign to revise Japan’s wartime history.

Few politicians have spoken as comprehensively as General Tamogami did. Instead they have telegraphed their sympathies with the rightist view of history. The current prime minister, Taro Aso, in the past publicly praised Japanese colonial rule on the Korean Peninsula. Mr. Aso, whose family’s mining business used forced laborers during World War II, also said Koreans gladly adopted Japanese names.

Hours before the general’s dismissal, Mr. Aso said, “Even though he published it in a private capacity, given his position, it is not appropriate.”

Last year, Shinzo Abe, then the prime minister, drew anger in Asia and the United States by denying the Japanese military’s involvement in recruiting the wartime sex slaves known euphemistically as “comfort women.”

His comments led the United States House of Representatives to adopt a nonbinding resolution calling on Japan to acknowledge and apologize for its wartime sex slavery. Japan has yet to respond.

A version of this article appeared in print on November 1, 2008, on page A6 of the New York edition.

Off-limits liberty policies in place for protection

October 31, 2008
Current Operations & Exercises
Lance Cpl. Stefanie C. Pupkiewicz

Editor's note: The following is part of a continuing series of articles highlighting the Marine Corps Bases Japan and III Marine Expeditionary Force order 1050.7, the Liberty Campaign Order, signed by III MEF and MCBJ Commanding General Lt. Gen. Richard C. Zilmer Sept. 29.

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa (October 31, 2008) -- MCBJ and III MEF order 1050.7, the Liberty Campaign Order outlines areas and activities prohibited for Status of Forces Agreement personnel attached to III MEF or MCBJ units.

Areas and activities are designated off limits for a number of reasons but primarily it is because it is not in the best interest of Marines, sailors or other SOFA personnel, said Sgt. Maj. Daniel Fierle, the III MEF sergeant major.

Safety is the reason areas such as caves, gun positions, heavily-vegetated areas, hills, tunnels not used for vehicles and bodies of water in the Northern Training Area and Camp Gonsalves are off limits.

Construction and flight line areas are also prohibited to all personnel, according to the order.

Burial sites and tombs are off limits to personnel as these sights are sacred to the Okinawan people, said Fierle. Exceptions to this order are made for family members and those participating in ceremonies.

There are also areas around Camp Schwab in Henoko Village that are closed to personnel unless sponsored and escorted by a local national. These areas are the baseball field, playgrounds and the fishing boat pier.

Around Camp Hansen, Kin-Cho Athletic Field and the Ryuku Sanitarium are off limits to all personnel unless escorted by a local national.

Residential areas are also off limits unless the personnel are residents of the area or they are invited by a resident, according to the order. Personnel can travel through these areas but they must remain on the provided roadways and sidewalks.

All schools, Department of Defense, public or private, are off limits to personnel unless they are students or parents of students attending that school or employees of the school, according to the order. Personnel must attain written permission from the main office of the school to speak to a student on school grounds.

Maintaining propriety and the safety of personnel are the major considerations for designating an area or activity off limits, said Fierle and Sgt. Maj. Cevet Adams, the MCB Camp Butler sergeant major.

Because of safety concerns for service members, establishments that are identified as violating established laws can be placed off limits, Adams said. Reasons can include liquor violations, drug abuse, illicit gambling, terrorist activities or prostitution.

The commanding general of the III MEF, Lt. Gen Richard C. Zilmer has designated the following areas off limits: Club Hideaway, Shampoo, Orange Boom and the Ground Tobacco Shop.

In addition to prohibited areas, there are also prohibited activities as prescribed by the new order.

According to the order, activities that present a hazard to the health and welfare of personnel are prohibited: cliff diving, bungee jumping, bridge jumping, hang-gliding and parachuting.

Numerous locations exist throughout the Okinawan coastline and inland areas, such as Hiji and Aha Falls, where SOFA personnel have been observed engaging in cliff diving and bridge jumping, according to Shawn Curtis, occupational safety and health specialist for the Base Installation Safety Office.

"These locations are often shallow especially during low tide periods or periods of limited rainfall in the case of fresh water locations. Jumping from high locations into shallow water depths can cause severe injury or loss of life," Curtis said.

Curtis went on to say one reason hang-gliding, parachuting and similar activities are prohibited is because companies in many overseas locations offering these activities are not controlled or sanctioned as they are in the United States, which may place service members at undue risk.

The operation of all-terrain vehicles, go-karts and unlicensed motorcycles on public roadways, on base or off, is prohibited by the order.

Service members found in an off-limits area or participating in a prohibited activity will be in violation of Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

Though not subject to the UCMJ, non-military SOFA personnel can face loss of command sponsorship if found in violation of the order.

Prohibited areas and activities are enforced to protect our forces and to help maintain troop welfare, Adams said.

The MCBJ/III MEF Order 1050.7, the Liberty Campaign Order, can be accessed on-line at the MCB Camp Butler adjutant SharePoint homepage at the following CAC-protected site: https://wss.mcbbutler.usmc.mil/G1/Adjutant/default.aspx. Under the directives links, click MCBJ/III MEF orders and locate MCBJ/III MEF Order 1050.7.

Farmers demand payment for fields damaged in crash

Date Posted: 2008-10-31

“My sugar cane field is a mess” says a Nago City area farmer whose crop was damaged by a single engine aircraft that plowed into it making a crash landing Friday night.

The farmer says “I lost my sugar cane. It’s flattened down, so I have no sugar left for shipment.” Seiichi Nagata has told Nago City’s mayor “I want the American military to pay compensation. My income comes from this sugar cane and it’s gone.” The 59-year-old sugar farmer isn’t alone in his demand for payment from the U.S.

An 83-year-old woman who raises sweet potatoes at the crash site says he, too, wants the Americans to pay. “I lost my sweet potatoes,” says Yasuko Miyahira. “I felt so afraid when I heard about the accident, and I want the Americans to pay compensation and make my field back to its original condition.”

The crash has refueled political demands Americans stop flying over populated civilian areas, quickly pay compensation for damages, and to explain and apologize to residents. The Kadena base commander, Colonel Kelly Fletcher, visited the crash site over the weekend before making a call to the Nago City mayor, Yoshikazu Shimabukuro, to apologize.

That wasn’t enough, says Makiya area director Kenji Kina. “Why did Colonel Fletcher not come and apologize to us. He should come to our place.”

Some politicians are already comparing the Friday Cessna crash with an August 2004 crash of a U.S. Marine Corps heavy lift helicopter onto the campus of Okinawa International University. They say the U.S. military’s lack of cooperativeness in connection with last week’s crash is hampering the investigation, as was done after the helicopter crash four years ago.

Kadena uncooperative in plane crash investigation

Date Posted: 2008-10-31

Okinawa Prefecture Police trying to investigate a plane crash in a sugar cane field near Nago City are being stymied by Kadena Air Base officials who have ignored requests to talk to the pilot and passengers.

The light Cessna airplane belonging to the Kadena Aero Club crash landed in the Makiya area field early Friday evening while returning from a flight to Kagoshima Prefecture’s Amamioshima. Four men were aboard the plane when it clipped power lines and struck the ground. Officials say the aircraft had run out of fuel, explaining why there was no post-crash fire.

Police say they’ve asked to speak with the four men to learn exactly what happened, but say Kadena officials have not responded to their request. Prefecture Police also want to know information about the flight, which originated at Kadena, and want to know if there was a flight recorder onboard.

Nago City Police are equally unhappy with Kadena. The aircraft wreckage was removed from the crash site Saturday and taken to the military base despite having been told by Okinawa Prefecture Police not to. Police want to know firsthand whether the plane did, in fact, run out of fuel. Minutes before the 6:30 p.m. crash the Defense Agency had received a call from Kadena, which operates the radar systems for flights on the island, asking for help, saying “our Cessna airplane has an empty fuel tank.”

Police say Kadena has refused to surrender the wreckage or provide access to it, despite inter-government agreements that allow it. They say the military has refused to even identify the four men on the ill-fated flight.

Military officials say only one of the four men aboard the plane was injured. No injuries occurred on the ground. The crash severed power lines, cutting electric service to dozens of homes.

Two Marines apprehended for fleeing taxi driver on base

Date Posted: 2008-10-31

It took nearly two months, but military investigators got their men.

Military police were able to identify and apprehend two young Marines who ripped off a taxi driver on Kadena Air Base about midnight August 30th.

The 22-year-old corporal and 20-year-old lance corporal are assigned at Camp Schwab, police said. They both have confessed to taking a taxi from Nago City to Kadena Air Base, telling the driver to take them onto the base, after which they jumped from the taxi and fled, leaving a ¥9,680 ($101) bill.

The taxi driver chased the GI’s, but couldn’t catch them. He reported the incident to the military police station and the manhunt was under way. Okinawa City Police have the case now, and are preparing to send the case to the Naha District Prosecutor’s Office.

Kadena uncooperative in plane crash investigation

Date Posted: 2008-10-31

Okinawa Prefecture Police trying to investigate a plane crash in a sugar cane field near Nago City are being stymied by Kadena Air Base officials who have ignored requests to talk to the pilot and passengers.

The light Cessna airplane belonging to the Kadena Aero Club crash landed in the Makiya area field early Friday evening while returning from a flight to Kagoshima Prefecture’s Amamioshima. Four men were aboard the plane when it clipped power lines and struck the ground. Officials say the aircraft had run out of fuel, explaining why there was no post-crash fire.

Police say they’ve asked to speak with the four men to learn exactly what happened, but say Kadena officials have not responded to their request. Prefecture Police also want to know information about the flight, which originated at Kadena, and want to know if there was a flight recorder onboard.

Nago City Police are equally unhappy with Kadena. The aircraft wreckage was removed from the crash site Saturday and taken to the military base despite having been told by Okinawa Prefecture Police not to. Police want to know firsthand whether the plane did, in fact, run out of fuel. Minutes before the 6:30 p.m. crash the Defense Agency had received a call from Kadena, which operates the radar systems for flights on the island, asking for help, saying “our Cessna airplane has an empty fuel tank.”

Police say Kadena has refused to surrender the wreckage or provide access to it, despite inter-government agreements that allow it. They say the military has refused to even identify the four men on the ill-fated flight.

Military officials say only one of the four men aboard the plane was injured. No injuries occurred on the ground. The crash severed power lines, cutting electric service to dozens of homes.

Japanese Newspapers :: Thursday, October 30, 2008

Daily Yomiuri Online  Click

• Govt eyeing 5 tril. yen boost for economy
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 30, 2008)
  The government and the ruling bloc have agreed to set aside about 5 trillion yen for measures in the government's additional economic stimulus package, The Yomiuri Shimbun learned Wednesday. continued ...


• Aso to announce delay to election / Prime minister to explain decision to reluctant New Komeito head Ota
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 30, 2008)
  Prime Minister Taro Aso likely will reveal Thursday he will not dissolve the House of Representatives for a general election anytime soon, according to sources in the ruling coalition. continued ...


• DPJ to tackle govt on 2nd extra budget
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 30, 2008)
  Senior leaders of the Democratic Party of Japan met Wednesday and decided to confront the government and the ruling coalition over a second supplementary budget for fiscal 2008 expected to be submitted by the government. continued ...

The Asahi Shimbun  Click

• 35 find missing pension records
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 30, 2008)
  BY FUKUKO TAKAHASHI
  In rare good news from the scandal-plagued Social Insurance Agency, 35 senior citizens have found missing public pension records that will enable them to receive their long-overdue pension payments. continued ...


• Finance Ministry expects 5 trillion yen decrease in tax revenue
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 30, 2008)
  Overall tax revenue for fiscal 2008 will fall more than 5 trillion yen ($50.8 billion) short of the government's 53.5-trillion-yen estimate, due mainly to poor corporate performances, the Finance Ministry said. continued ...


• Aso to delay election until 2009
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 30, 2008)
  Prime Minister Taro Aso will postpone a Lower House election at least until January to deal with the financial crisis and perhaps give his party more time to drum up support, sources said. continued ...

The Japan Times  Click

• No 'concrete' intelligence on Kim
  (The Japan Times) Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008
  (Bloomberg) Prime Minister Taro Aso wasn't citing specific intelligence reports when he speculated that North Korea's Kim Jong Il is still running the hermit state, the government's top spokesman said Wednesday. continued ...


• EDITORIAL: Crisis knocking at Japan's door
  (The Japan Times) Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008
  The global financial crisis is battering the Japanese stock market and threatening the real economy. The erratic Nikkei 225 index dipped below 7,000 at one point this week, the lowest in about 26 years, and the recent gains of the yen against the dollar and euro cast a dark spell over companies that underpin the Japanese economy with exports. continued ...


• EDITORIAL: Unconvincing MSDF report
  (The Japan Times) Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008
  Last week the Defense Ministry made public an interim report on the death of a petty officer 3rd class from an acute subarachnoid hemorrhage 16 days after a "training fight" on Sept. 9 at the Maritime Self-Defense Force's First Service School in Etajima, Hiroshima Prefecture. The petty officer, who had joined the training course for members of the MSDF special task force, was forced to fight 15 fellow members, one after another, with each fight lasting one minute. continued ...

The Mainichi Daily News  Click

• Debate on 'anti-terror' fuel supply operations neglects suffering of Afghan people
  (Mainichi Japan) October 30, 2008
  The bill for a New Anti-Terrorism Special Measures Law, which will permit the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) to continue refueling operations in the Indian Ocean for another year, has become fodder for political maneuvering, as the ruling and opposition parties squabble over a timetable for the dissolution of the House of Representatives. As a journalist who has reported on the Peshawar-kai, the Fukuoka-based nongovernmental organization that pioneered in providing aid to Afghanistan, I do not believe that refueling operations will do much to stamp out terror. I am also very sorry that we are letting an opportunity slip by. We should be reconsidering how to support the increasingly troubled nation of Afghanistan and reassessing Japan's involvement in the war on terror. Instead, we have relegated the matter to the sphere of politics. There are only two and a half months before the first Anti-Terrorism Special Measures Law expires. I think we should debate the matter thoroughly, even if we have to conduct an election in the meantime. continued ...

Kyodo

• Opposition parties rap Aso over tax hike plan, election delay
  Oct 30 09:33 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 30 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Opposition parties criticized Prime Minister Taro Aso on Thursday for his plan to raise the consumption tax and for his failure to call an early general election, signaling they would engage in a heated battle with the government and ruling parties ahead. continued ...


• Gist of fresh economic package
  Oct 30 06:17 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 30 (AP) - (Kyodo)—The following is the gist of fresh economic stimulus measures unveiled by Prime Minister Taro Aso on Thursday to cushion the negative impact on livelihoods from the global financial crisis. continued ...


• Aso says majority of public favors economic stimulus over election
  Oct 30 05:41 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 30 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Prime Minister Taro Aso said Thursday that a majority of the public favors economic stimulus measures rather than discussing the political situation, suggesting he does not have an intention to immediately dissolve the House of Representatives for a general election. continued ...


• Japan may mull extra sanctions on N. Korea depending on situation
  Oct 30 12:35 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 30 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Prime Minister Taro Aso suggested Thursday that the government may consider imposing more sanctions on North Korea if Pyongyang fails to fulfill its promise to launch a reinvestigation into its abductions of Japanese nationals. continued ...


• Drunk and injured MSDF Officer airlifted on P-3C
  Oct 30 12:25 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 30 (AP) - (Kyodo)—A 46-year-old Maritime Self-Defense Force officer was transported from its air base on Iwojima Island to the Atsugi base in Kanagawa Prefecture by a P-3C patrol airplane after he had consumed alcohol and injured himself, MSDF officials said Thursday. continued ...

Opposition parties rap Aso over tax hike plan, election delay

Oct 30 09:33 AM US/Eastern

TOKYO, Oct. 30 (AP) - (Kyodo) — Opposition parties criticized Prime Minister Taro Aso on Thursday for his plan to raise the consumption tax and for his failure to call an early general election, signaling they would engage in a heated battle with the government and ruling parties ahead.

"If he says he will raise the tax after three years, the public will not loosen their purse strings," main opposition Democratic Party of Japan Secretary General Yukio Hatoyama said, adding that the DPJ will continue to pressure Aso to dissolve the House of Representatives for an election.

The remarks came after Aso said during a press conference to unveil a new economic stimulus package worth 26.9 trillion yen that he will give cash benefits to households, but wants to raise the consumption tax from the current 5 percent after three years. He also indicated he will not immediately call an election in order to address public concerns first amid the severe economic condition.

Japanese Communist Party leader Kazuo Shii said, "Concerns of the public about their livelihood will not wane if he declares that a big tax hike is in the works."

On handing out cash benefits worth 2 trillion yen, he said, "It cannot be helped but being called vote-buying measures by using public money."

Social Democratic Party leader Mizuho Fukushima called the economic measures "no good," while Hisaoki Kamei, secretary general of another small opposition party, the People's New Party, said Aso should call an early election.

"After all, the reality is that Prime Minister Aso delayed dissolving the lower house because he got scared about the result of public opinion surveys," DPJ Acting President Naoto Kan said prior to Aso's press conference.

"By delaying the dissolution, I think the Aso Cabinet will rapidly become a lame duck Cabinet," Kan added, saying that Aso's two predecessors resigned because they lost their grasp on leadership by avoiding calling an election.

The two predecessors -- Shinzo Abe and Yasuo Fukuda -- both suddenly announced their resignations after just less than a year in office, having faced sluggish support ratings and struggling in the Diet following the ruling coalition's loss in the upper house election in July last year. Aso's approval rating has slipped to around 40 percent in some media polls now.

Meanwhile, Azuma Koshiishi, who heads the DPJ's House of Councillors caucus, declared that the DPJ will engage in a fight with the government and the ruling parties in parliament, saying, "We've cooperated until now, but there was no dissolution (of the lower house). Of course, we will change our tactics."

The DPJ had recently adopted a cooperative approach with the ruling parties in managing Diet affairs in the hope that helping Aso address his priorities would lead him into calling an election.

Among key issues in the ongoing Diet session is a government bill to extend Japan's refueling mission in support of U.S.-led antiterrorism operations in and near Afghanistan.

Aso is also considering submitting a second supplementary budget for fiscal 2008 to finance the stimulus steps. Passing the legislation is closely linked to his decision on dissolving the lower house, Aso said.

Naval Refueling Mission in the Indian Ocean

The Japan Times

• Verhagen calls on Japan to continue MSDF tour
  Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008
  By JUN HONGO, Staff writer
  Japan should continue its naval refueling mission in the Indian Ocean and together with the Netherlands shoulder its share of international efforts to secure peace in Afghanistan, Dutch Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen said during a lecture Monday in Tokyo. continued ...


• EDITORIAL: Needs of the Afghan people
  Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2008
  The Lower House Tuesday passed a bill to extend by one year the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean — a sign of Japan's commitment to international efforts to contain terrorism. The opposition-controlled Upper House will vote down the bill. But the Lower House is expected to take a second vote to enact it toward the end of October, riding on a two-thirds majority of the ruling coalition. continued ...


• Aso pushes for MSDF Indian Ocean mission as Diet debate begins
  Saturday, Oct. 18, 2008
  (Kyodo News) Prime Minister Taro Aso pressed the case Friday for continuing Japan's controversial refueling mission in the Indian Ocean next year as full debate on the issue began in the Diet. continued ...

Kyodo

• DPJ to step up confrontation with ruling parties over refueling bill
  Oct 26 10:21 AM US/Eastern
  (AP) - TOKYO, Oct. 26 (Kyodo) — The main opposition Democratic Party of Japan plans to step up its confrontation with the ruling parties over the government's bill to extend Japan's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean, given that Prime Minister Taro Aso has indicated his reluctance to call a general election anytime soon, DPJ lawmakers said Sunday. continued ...


• Aso vows to continue refueling mission in meeting with Pakistani PM
  Oct 25 08:30 AM US/Eastern
  (AP) - BEIJING, Oct. 25 (Kyodo) — Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso, meeting Saturday with Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani, vowed to do his utmost to continue Japan's antiterrorism refueling mission in the Indian Ocean, a Japanese official said. continued ...


• Lower house passes bill to extend Japan's refueling mission
  Oct 21 07:41 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 21 (AP) - (Kyodo) — A bill to continue Japan's refueling mission in support of U.S.-led antiterrorism operations in and near Afghanistan through to next year passed the House of Representatives on Tuesday, with the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan shying away from using tactics to delay a vote to resist the bill. continued ...


• Lower house panel passes bill to extend Japan's refueling mission
  Oct 20 04:29 AM US/Eastern
  (AP) - TOKYO, Oct. 20 (Kyodo) — A House of Representatives panel on Monday passed a bill to continue next year Japan's refueling mission in support of U.S.-led antiterrorism operations in and near Afghanistan, paving the way for the lower house to approve it in a plenary session on Tuesday. continued ...


• Aso at SDF review pledges to continue refueling mission
  Oct 18 10:38 PM US/Eastern
  OMITAMA, Japan, Oct. 19 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Prime Minister Taro Aso reiterated Sunday that he is resolved to continue the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean next year to help U.S.-led antiterrorism operations in and near Afghanistan. continued ...


• U.S. commander hopes Japan will continue refueling mission
  Oct 9 07:05 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 9 (AP) - (Kyodo)—U.S. Pacific Command Commander Adm. Timothy Keating voiced his hope Thursday that Japan will continue its antiterrorism refueling mission in the Indian Ocean next year in a meeting with Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada, a Japanese official said. continued ...

Agence France-Presse (AFP)

• Japan lower house votes to extend Afghan mission
  Tue Oct 21, 2:13 am ET
  TOKYO (AFP) – Japan's lower house of parliament voted Tuesday to extend a controversial naval mission backing US-led operations in Afghanistan. continued ...

The New York Times

• Japan Moves to Extend Afghan Naval Mission
  Published: October 21, 2008 - Filed at 2:25 a.m. ET
  (By REUTERS) TOKYO, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Japan took a step towards extending its naval mission in support of U.S.-led military operations in Afghanistan on Tuesday, when parliament's lower house approved a bill extending its mandate for another year. continued ...

Japanese sailor killed by colleagues in 'farewell ritual'

The Japan Times

• EDITORIAL: Unconvincing MSDF report
  Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008
  Last week the Defense Ministry made public an interim report on the death of a petty officer 3rd class from an acute subarachnoid hemorrhage 16 days after a "training fight" on Sept. 9 at the Maritime Self-Defense Force's First Service School in Etajima, Hiroshima Prefecture. The petty officer, who had joined the training course for members of the MSDF special task force, was forced to fight 15 fellow members, one after another, with each fight lasting one minute. continued ...

Mail Online

• Japanese sailor killed after being forced to fight 15 classmates in 'farewell ritual'
  Last updated at 9:39 AM on 23rd October 2008
  A Japanese sailor who had asked to leave an elite training program died after he was made to fight 15 of his classmates as part of a farewell ritual. continued ...

Telegraph.co.uk

• Japanese sailor killed by colleagues in 'farewell ritual'
  Last Updated: 4:24AM BST 23 Oct 2008
  Japan's defence minister has admitted that a farewell "ritual" that led to the death of a sailor "went over the edge."
  By Julian Ryall in Tokyo
  The 25-year-old petty officer, who has not been named, had submitted a request to resign from an elite training programme, conducted at the Maritime Self Defence Force's base in Etajima, southern Japan. continued ...

Associated Press

• Kick-boxing farewell ritual kills Japanese sailor
  Oct 22 12:21 PM US/Eastern
  By MARI YAMAGUCHI, Associated Press Writer
  TOKYO (AP) - A Japanese sailor dropping out of an elite navy training program died in an unofficial farewell ritual requiring him to fight 15 classmates, the Defense Ministry said Wednesday. continued ...

Kyodo

• Fatal group combat rite unnecessary in defense service: report
  Oct 22 07:05 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 22 (AP) - (Kyodo) — A group combat "training" rite that led to the death of a Maritime Self-Defense Force sailor in a defense academy last month can hardly be recognized as necessary though some students may have perceived it as a "tradition," the Defense Ministry said in an interim report Wednesday. continued ...

Baker opens U.S.-Japan advisory service

News Sentinel staff
Originally published 01:00 p.m., October 29, 2008
Updated 01:00 p.m., October 29, 2008

Former Tennessee senator and U.S. ambassador to Japan Howard Baker has launched a consulting service to advise Japanese companies looking to invest or expand their business interests in the United States.

Japan-U.S. Strategic Advisory will advise clients on trends and developments affecting U.S.-Japan relations and business opportunities and risks developing around the world, according to a statement released today by Baker.

“Japan and the United States remain the world’s largest economies and closest allies, but they face new challenges as the 21st century unfolds — in world markets, in international security, in energy security,” said Baker, a Republican and former Senate Majority Leader who currently is senior counsel at the law firm Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz.

According to Baker, he and his advisers will monitor world developments, assess their importance and future impacts, develop scenarios for planning and provide strategic advice. The Baker advisory service promotes direct dialogue between the former senator and White House chief of staff under President Reagan and business leaders in Japan.

Advisers with Japan-U.S. Strategic Advisory include former Democratic senator J. Bennett Johnston, Japan’s former vice minister of foreign affairs, Shotaro Yachi, and Japanese professor Shuzaburo Takeda.

Ambassador Howard Baker Announces Japan-U.S. Strategic Advisory

Business Wire 2008
2008-10-29 11:16:02

Today, former Senator and Ambassador to Japan Howard H. Baker, Jr. announced the launch of a new consulting service, The Japan-U.S. Strategic Advisory. The Baker Advisory serves leading Japanese companies that are investing or expanding their business activities in the U.S., as well as companies seeking a broader strategic outlook for a new political and economic era.

Japan and the United States remain the world's largest economies and closest allies, but they face new challenges as the 21st century unfolds-- in world markets, in international security, in energy security," said Ambassador Baker, who currently serves as Senior Counsel at Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC. "In a global economy shaken by energy and financial shocks, I'm convinced that we need to bolster our bilateral relationship by encouraging greater economic interaction between our private sectors."

The Baker Advisory will create for each client a "strategic map of the world" focusing on the trends and developments that affect the U.S.-Japan relationship and the business opportunities and risks developing daily around the globe. Ambassador Baker and his advisors will systematically monitor key developments, assess their importance and future impacts, develop scenarios for planning purposes, and provide strategic advice directly to senior business leaders. A key component of the new service is the process of a one-on-one dialogue and exchange of views between Ambassador Baker and business leaders in Japan.

The Baker Advisory utilizes a wide array of advisors including distinguished former officials and experts from the U.S. and Japan. Former Democratic Senator J. Bennett Johnston, who served for 24 years in the U.S. Senate and was the highly respected Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, serves as an advisor. Today Senator Johnston is considered Washington's most influential "wiseman" on energy issues. Also serving as advisors are former Japanese Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Shotaro Yachi, considered one of Japan's most knowledgeable and best connected authorities on the United States, and Professor Shuzaburo Takeda, who has long been a trusted advisor to Ambassador Baker and has an unparalleled network of contacts in government, business and academia in Japan, the United States and globally. Working with experts like Johnston, Yachi and Takeda, the Baker Advisory provides unique, multi-national perspectives on economic and political developments in Japan, the U.S. and the world.

Ambassador Baker has served with distinction in a number of positions in the United States including: U.S. Ambassador to Japan, Chief of Staff to President Ronald Reagan, and as Senate Majority Leader. Ambassador Baker has been awarded the Medal of Freedom by the President of the United States and the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia Flowers by the Emperor of Japan. For additional information, please go to: www.bakerdonelson.com.

Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC is one of the 100 largest law firms in the country. Through strategic acquisitions and mergers over the past century, the Firm has grown to include more than 550 attorneys, and public policy and international advisors. Baker Donelson represents clients across the U.S. and abroad from offices in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Washington, D.C., and a representative office in Beijing, China.

Rational PR
Annette Larkin

Camp Foster Marine indicted for stealing taxi

Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Thursday, October 30, 2008

NAHA, Okinawa — A 22-year-old Marine assigned to Camp Foster was indicted on Monday for driving away in a taxi earlier this month in Chatan.

Lance Cpl. Matthew J. Eckersen was charged with stealing the car, driving under the influence of alcohol and failing to report traffic accidents that he caused during the ensuing car chase, according to a spokesman for Naha District Public Prosecutor’s Office. Charges against another Marine were dropped Friday because of insufficient evidence.

Eckersen drove away in the taxi at about 6:45 p.m. on Oct. 5 in Chatan’s American Village shopping district, with his Marine friend in the back seat, according to police reports.

While the cab driver called police, fellow cabbies chased the car in their taxis, according to the report.

The pursuit came to an end 30 minutes later when the stolen car became inoperable because it had struck five cars waiting at a red light, police said.

A hearing has yet to be scheduled, the spokesman said.

Keep 'em guessing :: Aso, having a pretty good crisis, plays for time

Oct 30th 2008 | TOKYO
Illustration by David Simonds

NOTCH this up for Taro Aso, Japan’s third unelected prime minister from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in little more than two years: he is now unlikely to beat Japan’s record of 54 days for its shortest-lived leader. Give the wily Mr Aso credit, too, for leading the opposition by the nose since he came to office on September 24th. The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) had thought it had Mr Aso’s assurance that he would soon dissolve the Diet (parliament) and call a snap election, one which the DPJ’s leader, Ichiro Ozawa, claims will shatter the post-war structure of LDP-led politics. An election date of November 30th was probable. To bring on the moment, the DPJ, which controls the Diet’s upper house, hastened the passage of LDP bills rather than obstructing them. It fine-tuned its list of candidates, and ran up campaign posters. A palpable excitement ran through the opposition camp.

But then on October 30th, with a poker face, Mr Aso suggested that now was no time for a frivolous election. The global financial crisis called for firm leadership. A wave of selling has sent the stockmarket down to levels not seen in almost 30 years. Hedge funds have unwound with a vengeance a once-profitable “carry trade” for which they had borrowed the Japanese currency: this has sent the yen surging, while households have also rushed to bring yen home. Japan’s financial institutions, it turns out, have created their own toxic derivatives, thanks to complex foreign-currency products sold to retail investors that are now blowing up. Meanwhile, banks count shareholdings as a crucial part of their capital. So after the stockmarket falls, the banks’ capital suddenly looks weak. The government has drawn up a raft of emergency measures to restore confidence, many of which Mr Aso also unveiled on October 30th (see article). He has a duty, he says, to see them through.

Mr Aso has also discovered international obligations. After attending the Asia-Europe summit in Beijing, he says Japan needs a fully functioning prime minister for the Group of 20 countries’ emergency meeting on the financial crisis, to be held in Washington on November 15th. And a week after that there is the summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation, APEC, A Perfect Excuse to Chat.

All responsible stuff. But an unspoken reason for delay is a slide in his ratings. Mr Aso has long been a fairly popular politician for getting out and shaking hands. An upbeat style makes a refreshing change from his two predecessors. Most importantly, he has outpolled the bruiser Mr Ozawa, even though voters have consistently said that they prefer the DPJ to the LDP-led coalition. From the start, Mr Aso’s strategy was to capitalise on this paradox. His aim was to paint the election, when it came, as a contest between himself and Mr Ozawa, whose robustness has been undermined by poor health. A contest based on personalities would be an exception.

Yet Mr Aso’s standing in opinion polls has slid since he took office, narrowing the gap with Mr Ozawa: his honeymoon was brief indeed. The economic storm has given him reason to hang on, but not helped his popularity. Mr Aso is wealthy and likes the high life. For all but five nights of his first month, he and his retinue went out to expensive bars and restaurants. He no doubt deserves his cigar and brandy. But as Japan tightens its belt, his irritable defence of how he likes to unwind has grated.

As for the eventual date for an election, Mr Aso appears content to extemporise. Most LDP leaders agree that the economic turmoil makes early polls inadvisable, and one is not due until next September. However, the government’s junior coalition partner, New Komeito, is upset at Mr Aso’s change of mind. Next summer it faces municipal elections in Tokyo, its power-base. It worries that it lacks the resources to fight two elections back-to-back, and will continue to push for an early poll.

The opposition, outfoxed by Mr Aso, is temporarily flummoxed. Susumu Yanase, the DPJ’s election-affairs chief in the upper house, says the party is rapidly having to rethink its strategy. Having supported Mr Aso’s first supplementary budget, it might look irresponsible if it opposed Mr Aso’s new emergency measures. As for the other legislation crucial to the LDP—reauthorising the bill that keeps Japanese navy tankers on a refuelling mission in the Indian Ocean, for the war in Afghanistan— Mr Yanase says the DPJ lacks the leverage it had last year, when its blocking tactics succeeded in bringing the vessels home for a period. Now, Mr Aso has enough time to pass the bill by using the government’s supermajority in the lower house before the current mission expires in mid-January.

Apart from seeming to enjoy himself as prime minister, Mr Aso may have a final reason for not wishing to call a general election soon: that he might win it. No one expects the LDP coalition to keep its supermajority, but it has a chance of retaining a slim majority. For some LDP modernisers, that would be the worst outcome: an unprincipled ruling party without a scrap of reforming zeal under Mr Aso, combined with a hung Diet promising gridlock.

For as long as November 30th was the mooted date for an election, conspiracies within the LDP mounted. Hidenao Nakagawa, a former chief cabinet secretary and enemy of the bureaucracy, and Yuriko Koike, a former defence minister, wondered about leading followers of Junichiro Koizumi, the reformist prime minister who dominated politics from 2001-06, out of the party. Mr Aso’s economy minister, Kaoru Yosano, a fiscal conservative, and Hiroyuki Sonoda, the LDP’s deputy policy chief, have been urged to form a new political party following an Aso win, teaming up with pragmatic reformists in the DPJ (who are unhappy with their own leader). Such a move after an LDP victory could instantly bring Mr Aso down, and usher in DPJ-led rule. But now, all hands are at the pump to deal with the financial tempest; conspiracies have been put on hold.

Military Cessna crashes in Okinawa Sugar Cane Field

Stars and Stripes

• Cessna 'crash' draws complaint
  Pacific edition, Thursday, October 30, 2008
  Nago major says U.S. interfered with probe; flights are suspended
  By Natasha Lee and Chiyomi Sumida, Stars and Stripes
  CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — The Nago mayor filed a complaint Tuesday with the top U.S. military leader on the island, saying military police interfered with an investigation after a Cessna piloted by Americans made an emergency landing Friday night near a sugar cane field. continued ...

Kyodo

• Okinawa assembly raps U.S. military for seizing crash-landed plane
  Oct 27 04:25 AM US/Eastern
  NAHA, Japan, Oct. 27 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Members of the Okinawa prefectural assembly rapped the U.S. military on Monday for seizing a light plane that crash-landed in a sugarcane field before an investigation by local police, citing a bilateral agreement protecting U.S. military personnel and facilities. continued ...

Aero-News.Net

• C172 Transporting Four Airmen Down On Okinawa, One Injured
  Sun, 26 Oct '08
  Japanese Police Investigators Blame Fuel Starvation
  All four US Airmen aboard a Cessna 172 walked away from a forced landing Friday night on Okinawa, Japan. continued ...

Associated Press

• US airman injured in Japan plane accident
  Sat Oct 25, 4:41 am ET
  TOKYO – A small plane carrying four U.S. airmen burst into flames after an emergency landing on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa, leaving its pilot with minor injuries, officials said Saturday. continued ...

Japanese Newspapers :: Wedesday, October 29, 2008

Daily Yomiuri Online  Click

• MSDF officer found guilty in Aegis leak / 1st ruling under 1954 law to protect secrets
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 29, 2008)
  YOKOHAMA--The Yokohama District Court on Tuesday found a Maritime Self-Defense Force lieutenant commander guilty of leaking classified information on the Aegis naval air defense system. continued ...


• Ending local govt misspending / Govt must review system for granting subsidies to prefectures
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 29, 2008)
  Akihisa Aoyama / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer
  The central and prefectural governments are under pressure to thoroughly review the state subsidy system for local authorities following the discovery by the Board of Audit that 12 prefectural governments have used such funds for purposes other than those for which they were originally intended. continued ...


• Editorial: MSDF leaks must be plugged
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 29, 2008)
  The judiciary on Tuesday condemned the government organization in charge of national defense for its impermissibly sloppy information management. continued ...

The Asahi Shimbun  Click

• MSDF officer guilty of leaking Aegis data
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 29,2008)
  YOKOHAMA--The district court here Tuesday found a Maritime Self-Defense Force officer, who gave information about the Aegis destroyer to a fellow MSDF member, guilty of leaking military secrets. continued ...


• Aso to postpone Lower House election until next year
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 29,2008)
  Prime Minister Taro Aso will postpone a Lower House election until at least January to deal with the financial crisis and perhaps give his party more time to drum up support, sources said. continued ...


• Survey: 57% say early election not needed
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 29,2008)
  More than half of voters feel an early Lower House election is unnecessary, as concerns seem more focused on dealing with the global financial crisis, an Asahi Shimbun survey showed. continued ...


• EDITORIAL: Lower House election
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 29,2008)
  As the nation's economy continues to be buffeted by crashing stock prices and the yen's sharp rise against the dollar, the ruling coalition is leaning increasingly toward postponing its plan to dissolve the Lower House in time for a Nov. 30 snap election. continued ...

The Japan Times  Click

• Aso reportedly won't call election this year
  (The Japan Times) Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008
  Market crisis trumps political wars: sources
  By MASAMI ITO, Staff writer
  Word spread quickly Tuesday through the Nagata-cho political center that Prime Minister Taro Aso will not dissolve the Lower House and call a general election until next year so he can focus on the faltering economy. continued ...


• MSDF officer found guilty of misusing Aegis data
  (The Japan Times) Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008
  YOKOHAMA (Kyodo) The Yokohama District Court found a Maritime Self-Defense Force officer guilty Tuesday of mishandling defense secrets linked to the U.S.-developed Aegis missile system but suspended his prison sentence. continued ...


• Akiba hands antinuke petition to U.N.
  (The Japan Times) Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008
  NEW YORK (Kyodo) Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba has presented a petition with 370,000 signatures to U.N. General Assembly President Miguel d'Escoto calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons. continued ...


• Aso wary of Afghan deployment
  (The Japan Times) Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008
  (Kyodo News) Prime Minister Taro Aso struck a negative note Tuesday on a possible dispatch of the Self-Defense Forces to Afghanistan, citing legal restrictions on engaging in combat. continued ...

The Mainichi Daily News  Click

• Selected Columns: International community 'approves' India's membership in the nuclear club
  (Mainichi Japan) October 29, 2008
  (By Takuji Nakao, Vienna Bureau)
  The 30-year-old nuclear embargo against India, who is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and has been conducting nuclear experiments, was lifted last month, allowing India to officially import nuclear technology and atomic fuel. This is the same as the international community approving India's membership in the nuclear club. Without a doubt, this is an "NPT crisis." The result will certainly erode countries' motivation in taking the NPT seriously, as well as inflate the egos of countries such as North Korea and Iran who are suspected of engaging in nuclear activities. As the only country to have ever suffered from a nuclear attack, should Japan not play an active role in sustaining the NPT framework? continued ...

Need for more sanctions on N. Korea suggested to resolve abductions

Oct 29 04:14 AM US/Eastern

TOKYO, Oct. 29 (AP) - (Kyodo) — Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Iwao Uruma suggested Wednesday that imposing more sanctions on North Korea should be considered in order to resolve the issue of its abductions of Japanese nationals.

"What is important is whether we can generate enough pressure to make North Korea really feel troubled," Uruma said at a meeting of officials of ministries concerned with the abduction issue.

Uruma said that the sanctions currently imposed will not serve as pressure on North Korea if they do not affect the country, adding, "It is necessary to decide how to apply pressure in the future."

Kyoko Nakayama, Prime Minister Taro Aso's special adviser on the abduction issue, also attended the meeting.

Japan has recently extended its economic sanctions against the North as Pyongyang has yet to fulfill its promise to launch reinvestigations into the abduction cases.

Embarrassed Japan PM doesn't know his noodles

Wed Oct 29, 2:28 am ET

TOKYO (AFP) – Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso, already under fire for his taste for luxuary, was caught out by opponents when he badly overestimated the price of instant noodles.

Japan's opposition has tried to cast Aso as an out-of-touch patrician, as Asia's largest economy feels the pain from a global financial crisis.

Asked in parliament late Tuesday how much a package of Cup Noodles would cost at a supermarket, Aso said: "I think it used to be very cheap, but now it costs around 400 yen (4.12 dollars), doesn't it?"

An opposition lawmaker immediately retorted that a cup of instant noodles -- popular with Japanese on a tight budget -- actually costs around 170 yen.

Aso admitted with a wry smile: "I don't buy them myself these days."

Since taking office in late September, Aso has faced media and opposition criticism for going almost every night to high-end bars and restaurants, despite growing signs of recession in Japan.

Aso has defended himself, saying that he needs time to unwind at night and goes out at his own expense.

The premier has also argued that he cannot go to small places due to the number of security guards and journalists following him.

The cigar-smoking, dapper-dressing Aso hails from an elite family with extensive business interests. He has opted to stay in his sprawling house in an expensive district of Tokyo rather than move into the prime minister's residence.

However, he has also tried to project himself as a common person by speaking of his love for comic books.

Aso is expected to hold off calling elections until next year, saying he wants to focus instead on reviving the economy.

Japan Doesn't Have `Concrete' Intelligence on North Korea's Kim

By Takashi Hirokawa and Toko Sekiguchi

Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso wasn't citing specific intelligence reports when he speculated yesterday that North Korea's Kim Jong Il is still running the communist state, the government's top spokesman said.

"It's not that we have detailed information," Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura told reporters in Tokyo today. "Yesterday the prime minister spoke, but it's not as if we have something concrete."

During a session of the upper house of Parliament yesterday, Aso cited reports that Kim "may be hospitalized." Japanese officials don't believe "he's incapable of making decisions," Aso said, responding to a question about Japan's intelligence gathering.

Kim's absence at North Korea's 60th anniversary parade on Sept. 9 provoked media reports speculating he was suffering from ill health, which North Korean officials deny.

North Korea's state-run Korea Central News Agency reported on Oct. 4 that Kim attended a university soccer match, without publishing pictures or specifying when the game took place. It said on Oct. 11 that Kim toured a military base known as "KPA Unit 821," without saying when the visit took place or where the camp is located.

To contact the reporters on this story: Takashi Hirokawa in Tokyo at thirokawa@bloomberg.net; Toko Sekiguchi in Tokyo at Tsekiguchi3@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: October 28, 2008 23:38 EDT

Japanese Newspapers :: Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Daily Yomiuri Online  Click

• PM holds talks to delay lower house poll
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (Oct. 28, 2008)
  Prime Minister Taro Aso has held talks with government officials and ruling bloc lawmakers to discuss putting off a House of Representatives election so that measures to stem the global financial crisis can be prioritized, sources close to Aso and senior Liberal Democratic Party officials said Monday. continued ...


• Aso Corp. sold defective bridge items
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (Oct. 28, 2008)
  Apparently defective resin panels sold by a firm run by Prime Minister Taro Aso's younger brother to a building contractor were installed on elevated bridges along the Kyushu Shinkansen line before it opened in March 2004, according to sources. continued ...


• Momentum builds for putting off dissolution
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (Oct. 28, 2008)
  Hidetoshi Ikebe and Hajime Furukawa / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers
  The global credit crunch is forcing Prime Minister Taro Aso to rethink his strategy for dissolving the House of Representatives and calling a general election. continued ...


• China developing ethnic Korean area / Move to turn DPRK border region into trading base could cut smuggling
  (Daily Yomiuri Online) (Oct. 28, 2008)
  Tetsuya Suetsugu / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer
  CHANGBAI KOREAN AUTONOMOUS COUNTY, China--Shortly after 7 p.m. on a day when the Yalu River, which marks a national border between China and North Korea, was shrouded in darkness, the silhouettes of two men could be seen. continued ...

The Asahi Shimbun  Click

• Survey: 33 percent want an early Lower House election
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 28,2008)
  More than half of voters feel an early Lower House election is unnecessary, as concerns seem more focused on dealing with the global financial crisis, an Asahi Shimbun survey showed. continued ...


• Aso urges steps to stabilize markets
  (The Asahi Shimbun) (IHT/Asahi: October 28,2008)
  Prime Minister Taro Aso on Monday instructed government and ruling coalition executives to take all possible steps to stabilize rocky financial markets, including easing accounting rules on banks. continued ...

The Japan Times  Click

• GSDF stages huge defense drill
  (The Japan Times) Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008
  BETSUKAI, Hokkaido (Kyodo) The Ground Self-Defense Force held its biggest homeland defense drill in nearly a quarter of a century Monday in Hokkaido, mobilizing some 3,000 personnel and digging some 2,000 hillside caves and trenches to hide troops, tanks and command posts. continued ...


• Verhagen calls on Japan to continue MSDF tour
  (The Japan Times) Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008
  By JUN HONGO, Staff writer
  Japan should continue its naval refueling mission in the Indian Ocean and together with the Netherlands shoulder its share of international efforts to secure peace in Afghanistan, Dutch Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen said during a lecture Monday in Tokyo. continued ...


• Aso hoping to meet with U.S. president-elect
  (The Japan Times) Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008
  (Kyodo News) Prime Minister Taro Aso has sounded out close aides of the two U.S. presidential candidates about arranging a meeting with the winner on the sidelines of an emergency summit of the Group of 20 economies on Nov. 15 in Washington, government sources said. continued ...


• Aso denies report he's shelved election plan
  (The Japan Times) Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008
  (Kyodo News) Prime Minister Taro Aso on Monday denied a media report that he has notified a senior ruling Liberal Democratic Party member he will not dissolve the House of Representatives for a general election "for the time being." continued ...


• SENTAKU MAGAZINE: DPJ leadership after Ozawa
  (The Japan Times) Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008
  At an extraordinary convention of the Democratic Party of Japan in Tokyo on Sept. 21, DPJ leader Ichiro Ozawa surprised party members by declaring that the upcoming Lower House election will be his last opportunity to lead a nationwide political campaign. continued ...


• THE ZEIT GIST: WWII forced labor issue dogs Aso, Japanese firms
  (The Japan Times) Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008
  By WILLIAM UNDERWOOD, Special to The Japan Times
  After evading the issue for more than two years, Taro Aso conceded to foreign reporters on the eve of becoming prime minister that Allied POWs worked at his family's coal mine in Kyushu during World War II. continued ...

The Mainichi Daily News  Click

• PM to abandon calling general election within this year to avoid political vacuum
  (Mainichi Japan)
  Prime Minister Taro Aso is set to abandon calling a general election within this year to avoid a political vacuum as the global financial crisis is adversely affecting the economy, ruling coalition officials said. continued ...

Kyodo

• Aso negative about SDF dispatch to Afghanistan
  Oct 28 07:20 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 28 (AP) - (Kyodo)—Prime Minister Taro Aso struck a negative note Tuesday on a possible dispatch of Japan's Self-Defense Forces to Afghanistan, citing legal restrictions on their activities in the event of conflict overseas. continued ...


• Japan scrambles against fewer foreign planes in 1st half of FY 2008
  Oct 28 07:14 AM US/Eastern
  TOKYO, Oct. 28 (AP) - (Kyodo) — Air Self-Defense Force fighter jets were scrambled against foreign airplanes violating Japanese airspace 106 times in the April to September period this year, compared with 166 times in the same period last year, Japanese Defense Ministry officials said Tuesday. continued ...


• MSDF officer avoids prison over intelligence data leak incident
  Oct 28 03:11 AM US/Eastern
  (AP) - YOKOHAMA, Oct. 28 (Kyodo) — The Yokohama District Court found a Maritime Self-Defense Force officer guilty over the leakage of intelligence linked to the U.S.- developed Aegis defense system within the force in 2002. continued ...


• Defense officer found guilty over intelligence data leak incident
  Oct 28 12:29 AM US/Eastern
  YOKOHAMA, Oct. 28 (AP) - (Kyodo)—The Yokohama District Court found a Maritime Self-Defense Force officer guilty over the handling of intelligence linked to the U.S.-developed Aegis defense system within the force in 2002. continued ...

FOCUS: Aso's intention to delay election could spell bumpy road ahead

October 28 2008 21:47
TOKYO, Oct. 28 KYODO

Prime Minister Taro Aso declared on the eve of taking office in late September that his ''mission'' is to call a House of Representatives election in a bid to give the ruling coalition a boost against the opposition bloc in the divided Diet.

But a month into his job, the 68-year-old prime minister appears to be hoping to cling to his post for as long as possible in the face of unexpectedly severe global economic conditions, and speculation is rife that the election will be postponed until next year.

Postponing the election until next year, however, would not necessarily benefit Aso, as tough confrontations with the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan and possible friction with his Liberal Democratic Party's coalition partner, the New Komeito party, over the election schedule would follow, some pundits say.

Aso has not publicly said he will avoid an early election, but some experts think he may delay it all the way until the current term of lower house members ends in September 2009, while trying to notch up some notable achievements in the meantime.

Aso, an outspoken former foreign minister, was elected as LDP president in late September to become prime minister, reflecting hope in the ruling party that his strong name recognition would bring victory at the next general election which was then widely expected to be called in the near future.

In a monthly publication issued in October, Aso made comments in an article, which he said he wrote shortly before taking office, that implied his determination to dissolve the lower house possibly at the beginning of the ongoing extraordinary Diet session that was convened late September.

''At the opening of the Diet, I would like to openly present my policies and the LDP's policies to (DPJ) President (Ichiro) Ozawa and ask him whether he is for or against them, and go to the people,'' Aso said in the publication, while adding that his ''first mission is to seek the judgment of the public.''

But the deepening U.S.-triggered credit crisis and tumbling global stock prices have apparently made him think twice, leading him to say he will prioritize implementing economic measures over calling an election.

His approval rating at the time of his government's inauguration also proved to be lower than the initial rating of his predecessor Yasuo Fukuda, and is further slipping to around 40 percent in some media polls now.

Mikitaka Masuyama, a Keio University professor specializing in politics, said that Aso seems to have had in mind from the start the two options of either holding an election shortly after drawing voters' attention through a ''festive'' LDP presidential election or delaying it until the term for the lower house members expires.

''And the U.S. financial problem gave him a reason to choose the latter option,'' he said.

With the key Nikkei index closing Monday at its lowest level in 26 years in a reflection of the current global economic crisis, a source close to the prime minister said, ''Speedy reaction is vital for market measures. There is no time to think about a dissolution (of the House of Representatives).''

But delaying the election could also mean running the risk of being forced into dissolving the lower house for a snap election without being able to find a suitable time amid bleak economic prospects.

''If we miss the right time for a dissolution, there will be no option (left) and the administration will just crumble,'' said a senior House of Councillors member of the ruling coalition who is involved in Diet affairs.

Aso is the third prime minister from the LDP who has not had to face a general election since the ruling coalition of the LDP and New Komeito secured a two-thirds majority in the lower house in September 2005 under then Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

In contrast to the popular Koizumi's five and a half years in office, his successors Shinzo Abe and Fukuda both suddenly announced their resignations after just less than a year in office, having faced sluggish support ratings and struggled in the Diet following the ruling coalition's loss in the July 2007 upper house election.

With an eye on the next general election, Aso is likely to continue focusing on delivering results, especially on the economy, such as by seeking to implement additional pump-priming measures in response to the global financial crisis.

He has already succeeded in passing a fiscal 2008 supplementary budget and in filling a post in the Bank of Japan leadership which had been vacant for the last six months due to political wrangling, thanks to the more cooperative approach the DPJ adopted recently in the hope that helping Aso clear his priorities would eventually pressure him into calling an election.

But now that the election is likely to be delayed, the DPJ is showing signs of returning to a more confrontational stance that would make it difficult for Aso to swiftly pass key proposals in the Diet, including a government bill to extend Japan's refueling mission in support of U.S.-led antiterrorism operations in and near Afghanistan beyond its expiry in January.

DPJ Diet affairs chief Kenji Yamaoka told reporters Tuesday that the DPJ will refuse to hold a vote on the refueling bill in the opposition-controlled upper house this month, saying, ''We will thoroughly deliberate necessary issues.''

Earlier in October, former Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said that if Aso decides not to hold an election in November, it is also not likely to be held in December, as doing so could disrupt the year-end work of compiling the state budget for fiscal 2009 starting next April.

Machimura also referred to the possibility of an election being held in April after the state budget for the next fiscal year is enacted, or in September when the lower house members' terms run out.

But a delay in the election is likely to draw opposition from New Komeito, which has been calling for an early election as it wants more time to fully prepare for the Tokyo metropolitan assembly election to be held next summer.

New Komeito, which is backed by the major lay Buddhist organization Soka Gakkai, has provided the LDP with a powerful vote-gathering machine in elections.

Tensions arose between the two parties in the closing days of the Fukuda administration, especially over differences in election strategy, prompting speculation that the discord had pressured Fukuda into deciding to step down.

Keio professor Masuyama said the current global financial crisis has served as a ''convincing reason'' for Aso to persuade New Komeito over not holding an early election, but friction ''could emerge'' if the election were to be delayed much further.

Despite the expected difficulties, Aso, also a manga comic enthusiast, appeared upbeat during a stump speech Sunday in Tokyo's Akihabara district, known as a magnet for anime and computer geeks.

''On diplomacy and the economy, Taro Aso is the most useful politician right now. That's my personal belief,'' he told a cheering crowd.

==Kyodo