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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 10 TOKYO 004323 
 
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 08//06 
 
 
Index: 
 
1) Top headlines 
2) Editorials 
3) Prime Minister's daily schedule 
 
Defense and security affairs: 
4) LDP approves change in Iraq basic plan to reflect withdrawal of 
GSDF and expansion of ASDF services 
5) Australia's foreign minister in meeting with Prime Minister 
Koizumi calls bilateral cooperation in Iraq a "complete success" 
6) Foreign Ministry gives commendations to 75 personnel who served 
in Iraq 
7) Three candidates for LDP presidency  Abe, Aso, Tanigaki  all 
agree on Japan's use of right of collective self-defense 
8) Kadena Air Base has 400,000 rounds of DU ammunition in storage, 
half the amount that was used in the Gulf war 
9) MSDF petty office who took frequent trips to Shanghai, kept 
classified documents at home, suspected of leaking such information 
to Chinese girlfriend 
10) Minshuto President Ozawa raps JDA's white paper on defense for 
treating China with alarm 
 
Iran problem: 
11) Iran's vice president interviewed by Mainichi dismisses UNSC 
resolution as having no impact on oil field development project 
12) Government to explain to Iran its support for UNSC resolution, 
but fears impact of decision on oil development project 
13) Japan fears its oil field development project in Iran is in 
trouble 
14) JBIC loan exposure in Iran now totals 570 billion yen; Bank 
fears delay in repayment 
 
15) MOFA appoints new director of China Division who is not from the 
"China school" 
 
16) Three Minshuto leaders spending time deep-sea fishing off Miyake 
Island: Practicing their hooking and landing skills for next year's 
election? 
 
Articles: 
 
1) TOP HEADLINES 
 
Asahi: 
Matsushita Electric Co.'s affiliate received 200 million yen in 
subsidies from Hyogo Prefecture for temporary hires, but later 
changed the status from temporary hires to contractors 
 
Mainichi: 
Poll on international comparison of home education: Japanese fathers 
spend 3.1 hours with children on weekdays, mother's 7.6 hours, 
giving Japan the largest gap 
 
Yomiuri: 
MSDF's petty officer 1st class found to have removed classified 
information; Frequently traveled to Shanghai to meet Chinese 
girlfriend, who may have connection with the other diplomat's 
suicide 
 
Nihon Keizai & Sankei: 
Oji Paper to make hostile TOB toward Hokuetsu Paper today 
 
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SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
Girl's death in pool drain: Management company commissioned by the 
city found to have subcontracted maintenance 
 
Akahata: 
Poll: 70% say they are "worse off than last year"; 60% suffer an 
income decrease 
 
2) EDITORIALS 
 
Asahi: 
(1) UNSC resolution: No choice for Iran 
(2) Economic growth will be a big task for the next administration 
 
Mainichi: 
(1) Girl's death in pool drain: Full-fledged safety checks required 
(2) UNSC resolution on Iran: Iran's efforts needed for stability in 
Middle East: 
 
Yomiuri: 
(1) Defense White Paper: Need for establishing a basis for "assured 
security" 
(2) UNSC resolution on Iran: International unity is essential 
 
Nihon Keizai: 
(1) Land deflation coming to an end in big cities 
(2) Need to resolve Iranian nuclear issue based on UNSC resolution 
 
Sankei: 
(1) Defense White Paper: Be alert to nearby military buildups 
(2) Girl's death in pool drain: Lack of awareness of danger 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
(1) Girl's death in pool drain: Every possible measure must be taken 
to avoid a recurrence 
(2) Iran required to observe resolution to avoid sanctions 
 
Akahata: 
Defense White Paper: Does it override the people's will? 
 
3) Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei) 
 
Prime Minister's schedule, August 1 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
10:01 
Attended a cabinet meeting at Kantei. 
 
11:00 
Met deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary for Crisis Management Noda and 
Cabinet Office policy officer Masuda. 
 
12:01 
Met Chief Cabinet Secretary Abe. 
 
13:43 
Met Upper House member Hiroshige Seko. 
 
14:52 
 
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SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
Met LDP Kumamoto chapter chairman Mitsuhiro Koga in the presence of 
Lower House member Toshikatsu Matsuoka. 
 
15:05 
Incoming and outgoing Vice Agriculture Minister Kobayashi and 
Ishihara, followed by Foreign Vice Minister Yachi. 
 
16:32 
Attended a meeting of ministers connected with flood 
countermeasures. 
 
17:33 
Met Australian Foreign Minister Downer. 
 
19:07 
Dined at an Italian restaurant in Akasaka with Deputy Chief Cabinet 
Secretary Futahashi and assistant deputy chief cabinet secretaries 
 
SIPDIS 
Ando, Saka, and Yanagisawa, and others. 
 
22:01 
Returned to his residence. 
 
4) LDP approves new masterplan for Iraq 
 
SANKEI (Page 5) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
The government has altered its basic plan for Japan's overseas 
dispatch of Self-Defense Forces personnel to assist Iraq with its 
reconstruction under a special measures law, and the ruling Liberal 
Democratic Party approved the modified masterplan in a joint meeting 
of its defense related panels yesterday. The masterplan was revised 
in response to the withdrawal of Ground Self-Defense Force troops 
deployed in the southern Iraqi city of Samawah and the expansion of 
Air Self-Defense Force activities. The government will make a 
cabinet decision on Aug. 4 to adopt the revised plan. 
 
The new basic plan has crossed out stipulations regarding GSDF 
activities. Instead, it specifies Taril and Arbil in addition to 
Baghdad, Basra, Mosul, and Balad for ASDF activities in Iraq. The 
ASDF's Iraq mission is up to Dec. 14 this year as initially 
planned. 
 
The revised plan says the government will conduct ASDF activities in 
an appropriate way, factoring in various conditions, such as: 1) 
progress in the political process of establishing Iraq's effective 
governance; 2) public security in Iraq; 3) activities conducted by 
the multinational force and changes in its constitutional members; 
and 4) progress in the reconstruction of Iraq. The original basic 
plan referred to the GSDF's Iraq deployment premised on "activities 
conducted by Britain, Australia, and other multinational force 
members in Iraq." 
 
5) Australian foreign minister tells Koizumi: Cooperation between 
Japan and Australia was complete success 
 
ASAHI (Page 4) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
Australian Foreign Minister Downer, now visiting Japan, met 
yesterday with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi at his office. In 
the meeting, Koizumi expressed his gratitude for Australian forces' 
 
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SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
role of the maintenance of order in the southern Iraqi city of 
Samawah. Downer then told Koizumi: "Cooperation between Japan and 
Australia was a complete success." In his meeting with Chief Cabinet 
Secretary Shinzo Abe, the Australian foreign minister stated that 
 
SIPDIS 
his country would closely cooperate with Tokyo on North Korea's 
nuclear and missile issues, as well as the abduction issue. 
 
6) Foreign Ministry gives awards to personnel who served in Iraq 
 
ASAHI (Page 4) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
The Foreign Ministry gave awards yesterday to 75 people who served 
at the embassy in Iraq or the liaison office in Samawah more than 
twice since the start of the Iraq war. At the ceremony held at the 
ministry, Samawah liaison office director Hidenobu Sobashima 
reported: "We were able to accomplish visible results by improving 
the living environment and creating jobs." 
 
Foreign Minister Taro Aso also praised their services by citing the 
2003 tragedy involving Ambassador Katsuhiko Oku and First Secretary 
Masamori Inoue, saying: "The two lives were lost in the 
unforgettable, heart-breaking incident. To accomplish their wishes, 
you performed activities in the extremely difficult environment with 
a strong sense of mission." 
 
7) 3 LDP presidential candidates favor collective defense 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe, Finance Minister Sadakazu 
Tanigaki, and Foreign Minister Taro Aso remarked yesterday that they 
would accept Japan exercising its right to collective self-defense. 
The right of collective self-defense allows a country to fight back 
against an attack on its ally. The government, in its constitutional 
interpretation, has taken the position that Japan has the right but 
is not allowed to exercise it. 
 
Abe, meeting the press yesterday, remarked: "Not only in the LDP but 
also in the nation, there are people insisting on revising the 
Constitution to resolve the problem, and there are people saying 
Japan is allowed to exercise the right even in the current 
constitutional interpretation." Abe added, "I also think we should 
always keep this in mind." 
 
Tanigaki clearly said to reporters in the Diet yesterday, "I think 
Japan should be allowed to exercise the right of collective 
self-defense." However, Tanigaki also suggested the need for a 
national consensus based on broad discussions on constitutional 
revision. Meanwhile, Aso also said to reporters after yesterday's 
cabinet meeting, "There are various arguments about this issue, so I 
don't think it would be very meaningful to state my personal views." 
He also said, "I've always thought that it would be bad for our 
country to be destroyed for adhering to the law." 
 
8) USFJ stored 400,000 DU shells at Kadena base in 2001 
 
MAINICHI (Page 27) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
The US Air Force stored about 400,000 depleted uranium shells in 
 
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SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
2001 at its Kadena Base in Okinawa Prefecture. This fact became 
known from declassified US Air Force documents. The DU shells stored 
at Kadena are equal to about half the number used by the US Air 
Force in the 1991 Gulf War. In May 2000, the base revealed its 
storage of DU shells at its ammunition depot. However, this is the 
first time that the specific quantity has been revealed. 
 
In February 2001, Kyle Kajihiro, an American peace activist from 
Hawaii, requested the US Air Force to disclose all its records 
regarding the US Pacific Forces' DU ammunition. In August that year, 
the US Air Force disclosed documents as "records provided by the 
Kadena Air Base and the Osan Air Base in South Korea." 
 
One of the declassified files lists the types and quantities of DU 
shells. This list describes the names and quantities of five shells 
stored at the Kadena base, including "30MM API/HEI PGU 14B/B AJ" 
(i.e., 30-mm armor-piercing incendiary, high-explosive incendiary). 
Fighter planes are reportedly loaded with 30-mm armor-piercing 
incendiaries to attack tanks and armored vehicles. Kadena Air Base's 
DU ammo storage, classified into five categories, totaled 398,768 
shells. In South Korea, the US Air Force stored 1,360,000 DU shells 
at Suwon Air Base, about 930,000 at Chongju Air Base, and about 
450,000 at Osan Air Base. 
 
"Some of our weapons can use DU shells," a US Kadena Air Base 
official told the Mainichi Shimbun. "But," the official added, "it's 
our policy that we're not allowed to reveal anything specific about 
where and how much ammunition we store." The official also said, "We 
don't use DU shells in our training, and we fully consider the 
safety of DU-handling military personnel and neighboring local 
communities." 
 
9) MSDF internal-use-only documents taken out of office; Petty 
officer 1st class repeatedly traveled to Shanghai to meet Chinese 
woman working at karaoke parlor frequented by Consulate General 
communications officer committed suicide 
 
YOMIURI (Top play) (Excerpts) 
August 2, 2006 
 
A 45-year-old Maritime Self-Defense Force petty officer first class 
stationed at the Kamitsushima Guard Post repeatedly traveled to 
Shanghai, China, without leave, and kept copies of documents marked 
internal use only on CDs at his home, the Yomiuri Shimbun learned 
yesterday. The purpose of his trips was to see a Chinese woman 
working at a karaoke parlor catering to Japanese clientele, where a 
Chinese woman involved in the suicide of a Japanese Consulate 
General communications officer also worked. The petty officer has 
reportedly told MSDF investigators that he did not pass any 
intelligence to China. However, police authorities are conducting 
their own investigation, suspecting that he leaked some information. 
The police are attempting to determine, among other things, what 
kind of relationship he had with the woman. 
 
The petty officer assisted with vessel navigation duties at the 
Kamitsushima Guard Post in Tsushima City, Nagasaki Prefecture, since 
April 2004 until he was suspended from duty for 10 days in July. He 
is currently stationed at the MSDF Sasebo District Headquarters' 
administration department. 
 
According to the Defense Agency's Maritime Staff Office, a 
whistle-blower claimed in April that the officer was copying 
 
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SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
classified information and taking it out of the office and that he 
had been going to China without reporting the trips to his 
superiors. 
 
Alerted by the tip, Sasebo headquarters began an investigation and 
found CDs in the officer's living quarters at the Kamitsushima Guard 
Post that contained MSDF documents, including photographs of 
military ships and submarines belonging to neighboring countries. 
The petty officer admitted that he copied the documents by using the 
post's computer in February. 
 
Officers from the Sasebo headquarters also found letters from the 
Chinese woman at the petty officer's home. It was also found out 
that in order to meet the woman, he had made eight trips to Shanghai 
without leave during the 15-month period until this March. 
 
10) Ozawa criticizes defense white paper for being alarmed at China 
 
ASAHI (Page 4) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
President Ichiro Ozawa of the largest opposition party Minshuto 
(Democratic Party of Japan) criticized yesterday the 2006 defense 
white paper that included a section urging China to increase the 
transparency of its defense buildup and spending. Ozawa said: 
 
"In order to eliminate a destabilizing factor, a relationship of 
trust must be forged first. Nothing good will come out of a 
confrontational mentality. Japan cannot conduct heart-to-heart talks 
with China, South Korea, or any other Asian countries for that 
matter. With China, Japan cannot discuss anything at all, and that's 
the problem with Koizumi politics." 
 
Ozawa was responding to questions from reporters in Miyake Island, 
Tokyo. 
 
11) Iran's vice president: "We'll continue negotiations" on nuclear 
issue; No impact of UNSC resolution on Hinomaru oil project 
 
MAINICHI (Page 2) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
Eiji Maeda 
 
In an exclusive interview yesterday with the Mainichi Shimbun, 
visiting Iranian Vice President Rahim Mashaee criticized the United 
Nations Security Council's (UNSC) adoption on July 31 of a 
resolution threatening his country with sanctions as "unreasonable." 
"We'd like to sweep away international doubts about our country and 
continue negotiations," he said, indicating he would look for ways 
to resolve the issue through negotiations. Referring to the 
comprehensive policy package proposed by the United States, Britain, 
France, Germany, China, and Russia, he reiterated that Iran would 
come up with an answer by Aug. 22. While noting that the UNSC 
resolution would have no effect on the development of the Azadegan 
oilfield that Japan has the right to develop, he stressed Iran's 
intention to expand economic ties with Japan. 
 
Mashaee insisted that Iran's nuclear development is at the "research 
level," emphasizing his country's right to use nuclear power for 
peaceful purposes as a member of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty 
(NPT). 
 
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SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
 
In addition, he stated, "Iran has no intention to manufacture 
nuclear weapons" and indicated an intention to continue talks 
focused on the proposed policy package that offers such assistance 
measures by European countries as constructing a light-water reactor 
in return for Iran's halt to uranium enrichment. 
 
Also, referring to the UNSC resolution, he pointed out that the UNSC 
president's statement on the Lebanon situation did not criticize 
Israel, arguing: "Because of pressure from the US, the UNSC has not 
made any criticism of Israel, which is doing bad things. (Iran) is 
given discriminatory treatment." "Some countries," he continued, 
"are manufacturing nuclear bombs with the state-of-art technology." 
Posing this question, "Who can guarantee that Israel will not use 
nuclear weapons in the Middle East?" he criticized the double 
standard of the US and other countries that have tacitly allowed 
Israel's possession of nuclear weapons. 
 
Commenting on Japan's voting for the resolution, Mashaee said, "It's 
undesirable," but he added, "Economic ties (with Japan) are not 
under any political pressure." He then emphasized: "Japan is a 
friendly nation. We want to expand relations in such areas as 
economic affairs." 
 
12) UNSC resolution warning Iran over its nuclear development: 
Government to push Tehran to accept resolution out of concern over 
possible impact on oil development project; Japan relies on Iran for 
10% of crude oil imports 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2 (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
Following the adoption by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) 
of a resolution warning Iran that sanctions will be considered 
unless it suspends its nuclear development activities by the end of 
August, the government will make every effort to persuade that 
nation to accept the resolution. That is because if sanctions are 
invoked, followed by the suspension of crude oil imports from that 
nation, the Japanese economy will suffer a major blow, as Japan 
depends on Iran for about 15% of crude oil imports. The development 
of oil fields in that nation, in which Japan has a major stake, will 
also be affected. 
 
Japan, a non-permanent UNSC member, supported the resolution. 
Chances are that if Japan supports a sanctions resolution or takes 
part in a coalition of the willing in response to a call from the 
US, Iran could take countermeasures, including the cancellation of 
the contract for the development of the Azadegan oil field, which 
Japan won in February 2004. 
 
Foreign Minister Aso yesterday noted, "The nuclear issue has 
priority." He thus indicated his intention to press Iran to abandon 
its nuclear development program, even if the oil project is "taken 
hostage." 
 
If full production starts at the Azadegan oil field, which is 
believed to have 5-26 billion barrels of reserves, this oil field is 
expected to become Japan's largest crude oil supplier. The 
government wants to continue the development of the oil field by 
getting Iran to abandon its nuclear development program soon. 
 
It intends to push Iran to accept the resolution at every available 
 
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SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
opportunity, as Chief Cabinet Secretary Abe put it. However, to what 
extent Japan's persuasion will work is unclear. 
 
13) UNSC adopts resolution against Iran, warning of economic 
sanctions over its nuclear development activities 
 
ASAHI (Page 2) (Excerpts) 
August 2, 2006 
 
Japan concerned about possible impact of resolution on oil field 
development 
 
Japan has given priority to the solidarity of the international 
community, instead of to crude oil. 
 
Chief Cabinet Secretary Abe yesterday told a news conference: "The 
UN resolution indicates the international community's firm stance 
toward Iran. It is an important step toward settling that nation's 
nuclear issue through diplomacy." Asked about a possible impact of 
the resolution on Japan's energy strategy, Foreign Minister Aso 
indicated a stance of attaching importance to the nuclear issue. He 
noted, "The nuclear issue has priority." 
 
A senior Foreign Ministry official explained, "The UN resolution 
censuring North Korea adopted in July served as a precedent." He 
also said: "The international community issued a warning in unity. 
The pattern is the same as the case with Pyongyang." 
 
However, if Iran does not follow the resolution before the 
end-of-August deadline, the possibility of the UN slapping economic 
sanctions on it will increase. Should that occur, it is bound to 
affect Japan's energy strategy. 
 
If crude oil trade with Iran, the world's fourth-largest crude oil 
producer, becomes subject to sanctions, it would affect the global 
crude oil market, sparking a further rise in prices. Japan is bound 
to suffer, as it depends on Iran for roughly 15% of its crude 
imports. 
 
In particular, some Japanese government officials are concerned over 
a possible impact of sanctions on the Azadegan oil field, which has 
the largest reserves in the Middle East. Japan's INPEX Corporation 
has a 75% stake in the Azadegan oil field. It is expected that once 
production starts, imports from Iran could cover as much as 6% of 
Japan's annual oil imports. If sanctions are invoked, Japan's 
investment in this project could be suspended. 
 
Ever since Japan obtained a stake in the Azadegan oil field in 2004, 
the US has repeatedly warned that the investment could benefit Iran. 
Some believe that if Japan withdraws from the project, China might 
replace Japan. A senior official of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, 
and Industry noted: "If China develops that oil field, replacing 
Japan, Iran would suffer no pressure from the resolution. Oil 
development is important for Japan." His comment revealed Japan's 
real feeling that it does not want to abandon this large energy 
resource. 
 
14) JBIC reveals outstanding loan balance with Iran totals 570 
billion yen as of end of March; Economic sanctions could delay 
repayment 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 5) (Full) 
 
TOKYO 00004323  009 OF 010 
 
SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
August 2, 2006 
 
Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) Governor Kyosuke 
Fujisawa during yesterday's press conference revealed that the 
outstanding lending balance with Iran as of the end of March stood 
at 570 billion yen. Japan's loan claims with that nation, including 
yen loans, is estimated to top 600 billion yen. Chances are that if 
economic sanctions are invoked, that nation will fall behind in its 
debt repayments. Fujisawa indicated his intention to closely watch 
the international situation, noting, "I would like to pay full 
attention to the international situation." 
 
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in late July adopted a 
resolution mandating Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment-related 
activities. It warned that unless the nation complies with the 
resolution, it would invoke economic sanctions. Iran has indicated a 
stance of rejecting the resolution. 
 
If economic sanctions are invoked, trade and financial transactions 
with Iran will be effectively put on hold. 
 
Should that occur, there is a strong possibility of that nation 
falling behind in its debt repayments, pressing the JBIC to boost 
loan loss reserves. There is also concern that the matter will 
eventually lead to a financial burden on the nation. 
 
Fujisawa also revealed a plan to open an office in Amman, Jordan, to 
look into the situation regarding Iraqi reconstruction assistance. 
 
15) Foreign Ministry to appoint official who is not a member of 
"China School" as China and Mongolia Division chief 
 
ASAHI (Page 4) (Full) 
August 2, 2006 
 
Takeo Akiba, director of the Foreign Ministry's International Legal 
Affairs Division, was named new director of the China and Mongolia 
Division as of Aug. 1. 
 
In the past, a pattern of members of the so-called China School, who 
took Chinese training, assumed the China and Mongolia Division 
director post. The China School members are regarded as giving too 
much consideration to China. Akiba, who received English training, 
is not a China School member. Japan-China relations show signs of 
improvement, as seen in the holding of a foreign ministerial 
meeting, but mutual summit visits by top Japanese and Chinese 
leaders have been suspended due to Prime Minister Junichiro 
Koizumi's annual visits to Yasukuni Shrine. With an eye on the 
post-Koizumi era, the Foreign Ministry appears to be flexibly facing 
up to China. 
 
Akiba has engaged in consultations with China on such issues as gas 
exploration in the East China Sea. He has enjoyed the confidence of 
Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau Director General Keiichiro Sasae 
and has communication channels to the ruling and opposition parties. 
It has been widely viewed since late last year that Akiba would 
serve in the post. 
 
16) Three Minshuto leaders go fishing off Miyake Island, Will it 
help them capture the political helm as well? 
 
YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) 
 
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SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 08//06 
 
August 2, 2006 
 
Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan) President Ichiro Ozawa, Acting 
President Naoto Kan, and Secretary General Yukio Hatoyama yesterday 
visited Miyake Island (Miyake Village, Tokyo), where they boarded a 
boat and went deep-sea fishing together, playing up their unity. 
They caught about 80 fish, including parrot bass and Japanese horse 
mackerels. Ozawa was in the best of spirits: "What is most important 
in a democracy is numbers, so it was good we hauled up so many 
fish." 
 
The three leaders of the largest opposition party enjoyed fishing 
for six and a half hours from early in the morning. Fishing is one 
of Ozawa's hobbies. Kan and Hatoyama, however, are novices at 
fishing. Ozawa gave them advice about how to fish. Kan, who released 
a big fish, told reporters, "I think I will be good at catching fish 
around the fall of next year." He implied his eagerness for 
capturing the reins of government. 
 
SCHIEFFER