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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 10 TOKYO 002322 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR E, P, EB, EAP/J, EAP/P, EAP/PD, PA; 
WHITE HOUSE/NSC/NEC; JUSTICE FOR STU CHEMTOB IN ANTI-TRUST 
DIVISION; TREASURY/OASIA/IMI/JAPAN; DEPT PASS USTR/PUBLIC AFFAIRS 
OFFICE; SECDEF FOR JCS-J-5/JAPAN, 
DASD/ISA/EAPR/JAPAN; DEPT PASS ELECTRONICALLY TO USDA 
FAS/ITP FOR SCHROETER; PACOM HONOLULU FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY 
ADVISOR; CINCPAC FLT/PA/ COMNAVFORJAPAN/PA. 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO PGOV PINR ECON ELAB JA
 
SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 04/28/06 
 
 
Index: 
 
1)   Top headlines 
2)   Editorials 
3)   Prime Minister's daily schedule 
 
Abductee kin on Capitol Hill: 
4)   Abductee Megumi Yokota's mother asks Congress for help 
5)   President Bush to meet with abductee kin 
 
USFJ realignment: 
6)   JDA sets ceiling at 2.8 billion dollars in Japan's cost 
  sharing for Marine relocation to Guam 
7)   Japan to outlay 6 billion dollars in 6 years for Guam 
relocation 
8)   USMC to move Okinawa-based troops to Guam in 6 years 
9)   Ruling, opposition parties upset about Japan's 3-trillion- 
yen force realignment cost 
10)  Boos, woes over 3 trillion yen 
11)  Diet to debate 3 trillion yen cost 
 
Political topics, etc.: 
12)  Prime Minister Koizumi to go on African trek, China on his 
  mind 
13)  Prime Minister Koizumi declines retirement money, urges 
local governors to give up as well 
14)  JDA to disband DFAA 
15)  GOJ, ruling coalition to work out growth strategy 
16)  Japan hesitant about "more kids": GOJ poll 
 
Articles: 
 
1) TOP HEADLINES 
 
Asahi: 
Health, Labor, and Welfare Ministry-affiliated company provides 
money to ministry officials under mask of manuscript fees, 
regional taxation bureau discovers 
 
Mainichi: Sankei: 
Sales of derivatives by Sumitomo-Mitsui Bank suspended; Financial 
Services Agency criticizes former executives 
 
Yomiuri: 
Special private corporation under Health, Labor, and Welfare 
Ministry's jurisdiction reports false purchases of stocks worth 
300 million yen, also hides income in profitable businesses; 25 
officials, including former vice minister, disciplined 
 
Nihon Keizai: 
FSA considering injecting public money into Howa Bank; First case 
since reimposition of cap on deposit insurance 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
Sakie Yokota speaks in US House of Representative public hearing; 
Seeks cooperation from US 
 
2) EDITORIALS 
 
Asahi: 
(1)  Conspiracy bill: Do not leave room for abuse 
(2)  Protect greenery: Ways to revitalize forest industry 
 
TOKYO 00002322  002 OF 010 
 
 
 
Mainichi: 
(1)  Japan to pay 3 trillion yen in USFJ relocation: Do not let 
figures take on a life on their own 
(2)  Unification of public pension systems: No change in 
preferential treatment of bureaucrats 
 
Yomiuri: 
(1)  Unification of public pension systems: Is the government 
ready to drastically reform the pension system? 
(2)  Nepal now has to make democratization effort from scratch 
 
Nihon Keizai: 
(1)  Fifty years of Minamata disease: Government must keep tragic 
memory from fading 
(2)  Prime minister should show presence in African diplomacy 
 
Sankei: 
(1)  Takeshima islets issue: We want South Korea to keep its 
pledge 
(2)  Sumitomo-Mitsui Bank should treat its customers right 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
(1)  Unification of public pension systems rendered toothless due 
to opposition from bureaucracy 
(2)  New Iraq administration: Overcome religious and ethnic 
conflicts 
 
3) Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei) 
 
Prime Minister's schedule, April 27 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2)  (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
09:56 
Met Vice Foreign Minister Yachi at Kantei. 
 
10:35 
Met Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Nishida, European Affairs 
Bureau Director General Harada, and others. 
 
11:00 
Met Thai Prime Minister Thaksin 
 
13:51 
Attended the spring garden party at the Akasaka Imperial Palace. 
 
15:16 
Met Secretary General Takebe at Kantei. Followed by METI Minister 
Nikai, METI Trade Policy Bureau Director General Kitamura, and 
Energy Agency Director General Kodaira 
 
16:12 
Met Chief Judge Machida. Later met National Public Safety 
Commission Chairman Kutsukake, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary for 
Crisis Management Noda, and National Police Agency Director 
General Uruma. Followed by Director of Cabinet Intelligence 
Mitani, JDA Defense Bureau Director General Ookuchi, and Defense 
Intelligence Headquarters head Mukunoki. 
 
17:00 
 
TOKYO 00002322  003 OF 010 
 
 
Met Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications/State 
Minister for Postal Services Privatization Takenaka. Attended a 
meeting of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy. 
 
19:24 
Had a hair cut at Muragi Barbershop in the Capital Tokyo Hotel. 
 
20:26 
Returned to his official residence. 
 
4) Japanese abductee's mother calls for US help in US Congress 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Top Play) (Excerpts) 
April 28, 2006 
 
Takashi Matsukawa, Washington 
 
Sakie Yokota, 70, the mother of Megumi Yokota, who was abducted 
by North Korean agents when she was 13 years old, testified in a 
US congressional hearing on April 27. She called for US 
cooperation to resolve the issue, speaking with emotion of how 
she has been feeling as a mother since her daughter was abducted. 
Yokota is the first relative of Japanese abductees to testify 
before Congress. 
 
Yokota attended the second session of hearings with Fukui 
Prefecture University Professor Yoichi Shimada, vice chairman of 
the National Association for the Rescuing of Japanese Kidnapped 
by North Korea. 
 
Yokota explained how her daughter was kidnapped and frankly 
expressed her feeling as the mother of an abductee. She said: "It 
saddens me profoundly and I feel so humiliated whenever I think 
about why we cannot rescue her. . . . We must rescue those people 
from 12 countries who were victimized by outrageous state 
terrorism." 
 
Yokota then called for tough steps to be taken against North 
Korea, saying: "I plead for all countries to join us in saying 
that we will never forgive the abductions and that all the 
victims must be returned immediately or we will impose economic 
sanctions." Professor Shimada disclosed that North Korea had also 
abducted citizens of Lebanon, France, and Thailand. 
 
5) President Bush to meet Sakie Yokota 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 1) (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
Takashi Matsukawa, Washington 
 
The White House announced on April 27 that President Bush would 
meet Sakie Yokota, 70, and other members of the Association of 
the Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea at 11:00 am on 
April 28, local time. 
 
South Korean abduction victims who testified before Congress on 
April 27 will also attend the meeting with the president. 
 
6) Guam relocation; Ceiling for fiscal spending set at 2.8 
billion dollars; Japan-US agree on USFJ realignment; Relocation 
will be completed in fiscal 2012, says JDA 
 
TOKYO 00002322  004 OF 010 
 
 
 
YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
The Defense Agency (JDA) yesterday revealed that Japan and the US 
had agreed that the ceiling of government spending from the 
general account, so-called real water spending, to cover the cost 
of relocating US Marines from Okinawa to Guam as part of USFJ 
realignment be set at 2.8 billion dollars or 310.8 billion yen in 
terms of the exchange rate adopted in the fiscal 2006 budget, 
even if the total amount increases in future calculations by the 
US side. It was also agreed during the talks that the relocation 
be completed in fiscal 2012. 
 
The JDA explained that since the US has yet to finalize a plan to 
consolidate a Guam base, the total amount of 10.27 billion 
dollars, or 1.14 trillion yen, could change. The Japanese side 
has limited any increase in its fiscal spending by setting the 
ceiling on it. There is a possibility that the 3.29 billion 
dollars, or 365.2 billion yen, for investment and loans could 
increase. 
 
The US side reportedly did not reveal the cost of building such 
facilities as a headquarters, training grounds, barracks, and 
school buildings, saying, "Estimates for such costs could change 
in the future." 
 
The construction of those facilities is expected to begin in late 
2007 after an environmental assessment and completed over the 
next five years. 
 
Of 2.55 billion dollars, or 283 billion yen, in the cost of 
housing for families of Marines to be paid by Japan, 1.5 billion 
dollars, or 166.5 billion yen, paid from the national treasury 
will be provided as interest-free loans. Loans worth 1.37 billion 
dollars, or 152.1 billion yen, to cover the construction of 
family housing, power generation, water supply, and sewage 
systems on the base will be with interest. It is assumed that 
complete repayment by the US would take 30 to 35 years. 
 
For family housing, the US will provide land at a low price, and 
a special-purpose company to be set up by the Japanese side will 
rent houses to US servicemen. 
 
7) Guam relocation; Outlay of 6 billion dollars over six years; 
1.5 billion dollars as interest free government loans 
 
MAINICHI (Page 2) (Slightly abridged) 
April 28, 2006 
 
The Defense Agency yesterday released a plan for the relocation 
of a US Marine Corps Command from Okinawa to Guam as part of USFJ 
realignment. According to the plan, the relocation will take six 
years. The construction work will start late next year and the 
relocation will be over in 2012. Japan and the US have recently 
agreed that of the total relocation cost of 10.27 billion 
dollars, or approximately 1.19 trillion yen, Japan will bear 59%, 
or 6.09 billion dollars (approximately 710 billion yen). Japan 
will start paying its share, including loans, from the next 
fiscal year. 
 
For the cost of constructing base-related facilities, such as a 
 
TOKYO 00002322  005 OF 010 
 
 
headquarters building and barracks, up to 2.8 billion dollars, or 
approximately 325 billion yen, in grants will be disbursed from 
the general account. The cost of constructing family housing and 
on-base infrastructure will be covered in the form of investment 
and loans. 
 
In constructing family housing, the government will set up a 
special-purpose company (SPI), by investing 1.5 billion dollars, 
or approximately 175 billion yen, through the Japan Bank for 
International Cooperation (JBIC). Banks and construction 
companies will also invest in this plan. 
 
The SPC will construct and manage housing facilities, receiving 
another 1.05 billion dollars, or approximately 122 billion yen, 
in loans from the JBIC. It will collect rent from US military 
servicemen to recover the investment. 
 
Government loans will be interest free. Interest-free loans and 
loans with interest total 2.55 billion dollars, or approximately 
296 billion yen. The JDA explained that the construction work 
will be efficient with the participation of private companies, 
saving about 420 million dollars, or approximately 49 billion 
yen, in construction costs. 
 
Another SPI will be established for the consolidation of on-base 
infrastructure, such as power generation, water supply, and 
sewage systems. The company will construct and manage power- 
generation facilities, using approximately 740 million, or 
approximately 86 billion yen, in loans through the JBIC. The 
contract will be concluded with the US Navy. The company will 
collect the invested money via monthly electricity, water, and 
sewage expenses added with a portion of the construction cost. 
 
8) Japan, US in accord on completing Guam relocation in six years 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
The Defense Agency explained yesterday that an agreement has been 
reached between Japan and the United States to complete 
relocating Okinawa-based US Marines to Guam by 2012, as was 
announced by US Deputy Defense Under Secretary Richard Lawless. 
For the Guam relocation, Japan aims to begin environmental 
surveys in the current fiscal year and construction work in the 
second half of 2007. 
 
The Defense Agency, however, maintains that there is no clear 
agreement on deadlines for completion of other realignment 
projects, such as the relocation of Futenma Air Station to Camp 
Schwab. The agency thinks the Futenma relocation will take eight 
to ten years. 
 
The government will begin coordination with the United States. It 
is unclear if the two countries can reach an agreement easily on 
relocating US Marines to Guam in six years and Futenma Air 
Station in eight to ten years. The US is certain to be on alert 
against Japan prioritizing the Guam relocation alone. 
 
9) Ruling and opposition blocs dissatisfied with Japan's share of 
3 trillion yen for US force realignment 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Abridged) 
 
TOKYO 00002322  006 OF 010 
 
 
April 28, 2006 
 
The US presentation of Japan's share totaling 2.6 billion 
dollars, or 3 trillion yen, for the realignment of US forces in 
Japan, has sent shockwaves through the country's political 
community. The figure came as a surprise for Japan, although it 
had also informally estimated the realignment cost. Ambiguous 
factors also remain about the realignment completion deadline of 
2012, except for the relocation of Okinawa-based US Marines to 
Guam. With the presentation of US force realignment promotion 
legislation and local coordination coming up, the opposition bloc 
is set to pursue the issue. 
 
Asked about the grounds for US Deputy Defense Under Secretary 
Richard Lawless's estimate of Japan's share of 3 trillion yen, 
Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe told a press conference 
yesterday: "Concerned government offices will first discuss the 
matter thoroughly and then finalize details with the US." 
 
As early as March, a person connected with the government 
revealed that Japan's total share would run to 3 trillion yen. 
Speculation is afoot that the government kept the figure secret 
for over a month in order to avert a strong public backlash in 
the process of bilateral talks. 
 
The dominant view about Lawless's announcement is that he 
underlined the enormous amount of Japan's share to downplay 
America's share. 
 
Although Japan's share is huge, 3 trillion yen would not 
necessarily require new fiscal resources. The Defense Agency is 
considering such means as dissolving the SACO framework and using 
Japan's host nation support. The agency aims to prevent the 3 
trillion yen from taking a toll on other defense-related outlays. 
Some government and ruling party members have also come up with 
such ideas as using the Okinawa promotion budget and the Land, 
Infrastructure, and Transport Ministry's public works spending. 
 
In a press conference yesterday, Minshuto (Democratic Party of 
Japan) Deputy President Naoto Kan criticized the government's 
response, saying, "It's a problem that we learned about Japan's 3- 
trillion-yen share from the United States." Perhaps due to a lack 
of spadework, even ruling party members are complaining, "We have 
no idea about what 3 trillion yen signifies." 
 
In the meantime, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told reporters 
last night, "We are going to have many discussions on Japan's 
share. It'll take time." 
 
The government aims to submit to the current Diet session a US 
force realignment promotion bill incorporating a plan to create a 
system to extend subsidies to base-hosting municipalities. The 
opposition bloc, on the other hand, intends to grill the ruling 
coalition on the ambiguous basis for the estimate. It could 
trigger a new clash between the two blocs. 
 
10) Cabinet ministers also voice questions about 3 trillion yen 
in Japan's cost sharing for USFJ realignment 
 
MAINICHI (Page 2) (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
 
TOKYO 00002322  007 OF 010 
 
 
US Deputy Under Secretary of Defense Lawless has clarified an 
estimate of approximately 3 trillion yen in Japan's cost sharing 
for the realignment of US forces in Japan. This estimate, 
however, is not based on the Japanese government's calculation, 
Defense Agency Director General Fukushiro Nukaga explained in 
yesterday's meeting of the House of Councillors Foreign and 
Defense Affairs Committee. "I think the deputy under secretary 
showed a rough estimate in his mind," Nukaga stated before the 
committee. "But," Nukaga went on, "we've yet to work out a 
detailed estimate of the cost in Japan." He also stated, "After 
reaching a final agreement, we will have to make a clear-cut 
estimate of our own to show in public." With this, Nukaga 
indicated that the Defense Agency is ready to make public its 
estimate in concrete terms after reaching a final agreement with 
its US counterpart. 
 
In the meantime, Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki raised a 
question about the Pentagon-estimated amount in a general meeting 
of his faction in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party yesterday. 
"We will have to scrutinize the estimated cost," Tanigaki said. 
Japan and the United States have now agreed to move US Marines 
from Okinawa to Guam. "We'll have to back up Guam relocation, but 
there's a big figure from them," Tanigaki said, adding: "I think 
it might be something for their own accountability at home." With 
this, he noted that the Pentagon might have overestimated Japan's 
share of the realignment cost out of consideration for public 
opinion in the United States. 
 
11) US estimate of Japan's overall share at 3 trillion for US 
force realignment likely to take center stage in latter half of 
Diet session 
 
MAINICHI (Page 5) (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
US Deputy Defense Under Secretary Richard Lawless recently 
announced that the US estimates Japan's share of the US force 
realignment cost at about 3 trillion yen. In reference to the 
announcement, Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan) Acting 
President Naoto Kan sharply criticized the government in a press 
conference yesterday, saying: "The estimated amount of money 
Japan should pay was shown by the US. This represents a lack of 
accountability by the (Japanese) government and is a serious 
problem. We will strongly criticize the government for such a 
stance." He then called for intensive deliberations at the 
current Diet session. The Japanese Communist Party (JCP) and the 
Social Democratic Party (SDP) are also gearing up to sharply 
attack the government. The cost-sharing issue is thus likely to 
take center stage in the latter half of the Diet session. 
 
In a meeting yesterday of Minshuto's foreign and defense 
departments, many participants reiterated the need for the 
government to disclose the basis for the cost estimate. One 
senior member of the Policy Research Council claimed: "It remains 
unclear how much money will be needed to reduce the current base 
burden on Okinawa. The presence of Marines has almost nothing to 
do with protecting Japan," implying that the US is trying to 
imposed a heavy burden on Japan without any adequate 
justification. 
 
Japan and the US have agreed that Japan will pay 6.09 billion 
dollars, or about 710 billion yen, of the total cost of 
 
TOKYO 00002322  008 OF 010 
 
 
relocating Okinawa-based Marines to Guam. On this agreement, as 
well, SDP Secretary General Seiji Mataichi said: "We cannot 
understand why Japan has to finance part of the cost for the US 
military to construct a base in the US." JCP Secretary General 
Tadayoshi Ichida also said: "The US should pick up the full tab." 
The Lawless statement has added fuel to their criticism. Minshuto 
President Ichiro Ozawa said in a press conference yesterday: 
"Giving priority to the US military strategy, the Koizumi 
administration is about to use taxpayer money in response to US 
demands. Its approach is questionable." He indicated his 
readiness to grill the Koizumi administration over this issue 
while focusing also on its stance of blindly following the US. 
 
12) Prime Minister Koizumi off for Africa tomorrow 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Excerpts) 
April 28, 2006 
 
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi will leave tomorrow for a seven- 
day trip to Ethiopia, Ghana, and Sweden. Koizumi will be the 
second Japanese prime minister, following then Prime Minister 
Yoshiro Mori, to visit sub-Saharan Africa without attending an 
international conference. The aim is to counter China, which has 
carried out active diplomacy in Africa for the purpose of gaining 
their support to prevent Japan from securing a permanent United 
Nations Security Council seat, as well as for purchasing 
resources. 
 
In Ethiopia, Koizumi is expected to meet with Prime Minister 
Meles Zenawi and African Union Commission Chairman Alpha Oumar 
Konare. He plans to hold talks with Ghana's President John 
Agyehum Kufuor. He will explain to these African leaders Japan's 
positive stance of supporting African countries' efforts for 
economic development and for measures against infectious 
diseases. 
 
A government official said, "(The purpose of the prime minister's 
trip to Africa) is to strengthen Japan's diplomatic base, by 
deepening relations with the AU, which is made up of 53 
countries, more than one-fourth of the UN membership." 
 
However, Koizumi is apparently aware of China. 
 
13) Prime Minister Koizumi: "I don't need retirement payment. 
Governors, too, should decline" 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
"Retirement payments for governors and mayors are too much. I 
don't need it. So why don't we ask them to give them up?" Koizumi 
asked this at a meeting yesterday of the Council on Economic and 
Policy. He proposed a plan to abolish retirement benefits for the 
heads of local municipalities. He seems to be thinking that those 
retirement payments are no longer sacred given the financial 
difficulties of the central and local governments. 
 
Governors and mayors receive a retirement payment at the end of 
every term. If they serve several terms, they can get several 
hundred million yen. Some local governments decided this year to 
scrap such a system. 
 
 
TOKYO 00002322  009 OF 010 
 
 
Koizumi will receive 6-7 million yen if he steps down from office 
this fall. 
 
14) Defense Agency produces basic policy to dismantle Defense 
Facilities Administration Agency; Services to be split among 
Defense Agency internal bureau and new organs 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 3) (Excerpts) 
April 28, 2006 
 
The Defense Agency announced yesterday its basic policy of 
dissolving the Defense Facilities Administration Agency (DFAA) in 
the wake of a bid-rigging scandal to reform the organization, a 
set of issues for discussion, and an outline of its final report 
on a set of measures for preventing a similar incident. The plan 
is mainly designed to split the DFAA into a Defense Agency 
internal bureau and a new organization and establish a totally 
independent inspection organ directly under the defense chief. As 
a means of preventing amakudari (golden parachuting), the outline 
also calls for an immediate halt to measures promoting early 
retirement of senior DFAA officials. 
 
A study panel on organizational reform chaired by Defense Agency 
Director General Fukushiro Nukaga yesterday presented the basic 
policy and a set of issues for discussion. Based on them, the 
Defense Agency intends to draft a concrete reform plan by late 
June to reflect it in its fiscal 2007 budgetary request in 
August. 
 
The plan is designed to: (1) allow an Defense Agency internal 
bureau to absorb the DFAA's general affairs departments, such as 
personnel affairs and accounting; (2) establish a new bureau in 
the Defense Agency that will be responsible for planning on 
matters directly connected with local governments and the public, 
such as incidents and accidents and base issues; and (3) 
establish a new organ responsible for procurement services for 
the US military, such as land, goods, and services, except for 
planning. 
 
15) Government, ruling camp to compile growth strategy outline as 
early as next month; Specific plan to include reform of tax 
system 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
The government and the ruling camp yesterday decided to map out 
an economic growth strategy outline intended to achieve a high 
economic growth rate. They will come up with a specific plan that 
will involve reform of various systems, including the tax system 
in wide-ranging areas, such as tourism and welfare services. The 
government will incorporate the outline in the 2006 basic policy 
guidelines on economic and fiscal management and structural 
reforms for the fiscal 2007 national budget. 
 
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Policy Research Council Chairman 
Hidenao Nakagawa proposed the plan during a meeting with Minister 
of Economy, Trade, and Industry Toshihiro Nikai. Since an 
agreement had already been reached with State Minister for 
Economic and Fiscal Policy Yosano, the three ministers will map 
out the outline in cooperation. 
 
 
TOKYO 00002322  010 OF 010 
 
 
In March, METI compiled a strategy of aiming for a real growth 
rate of 2.2%. The envisaged outline will be a package of policy 
proposals covering not only areas under METI's jurisdiction but 
also areas under other agencies' jurisdiction, such as 
agriculture and education. The package will mention mid- to long- 
term policies, including timetables for implementing them, as 
well as specific plans to be included in the fiscal 2007 budget. 
 
Nakagawa has indicated his intention to minimize tax hikes with a 
view to increasing tax revenue through thorough spending cuts and 
the realization of nominal growth of 4%. He wants to ensure an 
outlook for high economic growth through the joint drafting of 
the outline between the government and the ruling parties. 
 
16) Five-country survey on child-rearing: Only 40% of Japanese 
respondents -- lowest rate among five countries -- say they want 
to have more children 
 
MAINICHI (Page 1) (Full) 
April 28, 2006 
 
The Cabinet Office conducted a survey in five countries -- Japan, 
the United States, South Korea, France, and Sweden -- to obtain 
data that will help the countries tackle their falling 
birthrates. The survey found that about 40% of Japanese 
respondents -- the lowest among the five countries -- said that 
they wanted to have more children. The figures are half the 80% 
in Sweden. In Japan and South Korea, more than half of the 
respondents said they did not want any more children because too 
much money is needed to raise an educate them. The survey points 
out to a severe situation in the two countries, with people 
regarding children as a financial burden. 
 
To the question of whether they want to have more children, 42.6% 
of the Japanese pollees said yes and 53.1 said no. In South 
Korea, 43.7% said yes. Of the Japanese and South Koreans who said 
no, 56.0% of the Japanese and nearly 70% of the South Koreans 
cited financial difficulties. 
 
Meanwhile, 81.1% of Swedish respondents said that they wanted to 
have more children; in the United States, 81.0% said yes; and in 
France, 69.3% said yes. The Cabinet Office noted that those three 
countries provide sufficient daycare services and tax breaks, as 
well as financial support for raising children, which have 
boosted birthrates. 
 
Asked if they think husbands should work while wives stay at 
home, 57.1% of Japanese respondents said yes, the highest among 
the five countries. In Sweden, only 8.6% said yes. 
 
Asked whether they find it easy to have children in their 
countries, 47.6% of Japanese pollees were positive. In South 
Korea, 18% -- the lowest rate -- said yes. 
 
The survey was conducted between October and December in 2005 on 
1,000 men and women aged 20 to 49. 
 
DONOVAN