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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 10 TOKYO 006731 
 
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:  DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 11/27/06 
 
 
INDEX: 
 
(1) To what extent can Prime Minister Abe follow his convictions in 
budget compilation? 
 
(2) Prime Minister Abe moves to official residence to work around 
the clock 
 
(3) NSC initiative: Role sharing a difficult problem for Kantei, 
Foreign Ministry, Defense Agency 
 
(4) Uncertainly looming over fate of regulatory reform, with no 
input from prime minister and resistance to market testing by 
government agencies 
 
(5) Vacillating conservatism (Part 1): Image of "Abe-style" politics 
precedes substance 
 
(6) Vacillating conservatism (Part 3-conclusion): Is Prime Minister 
Abe trying to rally "grass-roots conservatives? 
 
(7) Agriculture Minister Matsuoka received 6.86 million yen in 
donations from companies and groups involved in bid-rigging over 
forestry projects 
 
ARTICLES: 
 
(1) To what extent can Prime Minister Abe follow his convictions in 
budget compilation? 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Almost Full) 
November 27, 2006 
 
Two months have passed as of yesterday since Shinzo Abe took office 
as prime minister. He has thus far made achievements on the 
diplomatic front, as can be seen in his surprise visits to China and 
South Korea. In the economic field, he has yet to produce 
satisfactory results. How far can he carry through with his 
structural reform policy amid a growing trend for a swing-back in 
the name of narrowing disparities or giving consideration to local 
regions? The compilation of the fiscal 2007 budget will serve as a 
test of the Kantei leadership he has touted. 
 
Moves to look for funds in supplementary budget 
 
Abe moved out of his private residence in Tomigaya to the official 
residence in Nagata-cho on Nov. 26. He was in casual attire wearing 
a blue jumper and black pants. He told reporters, "I will move to 
the official residence in the knowledge that I will be on stand-by 
around the clock." 
 
The official residence had originally been used as the Prime 
Minister's Office (Kantei). The residence, constructed in 1929, was 
refurbished to coincide with the construction of the new Kantei 
building. The refurbishment was completed in 2005. Koizumi was the 
first occupant of the newly built Kantei, followed by Abe. Abe's 
comment about being on stand-by likely betrayed his feeling that he 
is too busy with work to care about the fact that he is the second 
occupant of the Kantei. 
 
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Policy Research Council Chairman 
Shoichi Nakagawa and New Komeito Policy Research Council Chairman 
Tetsuo Saito gathered in a room at the Hotel New Otani on the 
 
TOKYO 00006731  002 OF 010 
 
 
evening of Nov. 24. On the agenda was the supplementary budget for 
this fiscal year. Participants tried to find spending items in line 
with the Abe administration's slogans, such as second chances and 
local revitalization. 
 
Commenting on the second budget, Abe at the meeting of the Council 
on Economic and Fiscal Policy (CEFP) on Nov. 24 announced that 
expenditures would be limited to reconstruction of disaster-hit 
areas. LDP Secretary General Hidenao Nakagawa, who supports Abe, 
proudly said, "We have been able to disrupt the attempt to impede 
the Koizumi policy." However, a plan to incorporate road 
construction expenditures financed with surpluses from special road 
revenues, which are larger than the road budget, has been floated in 
the LDP. 
 
A senior ruling party official noted, "We have a plan to look into 
the possibility of a 15-month budget including the supplementary 
budget." The 15-month budget is a budget combining a supplementary 
budget and an initial budget so that there will be no disruption in 
the implementation of public projects from January through March. 
This is a measure to give consideration to local governments. It was 
not an unusual method in the past. 
 
The way the reallocation of special road construction revenues was 
decided, a policy that Koizumi proposed as his campaign pledge and 
has been relegated Abe to handle, is also unclear. 
 
Both local governments and the auto industry are against the idea of 
reviewing special road construction revenues. New Komeito, which has 
sent Tetsuzo Fuyushiba as minister of land, infrastructure and 
transport, is also cautious about the idea. Abe has stated, "I will 
reallocate road funds as I expressed in my policy speech." However, 
is it possible to convert road funds into funds for more general 
use, a category of funds under which there are no restrictions on 
usage at all, including the use of surplus portions of road funds? 
Skepticism is rife in the ruling camp and Kasumigaseki. 
 
Private-sector member of CEFP shouts at politicians 
 
A private-sector member of the CEFP during a panel meeting held at 
the Kantei on the evening of the 24th, shouted at Internal Affairs 
and Communications Minister Yoshihide Suga, "I want politicians to 
take the initiative instead of letting bureau director generals of 
each government agency make decisions." Under the Koizumi 
administration, the state minister for economic and fiscal policy 
was in charge of the panel. He got the ruling camp under his thumb, 
characterizing the panel as a main setting for policymaking. Koizumi 
even scolded cabinet ministers at times, saying, "Do not allow 
bureaucrats to take the lead." Being fresh as prime minister, Abe 
lacks the punch and authority of Koizumi. The private-sector member 
also had Abe in mind when he lashed out at Amari and Suga. 
 
Openly states consideration for local governments 
 
When he moved to the residence on the 26th, Abe said, "Sometimes I 
want to return to my private residence on weekends." Unlike Koizumi, 
whom Foreign Minister Aso described as "being able to put up with 
complete solitude," Abe has a feeling of warm-heartedness, which is 
part of his appeal. 
 
His warm-heartedness raises hopes among politicians that Abe will 
listen to them. With one faction leader saying that "Koizumi is 
special, while Abe is ordinary," this can be seen as a call for a 
 
TOKYO 00006731  003 OF 010 
 
 
traditional prime minister who coordinates among the LDP factions 
rather than a top-down leader in the mold of Koizumi. 
 
Abe stressed, "There will be no change in the spending cut policy of 
the Koizumi cabinet." At the same time, he openly expressed 
consideration for local regions even during the LDP presidential 
race. His convictions are now being put to the test. 
 
(2) Prime Minister Abe moves to official residence to work around 
the clock 
 
SANKEI (Page 3) (Abridged slightly) 
November 27, 2006 
 
Two months after taking office, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his 
wife, Akie, moved yesterday from their private residence in Tokyo's 
Tomigaya to the prime minister's official residence (Kotei) adjacent 
to the Prime Minister's Office (Kantei). 
 
Immediately after arriving at the Kotei, Abe went shopping in 
Shibuya to buy blazers, slacks, a set of dictionaries and so on. 
 
Two 2-ton trucks carrying books and clothing arrived at the Kotei 
shortly before 1 p.m., and Abe and his wife entered the new 
residence 30 minutes later with bags in their hands. 
 
The move for Abe and his wife was initially scheduled for early 
November. "Bidding for the curtains and wallpapers for the prime 
minister, the quintessential public figure, took a long time," an 
aide explained. 
 
"Now that I have finally moved to the Kotei, I am ready to work 
around the clock," Abe told reporters yesterday at his official 
residence. Now that Abe no longer needs to spend 20 minutes 
commuting between his private residence and the Kantei, the crisis 
management system will be stepped up. Abe and his wife, however, 
will spend weekends at their private residence, where they can have 
more privacy. 
 
New environment 
 
Security police officers and Cabinet Secretariat staffers will 
frequent the Kotei, which also houses an office of Kunihiko Miyake, 
the first Kotei liaison and coordination officer, and his wife, who 
is responsible for coordinating schedule and offering advice to the 
First Lady. The Abes will certainly not the only ones who will be 
using the Kotei. "The place looks comfortable," Abe told an aide. 
The residence is also equipped with a theater where the prime 
minister can enjoy movies and comedies on DVDs after a day's work. 
 
The dog 
 
In moving to the Kotei, Abe and his wife were concerned most of all 
about their pet, Roy, a miniature dachshund. 
 
An aide to Akie quoted her as saying when leaving for the Kotei 
yesterday: "Sensing something unusual, Roy seems upset. But we 
cannot take him with us because he might feel alone at times at the 
Kotei when we are out." A decision has been made to leave the dog in 
the care of Abe's mother, Yoko. 
 
With no supermarkets in Kotei's vicinity in Nagatacho, shopping 
would also become difficult for Abe and his wife. 
 
TOKYO 00006731  004 OF 010 
 
 
 
High-tech house 
 
The Kotei has a floor space of 7,000 square meters. It was 
originally built in 1929 as the Kantei by modeling on the style of 
Frank Lloyd Write, who designed the Imperial Hotel. 
 
Before being remodeled into Kotei, the Kantei was scarred by the 
bullet holes from the 2.26 incident," a failed coup on Feb. 26, 
1936, which was led by a group of young Imperial Japanese Army 
officers calling for a "Showa Restoration." A former prime minister 
described the musty Kantei as "spooky." 
 
The office used by the previous 42 prime minister from Giichi Tanaka 
to Junichiro Koizumi has been made into a study. The Kotei also has 
a tearoom for guests. The former Kantei was remodeled into a 
high-tech house last spring with the installation of rooftop solar 
panels and the world's first household fuel cells that hardly 
generate carbon dioxide. 
 
(3) NSC initiative: Role sharing a difficult problem for Kantei, 
Foreign Ministry, Defense Agency 
 
YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) 
November 23, 2006 
 
An advisory panel of experts to Prime Minister Abe has now kicked 
off a full-fledged debate on his initiative to establish a national 
security council (NSC) like the one at the White House of the United 
States. The question, however, is whether it is possible to 
reorganize and consolidate Japan's inconsistent foreign and security 
policy planning systems in its bureaucratic sectionalism and 
establish a system for the prime minister's office (Kantei) to make 
decisions under its initiative. There are a number of challenges in 
store, including how to clear up role sharing with the Foreign 
Ministry and the Defense Agency. 
 
"We're facing newly emerging threats like North Korea's nuclear 
weapons programs, so it's urgently necessary to develop foreign and 
security policies to meet the changes of the times in a swift and 
adequate way." With this, Yuriko Koike, special advisor to Abe on 
national security, spoke for the premier's ardor at the outset of 
the advisory panel's first meeting held yesterday at the Kantei. 
 
Abe's NSC initiative is for the Kantei to function as a control 
tower, imagining two functions: 1) formulating long-term foreign and 
security policies; and 2) making prompt decisions to meet 
emergencies. 
 
At present, the Security Council of Japan (SCJ), chaired by the 
prime minister, is set up under the Cabinet Office to discuss and 
decide on Japan's security policy. However, the SCJ does not have 
enough personnel as it is currently staffed with only about 30 
personnel, including those concurrently seconded from other 
government offices. "The SCJ only hears briefings from government 
offices and does not work out national strategies," Koike says. 
 
In its meeting this time, the advisory panel decided to reach a 
conclusion in February next year for the time being. Yet, the NSC's 
role is unclear about whether it will map out diplomatic strategies 
or whether it will prioritize Japan's security policy. The 
government plans to present a legislative measure to the Diet in its 
ordinary session next year to replace the SCJ with the NSC. In that 
 
TOKYO 00006731  005 OF 010 
 
 
case, however, one in the government presumes that the SCJ can only 
reinforce its staffing at best. The NSC in the United States is an 
organization under the presidential system, so another government 
official says the newly planned body can model after the Cabinet's 
Defense and Overseas Policy Committee in Britain, which is also 
under a parliamentary system of government. 
 
In point of fact, the chief cabinet secretary has been at the center 
of information and policy coordination for Japan's foreign and 
security policies. However, the Kantei has no system to gather and 
analyze foreign and defense intelligence. "Policy decisions have 
been greatly affected by the individual capabilities of chief 
cabinet secretaries," one government official notes. The government 
has now decided on sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear 
test. In that process, the Foreign Ministry and the Defense Agency 
were eager to report their respective plans to the prime minister, 
according to a government official. This official says these two 
government offices were at odds in a conflict of opinion. 
 
This time as well, the Foreign Ministry and the Defense Agency have 
voiced their respective desires. A senior official of the Foreign 
Ministry says, "Someone who served in the post of administrative 
vice foreign minister is competent to fill the new body's top post." 
A staff officer of the Self-Defense Forces also says, "We want to 
send a uniformed officer to a key position in the new body to get 
the Kantei's information." At the Kantei, Chief Cabinet Secretary 
Shiozaki and Abe's Special Advisor Koike reportedly locked horns 
with each other, respectively claiming to be the counterpart of the 
US president's national security adviser. The two seem to be 
struggling for the initiative. 
 
(4) Uncertainly looming over fate of regulatory reform, with no 
input from prime minister and resistance to market testing by 
government agencies 
 
NIHON KEIZAI (Page 2) (Full) 
November 26, 2006 
 
The previous administration led by Prime Minister Koizumi set the 
policy goal of transferring operations and authority from the 
government to the private sector. Under the Abe administration, 
however, uncertainty is looming over the fate of regulatory reform. 
Government agencies have reacted fiercely to a planned increase 
starting in FY2007 in projects subject to the bidding system as part 
of market testing introduced by the Koizumi administration. They 
fear that their authority might be eventually reduced.  Some 
observers also anticipate that activities by an expert panel on 
regulatory reform could start to be slimmed down next fiscal year. 
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has eagerly addressed diplomatic and 
educational issues, but when it comes to regulatory reform, he seems 
to be less enthusiastic. 
 
In an unofficial meeting held by the Committee on Competitive 
Bidding Management composed of officials from the private and public 
sectors in Tokyo on Nov. 21, representatives from the Ministry of 
Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW), as well as the Ministry of Land, 
Infrastructure and Transport, reacted strongly to the council's 
proposals urging the government to transfer the services of Public 
Employment Security Office institutions and the management of parks 
to the private sector. 
 
Under the market testing system, both the government and the private 
sector present their respective proposals for each project subject 
 
TOKYO 00006731  006 OF 010 
 
 
to competitive bidding, and the party that presents a superior plan 
in terms of cost wins a contract. State Minister in Charge of 
Economic and Fiscal Policy Hiroko Ota is willing to hold 
negotiations with the cabinet ministers concerned, such as MHLW 
Minister Hakuo Yanagisawa, stressing the need to consider matters 
"from the perspective of users." But time is running out in the 
run-up to the deadline set for the end of December. 
 
The focus of attention is also on what body should be formed to 
succeed the Council on Regulatory Reform and Privatization, which is 
to expire next March. Such plans as reform of agricultural 
cooperatives and introduction of an education-voucher system have 
been in limbo. One private-sector member was overheard saying, 
"Under the current situation, the new body is likely to be tasked 
only with monitoring the regulatory measures that have already been 
implemented." 
 
The prime minister remains indifferent at present, though he was 
expected to back the council. In his policy speech in September, Abe 
indicated eagerness to push ahead with market testing, but in the 
Liberal Democratic Party, cautious views are dominant about 
regulatory reform. 
 
The Cabinet Office wants to have all regulatory reform plans 
discussed at a meeting on Nov. 30 of the Council on Economic and 
Fiscal Policy. It remains to be seen whether the prime minister will 
issue a clear-cut instruction to move the situation forward. 
 
(5) Vacillating conservatism (Part 1): Image of "Abe-style" politics 
precedes substance 
 
YOMIURI (Page 1) (Full) 
November 22, 2006 
 
Abe's basic political philosophy is "open conservatism." We wonder 
what the term actually means and where it is heading for. We here 
examine the term "conservatism" -- an emerging new buzzword in 
political circles -- from various angles. 
 
"It is specified to foster an attitude of respecting Japanese 
culture and traditions, loving our country and land, respecting 
other countries, and contributing to international peace and 
prosperity." 
 
Prime Minister Abe emphasized the significance of revising the Basic 
Education Law while highlighting a clause in which patriotism is 
referred to, in a final session of questions and answers at a 
meeting on Nov. 15 of the Lower House Special Committee on the Basic 
Education Law. 
 
Abe frequently refers to confidence and pride. The title of a policy 
platform released this September, when he served as chief cabinet 
secretary, was "Toward a beautiful nation, Japan." 
 
SIPDIS 
 
On Oct. 2, when Abe took the floor for the first time as prime 
minister to answer representative questions in the Lower House 
plenary session, he defined "open conservatism" this way: "I don't 
regard it as an ideology but rather an attitude of reconsidering the 
long history of Japan from the viewpoint of our ancestors while 
having confidence in the country where we were born. This idea is 
not something closed or exclusive." 
 
The Abe cabinet enjoys the high approval rating of 65%  (according 
 
TOKYO 00006731  007 OF 010 
 
 
to a November poll by the Yomiuri Shimbun). This has come partly 
because of a favorable effect of his visits to China and South Korea 
he made right after he took office as prime minister, but another 
reason is a prevailing atmosphere among the public of reconsidering 
traditions, history, and culture with a strong awareness of the 
country, Japan. 
 
Shiseido this year came out with a new set of shampoo and 
conditioner packaged in red bottles and called "Tsubaki." The new 
product created a sensation in the hair care market in Japan. The 
catchword used for the popular product was: "Japanese women are 
beautiful." 
 
The feature of the product is "tsubaki or camellia oil," which has 
been long used in Japan for hair care. In part because of the 
commercial message in which Turin Olympic Gold Medalist Figure 
Skater Shizuka Arakawa and others appeared, this product at one 
point pushed Shiseido, which had until then ranked forth in the 
share of the hair care market, into the top of the market. Shiseido 
Public Relations Section's commercial strategy accentuated this 
line, "We are happy to have been born in Japan," and this strategy 
made a great success because it was able to draw public sympathy. 
 
Mathematician Masahiko Fujiwara, professor at Ochanomizu University, 
insisted in a book, "Kokka no Hinkaku" (Dignity of the Nation), a 
paperback published by Shinchosha: "Japanese traditions that have 
nurtured 'sensibility' and 'Japanese chivalry' must be preserved." 
His book became a best seller with the sale of more than two million 
copies. The fact that "Japan" and the "state" are employed as 
buzzwords here and there in the book is kind of proof of a widening 
awareness of positively taking "conservatism" in the sense of 
"valuing and preserving conventional customs and traditions," as 
defined by the "Kojien" Japanese Dictionary. 
 
Kyoto University Prof. Keishi Saeki, a well-known expert on 
conservatism, stated: "Experiencing the decline of postwar mores, 
many people now want to rebuild family values and the education 
system. They seem likely to smoothly accept ideas Prime Minister Abe 
shows." Saeki, however, added that "I don't understand well" what 
"open conservatism" as mentioned by the prime minister actually 
means. 
 
Prime Minister's Special Advisor on Public Relations Hiroshige Seko, 
an aide to Abe, commented: "Frankly speaking, we, too, can't respond 
well if we are asked, 'what is conservatism'. The term 
'conservatism' entails a conventional image, so we employed the 
expression, 'open conservatism,' which may give a slightly different 
nuance, but...." 
 
An image of Abe-style of conservatism precedes the substance. How 
can he give body and substance to the image is a key to whether his 
"conservatism" will take root as a new political philosophy. 
 
(6) Vacillating conservatism (Part 3-conclusion): Is Prime Minister 
Abe trying to rally "grass-roots conservatives? 
 
YOMIURI (Page 1) (Full) 
November 24, 2006 
 
A dinner party was held on the night of Nov. 15 at the British 
Embassy in Ichiban-cho, Tokyo, an area facing the inner moat of the 
Imperial Palace, in honor of a visiting British diplomat, director 
of the Foreign Office's Far East Department. A major topic for 
 
TOKYO 00006731  008 OF 010 
 
 
conversation there was what Prime Minister Abe's term 'open 
conservatism' meant. 
 
"Does the UK have the term 'open conservatism'?" 
 
"There are rumors that Prime Minister (Abe) is a nationalist. Does 
what he calls 'conservatism' mean that?" 
 
Various opinions were exchanged there among Japanese international 
political scientists and journalists, and British officials. But the 
conclusion reached there was that the actual meaning (of what Abe 
calls conservatism) remains unclear. 
 
The United Kingdom (UK) is viewed as the "home" of conservatism. 
That is partly because of the historical circumstances. According to 
Chubu University Prof. Hidekazu Kawai, "People's freedoms and rights 
have been guaranteed by traditional systems, such as royal rule, so 
the French Revolution, which made mincemeat of traditions, was seen 
as something destroying freedoms. In this context, the British 
statesman and philosopher, Edmund Burke, criticized the French 
Revolution. This reflection has become the origin of 
'conservatism.'" 
 
As for Abe, many point out: "Mr. Abe would have realized the 
importance of conservatism when he opened his eyes to the traditions 
of British conservatism," as Kyoto University Prof. Terumasa 
Nakanishi said. 
 
However, a British diplomat argued: "(Here in Japan), conservatives 
voice the need 'to revise the Constitution,' while those not viewed 
as conservatives insist on defending 'the Constitution.' Japanese 
conservatism is difficult for average people in Britain to 
understand." 
 
On the other hand, the Untied States from the beginning had nothing 
to preserve, for instance, a class system, so the meaning of 
conservatism in that country is different from that of Britain. 
Perhaps reflecting the founding philosophy of surviving with own 
efforts, the US attaches importance to individualism, liberalism, 
and market principles. Making changes is viewed as a good thing in 
American conservatism, and the goal of Abe, who intends to follow 
the Koizumi-led reform line, appears to be close to American 
conservatism. 
 
Prime Minister's Special Advisor Hiroshige Seko commented: "Mr. Abe 
appears somewhat affected by America's 'grassroots conservative' 
concept." 
 
While the situation in Iraq was worsening in the fall of 2004, 
President Bush of the Republican Party won re-election. At the time, 
grassroots conservatism was cited as one of the causes of the Bush 
victory. Soon after the presidential race, at the order of then 
Acting Secretary General Abe of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), 
Seko set in motion a study of grassroots conservatism. In June 2005, 
Abe invited Kinichi Yoshihara, an expert on grassroots conservatism 
and executive director of the Asian Forum Japan, to a study meeting 
of the LDP Reform Implementation Headquarters he headed and 
exchanged views with him in the session. 
 
According to Yoshihara, "America's 'economic conservatives' are 
market economy-oriented, while 'social conservatives' are opposed to 
abortion, homosexuality, and gun control. These groups are 
essentially incompatible with each other but they joined hands based 
 
TOKYO 00006731  009 OF 010 
 
 
on thousands of grassroots' groups. This is the origin of 
'grassroots conservatism." 
 
In order to rally grassroots conservatives, the Republican Party set 
up a philosophy that includes such elements as small government, 
moral values, maintaining peace by means of force, and cutting 
taxes. "If you support at least one of those ideas, you are a 
'conservative,'" said the Republicans. 
 
The LDP saw its traditional support base weakened during the five 
and a half years of the so-called Koizumi reforms. Rebuilding the 
party's supporting base by rallying conservative forces is a big 
challenge facing Abe. "'Open conservativism' as described by Abe can 
be defined as involving various types of conservatives," Yoshihara 
explained. If that is the case, Abe's strategy is to cast a net over 
voters among whom a conservative mood prevails. 
 
(7) Agriculture Minister Matsuoka received 6.86 million yen in 
donations from companies and groups involved in bid-rigging over 
forestry projects 
 
AKAHATA (Page 15) (Excerpts) 
November 27, 2006 
 
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Toshikatsu Matsuoka 
(Lower House member elected from the Kumamoto No.3 District) 
received a large amount of donations from public corporations and 
companies that were raided by the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) in 
late October on suspicion of a violation of the Antimonopoly Act, 
according to an investigation by the Akahata. These entities 
allegedly were engaged in collusive negotiations over bids for such 
projects as a forest road-construction project offered by the Japan 
Green Resources Agency (JGRA), an independent administrative 
corporation based in Kawasaki City under the Ministry of 
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF). 
 
It is suspected that JGRA officials were also involved in 
determining successful bidders, and the MAFF minister's 
responsibility is likely to be questioned. 
 
The inspected entities include such public-interest corporations 
under MAFF as the Japan Forest Engineering Society; the Japan 
Forestry Foundation; Forest Engineering Facilities Research Council; 
and the Japan Forest Technology Association, as well as more than 10 
private-sector consultant firms, such as Shinrin Technics (TN: 
phonetic); Forestech; and Wesco. 
 
The Japan Forestry Foundation, Forestech, and other entities offered 
donations to the Liberal Democratic Party's Kumamoto No. 3 District 
branch office, headed by MAFF Minister Matsuoka, and the Council for 
Economic and Political Studies in the New Century under the lead of 
Toshikatsu Matsuoka. If donations from the Japan Forest Engineering 
and the Japan Forest Technology Association added, the donations 
Matsuoka received from 1996 through 2005 total 6.86 million yen. 
 
In December 2001, too, the FTC issued a recommendation to 15 
companies, including four public corporations, to cease activities 
in violation of the Antimonopoly Act. The watchdog body suspected 
that they had repeatedly made prearrangement starting around April 
1997 in taking part in bidding for survey and measurement services 
for national forests under the jurisdiction of the Forestry Agency's 
Tohoku Forest Management Bureau Aomori Branch Office. A considerable 
number of companies investigated this time were also included among 
 
TOKYO 00006731  010 OF 010 
 
 
those investigated in 2001. 
 
SCHIEFFER