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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TOKYO 001677 
 
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 04/17/07 
 
 
INDEX: 
 
(1) Editorial on the Upper-House by-election: Each vote will set the 
course of the nation 2 
 
(2) US sounds out Japan on reorganizing sub-cabinet economic 
dialogue, with future FTA negotiations in mind 3 
 
ARTICLES: 
(1) Editorial on the Upper-House by-election: Each vote will set the 
course of the nation 
 
OKINAWA TIMES (Page 5) (Full) 
April 17, 2007 
 
The campaign for an Upper-House seat in the Okinawa by-election show 
Aiko Shimajiri (42), a new candidate endorsed by the Liberal 
Democratic Party (LDP) and the New Komeito, is somewhat ahead but 
Yoshimasa Karimata (57), another new candidate endorsed by the 
Social Democratic Party (SDP), Shadai, the Japanese Communist Party 
(JCP). Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan), and the Kokumin Shinto 
(New Peoples Party) is catching up. 
 
The situation became clear when a telephone-based opinion survey was 
carried out by the Okinawa Times and the Asahi Shimbun among 
eligible voters in the prefecture, April 14-15. 
 
Together with the Upper House by-election in Fukushima, the two 
races are seen as preliminary skirmishes before the main event, the 
election for the House of Councilors this summer. The ruling and 
opposition camps are clashing, using every effort to win. Last 
Sunday, April 15, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Minshuto (Democratic 
Party of Japan) President Ichiro Ozawa and other senior politicians 
came one after the other to Okinawa to campaign on local streets. 
 
Since the results of the two by-elections will reverberate in the 
main election, setting the country's policy course on such issues as 
constitutional reform, we would like everyone to fully understand 
their importance and vote without fail. 
 
As for the main points of the survey of the situation, over 30% of 
the voters had not made up their minds yet, both camps can be 
expected to wage fierce battles until the final stage. The 
peculiarity of this election is that both candidates in their policy 
debates placing more emphasis on livelihood issues than on US base 
issues. There has been a change in the voters' consciousness toward 
giving priority to their daily lives. When asked in the poll which 
should carry more weight in the campaigns, livelihood or base 
issues, 64% of respondents chose "livelihood," and only 15 chose 
"base issues." The preference of voters of stressing daily issues, 
such as economic recovery, instead of base problems was loud and 
clear. 
 
What should we make of this development? 
 
Perhaps the residents of Okinawa are experiencing a sense of 
fatigue, for although over 10 years have passed since the Special 
Action Committee on Okinawa (SACO) Agreement, the base problem has 
still not been resolved, with the issue of relocating MCAS Futenma 
bogged down. 
 
The reason for stressing the livelihood issue is a little unclear, 
but it indeed has been an important matter for many years in 
 
TOKYO 00001677  002 OF 003 
 
 
Okinawa, where the prefecture's gap with the mainland in incomes and 
economic development never goes away.  We would like voters to cast 
a scrutinizing eye on the livelihood policies of candidates Aiko 
Shimajiri and Yoshimasa Karimata before voting. 
 
In the poll, 22% answered that they were "greatly interested" in the 
election, and another 59% said that they were "somewhat interested," 
making a total of around 80%. However, can we conclude that such 
high interest will be reflected in the actual voter-turnout rate? 
 
Looking at the support rates of the parties, we find 42% answered 
that they had no affiliation. Another 19% said they could not answer 
or did not know. So about 60% of the electorate are floating 
voters. 
 
The expansion of unaffiliated voters is the flip side of popular 
distrust of politics. What is being questioned is not only the 
consciousness of voters but also the significance of political 
parties. However, this time, there is no doubt that the moves of 
unaffiliated voters will determine the turnout rate and be key as to 
who wins or loses. 
 
(2) US sounds out Japan on reorganizing sub-cabinet economic 
dialogue, with future FTA negotiations in mind 
 
Jiji Press (Full) 
April 14 2007 
 
Washington. US government officials revealed on April 14 that the 
Bush administration has sounded out Japan about reorganizing the 
Japan-US sub-cabinet economic dialogue. The concept being considered 
within the US government would launch a bilateral economic strategic 
dialogue at the cabinet level, with an eye on changing it in the 
future to negotiations to reach a free-trade agreement (FTA). 
Although Japan is negative about revising the sub-cabinet dialogue, 
fearing that such would lead to agricultural liberalization, it 
seems likely that the question of how to build a new framework for 
economic talks will become a major challenge between the two 
countries. 
 
According to US government officials, the sounding out by the US 
took place immediately after the sub-cabinet dialogue held in 
Washington on April 6. At the time, the US, out of consideration for 
Japan's situation of holding Upper House elections this summer, 
avoided reference to specific contents about the reorganization, 
limiting its comment to the expression, "more ambitious economic 
talks." 
 
The sub-cabinet dialogue, consisting of vice-ministerial-level 
officials from relevant ministries and agencies, started in 2001. In 
the talks on April 6, the participants took up such subjects as the 
new multilateral negotiations (Doha Round) under the World Trade 
Organization (WTO) and the issue of US beef exports to Japan. 
However, the view has set in within the US about these talks is that 
"they have lost their momentum." A US government official stated: 
"We have a keen awareness that for the world's largest and next 
largest economies to go along this way is a problem." Compared with 
political and security affairs, over which the two countries have 
bilateral Security Consultative Committee (2-plus-2) meetings of 
defense and foreign affair meetings, the channels of communication 
in the economic area are thin, the official pointed out. 
 
The Japan-US Business Council has expressed a strong view calling 
 
TOKYO 00001677  003 OF 003 
 
 
for launching new talks at the private-sector level, while urging an 
early signing of an economic partnership agreement (EPA). The 
American Chamber of Commerce in Japan has proposed the notion of 
establishing a Japan-US cabinet-level forum of economic ministers, 
to be held twice year. 
 
SCHIEFFER