VZCZCXRO0057
PP RUEHFK RUEHKSO RUEHNAG RUEHNH
DE RUEHKO #1638/01 1680801
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 160801Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5090
INFO RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/USDOJ WASHDC PRIORITY
RULSDMK/USDOT WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J5//
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHHMHBA/COMPACFLT PEARL HARBOR HI
RHMFIUU/HQ PACAF HICKAM AFB HI//CC/PA//
RHMFIUU/USFJ //J5/JO21//
RUYNAAC/COMNAVFORJAPAN YOKOSUKA JA
RUAYJAA/CTF 72
RUEHNH/AMCONSUL NAHA 0759
RUEHFK/AMCONSUL FUKUOKA 8383
RUEHOK/AMCONSUL OSAKA KOBE 2090
RUEHNAG/AMCONSUL NAGOYA 6647
RUEHKSO/AMCONSUL SAPPORO 8969
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 3921
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 9919
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0335

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 TOKYO 001638 
 
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 06/16/08 
 
INDEX: 
 
(1) Like-minded LDP members file one petition after another, aiming 
to prompt new panel to start constitutional debate (Tokyo Shimbun) 
 
(2) Due to divided Diet, 9 treaties to automatically clear Diet 
(Tokyo Shimbun) 
 
(3) Coordination on basic economic policy guidelines moving into 
full gear: Focus is on implementation of spending cuts; Specific 
measures likely to be forgone (Nikkei) 
 
(4) Divided Diet (Part 1): With eye on Lower House election, autumn 
winds have begun to blow; Turning tables difficult for ruling bloc 
(Nikkei) 
 
(5) SOFA revision debated in symposium (Ryukyu Shimpo) 
 
(6) No alternative to base reduction: Honma (Ryukyu Shimpo) 
 
ARTICLES: 
 
(1) Like-minded LDP members file one petition after another, aiming 
to prompt new panel to start constitutional debate 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
June 16, 2008 
 
In an effort to prompt the newly established special Constitution 
research committees of the two Houses of the Diet to start up, 
like-minded Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) members eager to spur 
debate on the Constitution have submitted one petition after another 
to the Diet. The committees were established based on the National 
Referendum Law, but they remain unable to even meet. It is quite 
unusual for the ruling coalition to actively file petitions. By 
filing petitions, the coalition is aiming to create a stir to spark 
a constitutional debate. 
 
Under the petition system, people submit their requests to the Diet 
through the introduction of lawmakers. If a petition is adopted 
after being screened by the relevant committee, the petition will be 
deemed as given an endorsement. The opposition camp frequently 
resorts to this mechanism given its limited means to implement their 
policy measures. 
 
The debate on the Constitution has rapidly decelerated since the LDP 
suffered a crushing defeat in the House of Councillors election last 
year and then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was eager to revise the 
Constitution, stepped down. The special committees in both chambers 
of the Diet remain inactive, unable to even start deliberations to 
determine such details as the number of its members and rules on 
procedures. 
 
The petitions -- submitted by like-minded LDP members -- urge the 
Diet steering committees of the Upper and Lower Houses to quickly 
set rues. In the petitions, former Foreign Minister Taro Nakayama, 
who has served as chairman of the Lower House Constitution Research 
Council, former Secretary General Taro Aso, and Policy Research 
Council Chairman Sadakazu Tanigaki are cited as introducers. The 
number of the petitions accepted in the Lower House is 44 and that 
in the Upper House is 57. 
 
 
TOKYO 00001638  002 OF 006 
 
 
One of the introducers said: "It is negligent that the legislative 
branch of government has not carried forward prearranged legal 
procedures." In many cases of the petitions, screening has already 
ended with no conclusion reached. Bur many anticipate that the 
petitions related to constitutional debate will not be easily 
disregarded, focusing on the lineup of key lawmakers as 
introducers. 
 
Even so, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) has boycotted 
deliberations since the Upper House adopted a censure motion against 
the prime minister. It is now certain that the current Diet session 
will be adjourned under an abnormal situation. On these petitions, 
too, conclusion of the screening might not be reached by the end of 
the session as anticipated. 
 
(2) Due to divided Diet, 9 treaties to automatically clear Diet 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
June 15, 2008 
 
The government has called for Diet approval of four treaties and 
agreements. Of the four, two will clear the Diet automatically on 
June 21. Since three treaties were approved on June 12, a total of 
nine treaties will likely be automatically approved during the 
current Diet session. Since only 13 treaties had been automatically 
approved before the opening of the current session, the Diet 
approval of nine treaties during one session is unprecedented. 
 
The Constitution stipulates that in the case of failure by the House 
of Councillors to take final action within 30 days, after receiving 
a treaty or agreement, passed by the House of Representatives, the 
decision of the Lower House becomes naturally the decision of the 
Diet. 
 
Most of the treaties, including the revised Japan-U.S. Security 
Treaty in 1960, that were automatically approved were subjects of 
controversy between the ruling and opposition camps. 
 
The 9 treaties that passed the Lower House with the approval of both 
the ruling coalition and the main opposition Democratic Party of 
Japan (DPJ) during the current session will all clear the Diet. 
 
The DPJ asserted that it would not respond to deliberations, unless 
the ruling camp promised to summon Naoki Akiyama, executive director 
of the Japan-U.S. Center for Peace and Cultural Exchange, to testify 
as a sworn witness before the Upper House Committee on Foreign 
Affairs and Defense, which deliberates on treaties. The ruling 
coalition, however, rejected the request. Therefore, the committee 
has not held any meetings since May 22. 
 
The prevailing view in the ruling camp was that incomplete 
deliberations and unapproved treaties would be unavoidable, the 
argument being that the ruling parties should not allow the DPJ do 
what it wants. However, the ruling coalition chose a way for the 
treaties to be naturally approved by extending the current session 
from June 15 to the 21st. Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda strongly 
desired to see Diet approval of an economic partnership agreement 
with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. 
 
Ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Diet Affairs Committee 
Chairman Tadamori Oshima stated: "It is extremely regrettable that 
the DPJ neglected doing its job." On the other hand, Committee 
 
TOKYO 00001638  003 OF 006 
 
 
Chairman Toshimi Kitazawa, a DPJ lawmaker, insisted that the ruling 
camp, which would not agree to allow Akiyama to testify, should be 
held to blame. He argued: "I told the ruling parties that they were 
responsible for persuading the opposition to approve the treaties. 
But they did not listen to me." 
 
(3) Coordination on basic economic policy guidelines moving into 
full gear: Focus is on implementation of spending cuts; Specific 
measures likely to be forgone 
 
NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) 
June 16, 2008 
 
The government and the ruling parties will enter into full-fledged 
coordination to lay down basic policy guidelines on economic and 
fiscal management and structural reforms for fiscal 2008 at the 
beginning of this week. The government's Council on Economic and 
Fiscal Policy (CEFP) is expected to discuss draft guidelines at its 
meeting on June 17. Many ruling party members are calling for 
increased expenditures, mainly in the social security area. Under 
such a circumstance, how far Prime Minister Fukuda can adhere to his 
spending cut policy will be the challenge. The prime minister on the 
evening of the 14th called in State Minister for Economic and Fiscal 
Policy Hiroko Ota to the Prime Minister's official residence and 
conferred on the basic policy guidelines with her for about an hour 
and a half. During the meeting, he said, "I would like to maintain 
my reform stance in order to show to the people that the cabinet is 
properly tackling reform policy." 
 
The focus will be on the direction of the reform to unify 
expenditures and revenues incorporated in the basic policy 
guidelines for fiscal 2006, the last set of guidelines issued by the 
Koizumi administration. Prime Minister Fukuda has announced his 
stance of keeping the existing spending cut policy line firm in 
order to bring the primary balance into the black by fiscal 2011. 
This could be done by making such efforts as to constrain the 220 
billion yen in social security expenditures. 
 
However, pressure from the ruling parties for increased spending is 
unusually strong. Participants expressed discontent with the prime 
minister's spending cut policy at a plenary meeting of the Liberal 
Democratic Party (LDP) on the 11th. 
 
Regarding the spending reform as a whole, a proposal for modifying 
"carry out maximum spending cuts" to "make efforts to make maximum 
spending cuts" has been made. 
 
An aide close to the prime minister said: "Writing basic policy 
guidelines is like depicting dreams. It is not necessary to include 
the minor details." Decision-making on the actual margin of cuts 
will likely be put off until the time when the budget is compiled. 
 
(4) Divided Diet (Part 1): With eye on Lower House election, autumn 
winds have begun to blow; Turning tables difficult for ruling bloc 
 
NIKKEI (Page 2) (Abridged) 
June 16, 2008 
 
The current session of the Diet, in which the ruling coalition 
parties have a majority in the House of Representatives and the 
opposition DPJ controls the House of Councillors, is set to close on 
June 21. The session has been tumultuous. With an eye on possible 
 
TOKYO 00001638  004 OF 006 
 
 
political realignment after the next Lower House election, lawmakers 
have begun making moves. 
 
On the afternoon of June 13, a Lower House plenary session decided 
to extend the current Diet session for six days, and all ruling 
party lawmakers immediately headed for their own constituencies. The 
plenary session was not attended by many opposition parties, 
including the Democratic Party of Japan, which had decided to 
boycott Diet deliberations after the Upper House adopted days 
earlier a censure motion against Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda. Autumn 
winds have begun to blow in the capitol district of Nagatacho. 
 
The ongoing session of the Diet has put off many pain-inflicting 
policy issues. This will force the next extraordinary Diet session 
to handle such pressing issues as extending the Maritime 
Self-Defense Force's refueling operation in the Indian Ocean and 
raising the government's contribution to the basic pension scheme to 
50 PERCENT  of the total. The ruling bloc is eager to convene the 
extra Diet session earlier than usual, thinking it might be 
necessary to use a two-thirds Lower House override vote to pass some 
bills in accordance with the constitutional 60-day rule. 
 
How is the ruling bloc going to fend off the opposition camp's 
fierce attack and grab a chance to turn the tables from the extra 
Diet session in the fall through the regular Diet session next year? 
The ruling bloc has a plan to achieve that. 
 
The ruling coalition specifically intends to: produce bills to free 
up road-related revenues for general purposes and to fundamentally 
reform the taxation system and begin deliberations on them before 
the end of the year; get the bills past the Lower House by the end 
of January, and in the event the opposition bloc opposes them use a 
two-thirds Lower House override vote to enact them before the end of 
fiscal 2008; and dissolve the Lower House on the strength of the 
administration's achievements of road and tax system reform and the 
establishment of a consumer affairs agency. 
 
The plan is also designed to apply pressure to those trying inside 
and outside the LDP to unseat Prime Minister Fukuda, as well as to 
give the prime minister a free hand to dissolve the Lower House. 
"Even if Prime Minister Fukuda leaves power, he can still earn his 
place in history," an LDP executive said to a Fukuda aide. 
 
Meanwhile, DPJ Secretary General Yukio Hatoyama, appearing on an NHK 
talk show and other programs yesterday, noted: "Cabinet resignation 
should follow the adoption of a censure motion against the prime 
minister. If the Fukuda administration calls an extraordinary Diet 
session, we cannot support it." Many in the ruling camp are 
skeptical about whether a cabinet with support ratings of about 20 
PERCENT  can carry through road and tax reforms. 
 
On the night of June 11, hours after the censure motion against the 
prime minister was adopted, Fukuda attended a meeting of some 60 
young and mid-level LDP lawmakers. Before the attendants, Fukuda 
jokingly said: "I stood trial today. The courtroom was too noisy to 
hear the verdict." Fukuda then put his name on a Chinese phrase 
indicating the importance of solidarity after an important event. 
 
There is no doubt that the important event means the next Lower 
House dissolution that would take place before September next year. 
The prime minister cannot rule out the possibility that some 
mid-level and young LDP lawmakers concerned about the next election 
 
TOKYO 00001638  005 OF 006 
 
 
will spearhead a drive to find a new face of the party for the 
election. 
 
The trauma of being labeled incompetent by one chamber will continue 
haunting the prime minister. Fukuda attended a meeting of the 
government and the ruling coalition on June 12, the day after the 
censure motion was adopted, that decided on measures to improve the 
medical insurance system for those aged 75 and older. With his gaze 
fixed on the documents and remaining silent, Fukuda reportedly 
seemed extremely depressed. 
 
In the last weekend, the prime minister managed in between meetings 
in the wake of the Iwate-Miyagi Inland Earthquake to be briefed by 
State Minister for Economic and Fiscal Policy Hiroko Ota and prime 
ministerial advisor Tatsuya Ito on the draft 2008 basic economic and 
fiscal policy guidelines and social security issues. 
 
Finding it increasingly difficult to steer his administration under 
the divided Diet, Fukuda seems to be alternating between confidence 
and insecurity. The prime minister recently complained to a former 
cabinet minister of the LDP over the phone: "Convincing the public 
about matters is not easy." 
 
(5) SOFA revision debated in symposium 
 
RYUKYU SHIMPO (Page 2) (Full) 
June 15, 2008 
 
A nongovernmental organization seeking to revise the Japan-U.S. 
Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) held a symposium yesterday at 
Okinawa International University in the city of Ginowan to discuss 
three opposition parties' draft revisions to the SOFA. Hiroshi 
Honma, a professor emeritus at Surugadai University, cited problems 
with the SOFA's current provisions while referring to its 
applicability. "Okinawa Prefecture has yet to be on the same plane 
as the rest of Japan," Honma said, pointing to the challenge of the 
opposition parties' proposal of revisions to the SOFA. Shokichi 
Kina, a House of Councillors member of the leading opposition 
Democratic Party of Japan (Minshuto), Mikio Shimoji, a House of 
Representatives member who has formed a parliamentary group with the 
People's New Party, and Kantoku Teruya, a House of Representatives 
member of the Social Democratic Party, participated in the symposium 
to discuss the future. 
 
In their proposal of revisions to SOFA provisions, the opposition 
parties suggest the need (for the government) to listen to local 
views before constructing new bases. "They have paved the way to 
have the voices of local residents reflected," Honma said. 
 
Meanwhile, Honma touched on the U.S. military's base control rights 
prescribed in SOFA Article 3. "The question is how to change the 
rights that are convenient to the United States," Honma noted. He 
also cited Germany's Bonn Agreement, which expressly stipulates that 
Germany's laws are applicable to the U.S. military's use of bases in 
that country. In this regard, Honma noted a problem, saying the 
opposition parties' proposal leaves ambiguity about applying Japan's 
laws to the U.S. military's use of bases in Japan. He specified 
criminal jurisdiction, saying, "They should have prepared a system 
that will allow Japan to go through on-base criminal procedures even 
more easily." 
 
Shimoji argued: "It's important to make clear for what purpose they 
 
TOKYO 00001638  006 OF 006 
 
 
will use bases. The question is how to ensure (the U.S. military's 
stance of abiding by Japan's law). For that, the Japanese 
government's diplomatic stance is needed. The opposition parties' 
draft plan is not perfect. However, we will have to make a constant 
appeal not only to the United States but also to the public in 
Japan." Shimoji also suggested the need to apply Japan's law to U.S. 
forces in Japan. However, he said, "They would not abide by Japan's 
laws (in their use of new bases). Japan should clearly say this in 
its diplomatic negotiations." 
 
The opposition parties' proposal incorporates an environmental 
clause. Teruya explained: "We have created Article 5 (for 
environmental conservation) from the position that we should make a 
drastic review of the SOFA from an environmental perspective." 
Referring to the outlook for Diet discussions on the SOFA, Teruya 
noted: "Even in the Diet, only a very small number of people have 
concern and understanding on the issue of revising the SOFA. In the 
House of Councillors, some people discussed a resolution calling for 
revisions to the SOFA. However, all of us in the Diet should try to 
adopt such a resolution unanimously. That will have a big impact on 
the government and also on the United States. We will have to make 
efforts." So saying, he indicated that it would be difficult to 
present a resolution at the current Diet session. 
 
Kina stressed that the opposition parties would aim to revise the 
SOFA when they take the reins of government. "We can't revise it 
unless we take office," he said. 
 
(6) No alternative to base reduction: Honma 
 
RYUKYU SHIMPO (Page 2) (Abridged) 
June 14, 2008 
 
Hiroshi Honma, a professor emeritus at Surugadai University who is 
familiar with the U.S. military's status of forces agreements (with 
Japan and other U.S. allies), told the Ryukyu Shimpo in an interview 
yesterday that Japan should push for disarmament as a drastic 
solution to U.S. military base issues. In late March, opposition 
parties agreed on draft revisions to the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces 
Agreement (SOFA). Honma gave high marks to this fact. However, Honma 
noted that U.S. Forces Japan is basically maintaining its status quo 
with no substantial change in its presence. "When it comes to 
matters at specific levels," Honma said, "there's no progress." He 
added, "There is no choice but to carry out base reductions." 
 
In the interview, Honma explained why the SOFA needs to be revised. 
"NATO, which has been called a model, was concluded in 1951," Honma 
said. "In those days," he went on, "the world was in the midst of 
the Cold War." He added: "We were in a tense situation-both 
politically and militarily. Today, we're in a different environment. 
It's about time to rethink, even more fundamentally, the U.S. 
military presence in Japan. 
 
Concerning issues relevant to the U.S. military's jurisdiction over 
criminal cases involving its SOFA personnel, Honma noted that the 
U.S. military is aware of rights guaranteed by the U.S. 
Constitution. He suggested the need to revise the SOFA instead of 
improving its implementation at the U.S. military's discretion. 
 
SCHIEFFER