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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 TOKYO 000594 
 
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 03/18/09 
 
Index: 
 
"Ozawa shock": 
1) Yomiuri poll: DPJ head Ozawa drops to 5th place on question of 
being "appropriate to be prime minister," while rival Okada jumps 
from 10th to 3rd place  (Yomiuri) 
2) Ozawa likely to decide on March 24 whether he will stay on or 
resign as DPJ president  (Tokyo Shimbun) 
3) Ozawa announces that party will now promote complete ban on 
political donations from corporations and organizations  (Asahi) 
4) Akita governor aware that public works projects being arranged by 
Ozawa side in return for political donations  (Sankei) 
 
Political scene: 
5) New Komeito, worried about low support rates, now wants to put 
off next general election as long as possible  (Asahi) 
6) Asahi poll finds 60 PERCENT  of public "greatly dissatisfied" 
with politics, 90 PERCENT  convinced "politics does not reflect the 
popular will"  (Asahi) 
 
Diplomatic scene: 
7) Prime Minister Aso's China trip put off over Beijing's sharp 
reaction to statements about Senkakus covered by the U.S.-Japan 
security treaty  (Sankei) 
8) Defense officials of Japan and ASEAN agree to pursue security 
cooperation  (Yomiuri) 
 
9) Former Prime Minister Mori, South Korean premier agree to block 
launching of North Korea's "satellite"  (Yomiuri) 
10) Government perplexed by possibility that Pyongyang may agree to 
restart abduction investigation after it launches provocative 
missile  (Sankei) 
 
Economy in trouble: 
11) Bank of Japan ready to pump 1 trillion yen into ailing major and 
regional banks  (Nikkei) 
12) LDP proposes 14-trillion yen scale additional stimulus package, 
centered on frontloading public works  (Tokyo Shimbun) 
 
Articles: 
 
1) Poll: Ozawa falls to 5th in popularity ranking for premiership 
 
YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) 
March 18, 2009 
 
In a recent Yomiuri Shimbun poll conducted across the nation on 
March 14-15, respondents were asked who they thought was most 
appropriate among Dietmembers to become prime minister. In this 
popularity ranking for premiership, former Prime Minister Koizumi 
topped all other lawmakers at 12.9 PERCENT , following the last poll 
taken Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. Democratic Party of Japan (Minshuto) 
President Ozawa, who was second in the last poll, retreated markedly 
to fifth place at 6.0 PERCENT . Health, Labor and Welfare Minister 
Masuzoe came around to take the place of Ozawa and ranked second at 
10.6 PERCENT . Prime Minister Aso, who ranked second in the last 
poll, fell down to eighth place at 3.5 PERCENT . 
 
The proportion of those who chose Ozawa shrank from 13.7 PERCENT  in 
the last poll. His downfall in the popularity ranking possibly 
reflects the recent arrest of his secretary for an alleged violation 
of the Political Funds Control Law. DPU Vice President Katsuya 
 
TOKYO 00000594  002 OF 009 
 
 
Okada, who is said to be one of the "post-Ozawa" candidates in the 
DPJ, ranked third at 6.8 PERCENT , rising from 10th place at 1.7 
PERCENT  in the last poll. 
 
Among DPJ supporters, Ozawa was slightly above Okada, with Ozawa 
reaching 22 PERCENT  and Okada at 20 PERCENT . In the last poll, 
however, Ozawa overwhelmed Okada, with Ozawa getting 40 PERCENT  and 
Okada at 4 PERCENT . It is clear that Ozawa has fallen in 
popularity. 
 
In the Liberal Democratic Party, Koizumi (14.4 PERCENT  in the last 
poll) and Masuzoe (7.5 PERCENT  in the last poll) ranked high, 
followed by LDP Deputy Secretary General Nobuteru Ishihara at 6.2 
PERCENT  (2.7 PERCENT  in the last poll). Finance Minister Kaoru 
Yosano, serving concurrently in the posts of financial services 
minister and economic and fiscal policy minister, was at 4.3 PERCENT 
 (1.4 PERCENT  in the last poll). Aso (4.7 PERCENT  in the last 
poll) was below these four persons. Among LDP supporter, Koizumi was 
at 19 PERCENT , Masuzoe at 14 PERCENT , Ishihara at 12 PERCENT , and 
Aso at 11 PERCENT . 
 
Among those with no particular party affiliation, Koizumi was at 12 
PERCENT , followed by Masuzoe at 11 PERCENT  and Okada at 6 PERCENT 
. Ozawa was at 6 PERCENT , and Aso at 1 PERCENT . 
 
For the poll, a total of 3,000 persons were chosen from among the 
nation's voting population. Answers were obtained from 1,755 persons 
(58.5 PERCENT ). 
 
Popularity ranking for prime minister 
1 (1) Junichiro Koizumi 12.9 PERCENT 
2 (3) Yoichi Masuzoe 10.6 PERCENT 
3 (10) Katsuya Okada 6.8 PERCENT 
4 (7) Nobuteru Ishihara 6.2 PERCENT 
5 (2) Ichiro Ozawa 6.0 PERCENT 
6 (6) Naoto Kan 4.3 PERCENT 
6 (12) Kaoru Yosano 4.3 PERCENT 
8 (4) Taro Aso 3.5 PERCENT 
9 (5) Yoshimi Watanabe 2.5 PERCENT 
10 (9) Seiji Maehara 2.2 PERCENT 
(Note) Top 10 ranking tabulated. Figures in parentheses denote 
previous ranks. 
 
2) Ozawa likely to decide on March 24 whether he will stay on as 
party head or resign 
 
TOKYO (Page 2) (Excerpts) 
March 18, 2009 
 
Speaking to the press corps yesterday afternoon, Democratic Party of 
Japan (DPJ) President Ichiro Ozawa commented on his own course of 
action regarding the case against his public secretary for allegedly 
receiving huge political donations from Nishimatsu Construction Co. 
"In the not too distant future, the prosecutors will make their 
judgment, and I will make my decision at the time when they reach 
their conclusion," he said. 
 
Tokyo prosecutors will decide whether to indict the secretary on or 
after March 24, the date being the legal limit for confinement after 
an arrest is made. The statement indicated his view that if the 
secretary is indicted, he would look hard to see whether there was a 
possibility of the prosecutors continuing to investigate the Ozawa 
 
TOKYO 00000594  003 OF 009 
 
 
side and then make his decision as to whether to stay on or resign. 
At the same time, he also said, "I would like to give though to my 
decision while listening to views and judgments within the party." 
 
Regarding the impact on his decision of the Chiba gubernatorial race 
on March 29 and the Nagoya mayoralty race in April, Ozawa stated: 
"Although the regional elections are extremely important, they 
should not be equated to what I do next." 
 
3) DPJ President Ozawa calls for total ban on donations by companies 
and organizations 
 
ASAHI (Page 1) (Full) 
March 18, 2009 
 
Commenting on a revision to rules on political fund donations in the 
wake of an illegal donation scandal involving Nishimatsu 
Construction Co., Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) President Ozawa 
during a regular news conference on March 17 said, "Corporate 
donations and donations by organizations at issue should be banned 
totally." He indicated his intention to consider amending the 
Political Funds Control Law to totally ban donations by companies 
and organizations regardless of whether donations are intended to 
receive orders for public works. 
 
He pointed out that it is impossible to ban donations by companies 
that undertake public works, because almost all companies have 
something to do with the state, prefectures and municipalities in 
some way or other. He then said that if a lesson is to be learned 
from the incident this time, donations by companies and 
organizations should be banned. 
 
Regarding whether to step down or not, Ozawa indicated his intention 
to make a decision, after examining the judgment reached by public 
prosecutors, saying, "Public prosecutors will make their judgment in 
the not-so-distant future. I will make a decision on my future when 
their conclusion is reached." He made that statement having in mind 
March 24, when the custody period for his arrested stated-funded 
secretary expires. 
 
4) Akita governor and aides suspected of having known Nishimatsu's 
donations to Ozawa office; Company wins contracts for several 
prefecture-ordered projects 
 
SANKEI (Top Play) (Excerpts) 
March 18, 2009 
 
Akita Governor Sukeshiro Terada and his aides are now suspected of 
having known that general contractors, including Nishimatsu 
Construction Co., were making illegal donations to Democratic Party 
of Japan (DPJ) Ichiro Ozawa's fund-management organization, 
Rikuzan-kai, under the name of subcontractors in the Tohoku 
District, according investigators yesterday. Nishimatsu has received 
orders for several projects ordered by the Akita prefectural 
government. It has been reported that Takanori Okubo, who was 
responsible for accounting for Rikuzan-kai and has been arrested on 
charges of violating the Political Funds Control Law, was involved 
in prearranging winners of contracts for these projects. Focusing on 
this fact, the special investigation squad of the Tokyo District 
Public Prosecutors Office is investigating to find whether the 
governor and his aides had learned that there were prearrangement 
consultations behind the political donations through dummy bodies. 
 
TOKYO 00000594  004 OF 009 
 
 
 
After serving as president of Sowa Construction Co., in Yokote City, 
where the Omatsugawa Dam, which Nishimatsu constructed, is located, 
Terada became Yokote mayor in 1991. He ran in the Akita 
gubernatorial election in 1997 at the request of Ozawa. Backed by 
Shinshinto (New Frontier Party), he won the election and has served 
his third term. 
 
His second son is a DPJ House of Representatives member. His eldest 
son also ran in the Lower House election in 1996 on the ticket of 
Shinshinto but was defeated. 
 
According to government gazettes, Sowa donated 2 million yen to 
Rikuzan-kai between 1995 and 1999 and 7.2 million yen to the Jiyuto 
(Liberal Party) chapter in Tohoku No. 3 proportional representation 
constituency, which was represented by the person who was in charge 
of accounting for Rikuzan-kai before Okubo, between 2000 and 2002. 
The Iwate branch of Sowa in Oshu, Ozawa's electoral district, also 
donated 500,000 yen to Rikuzan-kai in 1997 and then 1.2 million yen 
to the Jiyuto chapter in Iwate No. 4 Constituency, which was 
represented by Ozawa, in 2002 and 2003. In addition, the company 
purchased tickets worth 240,000 yen for a party held in 2003 by the 
Ozawa Ichiro's study group on politics and economics, represented by 
Okubo. The company provided a total of 11.14 million yen to the 
Ozawa side. 
 
According to prefectural gazettes, Association to Create a New 
Akita, the governor's political group, received 680,000 yen in 
donations from the then Akita branch office head of Nishimatsu 
between 2001 and 2006. 
 
5) Komeito wants Diet dissolution put off 
 
ASAHI (Page 4) (Abridged) 
March 18, 2009 
 
The New Komeito used to call for a "springtime dissolution" of the 
House of Representatives, but the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's 
coalition partner seems to have changed its mind and is seeking to 
delay the Diet dissolution. That is because the cabinet support rate 
still remains low in spite of a political money scandal involving 
the leading opposition Democratic Party of Japan (Minshuto) and the 
ruling coalition would inevitably suffer a crushing defeat if the 
Diet is dissolved this spring. The New Komeito is absolutely opposed 
to a general election that is coincident with this July's Tokyo 
metropolitan assembly election. The party therefore does not want 
the House of Representatives to be dissolved for a general election 
until sometime near its current membership's expiry in September. 
 
Last fall, the idea of "a general election in November" was forgone. 
Then, the New Komeito, locking on a "springtime dissolution," has 
patiently shored up the Aso cabinet. All the more for this reason, 
and as DPJ President Ozawa's secretary was arrested for an alleged 
violation of the Political Funds Control Law, the New Komeito deemed 
it likely for the House of Representatives to be dissolved in late 
April and a general election to be set for May 24, according to one 
of the party's lawmakers who have experienced a cabinet ministerial 
post. The party now wants the Diet to be dissolved after the Diet 
approves the fiscal 2009 budget and after the government comes up 
with an additional economic stimulus package in April. 
 
In the meantime, however, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Iwao 
 
TOKYO 00000594  005 OF 009 
 
 
Uruma's gaffe came up. In addition, there were news reports implying 
that a taskforce of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office 
could next target LDP lawmakers in its investigations. In such 
circumstances, the ruling coalition lost a momentum to take the 
offensive against the DPJ. The approval ratings for the Aso cabinet 
remained low in various other media polls as well. As far as cabinet 
support is concerned, most of the New Komeito's lawmakers are 
optimistic. 
 
6) Poll: 60 PERCENT  "greatly dissatisfied" with politics 
 
ASAHI (Top play) (Abridged) 
March 18, 2009 
 
An estimated 60 PERCENT  of the public are extremely unhappy with 
the current state of politics. The Asahi Shimbun conducted a 
nationwide public opinion survey on a mailing basis to probe the 
public's political and social attitudes, and the survey found that 
the public is generally growing dissatisfied with politics. In the 
survey, about 90 PERCENT  gave negative answers when they were asked 
if they thought politics showed a future image and reflects public 
opinion. 
 
The survey was conducted from February through mid-March, with a 
total of 3,000 persons chosen from among the nation's voting 
population. The response rate was 79 PERCENT . 
 
Among four choices given for the degree of satisfaction with 
politics, even those "somewhat satisfied" accounted for only 6 
PERCENT , and those "greatly satisfied" accounted for 1 PERCENT . 
 
"Greatly dissatisfied" accounted for 60 PERCENT , and "somewhat 
dissatisfied" was at 31 PERCENT . The results of previous polls and 
the one taken this time cannot be simply compared due to different 
polling methodologies. However, a similar question was asked in a 
face-to-face survey taken in December 2006 when the Abe cabinet was 
in office. In that survey, those "greatly dissatisfied" with 
politics accounted for 27 PERCENT , with those "somewhat 
dissatisfied" were at 45 PERCENT . 
 
Meanwhile, the public is paying keen attention to politics. Those 
"very interested" in politics accounted for 31 PERCENT  and those 
"somewhat interested" were at 48 PERCENT , totaling about 80 PERCENT 
. The survey shows that those highly interested in politics are also 
strongly dissatisfied with politics. 
 
The public's dissatisfied feelings can be seen from their answers to 
questions asking about the future image of this country and the 
reflection of public opinion. Respondents were asked if they thought 
politics now shows a future image or course for society. In response 
to this question, negative answers totaled 91 PERCENT . When asked 
if public opinion is reflected in politics, negative answers added 
up to 87 PERCENT , broken down into "not at all" at 35 PERCENT  and 
"not very much" at 52 PERCENT . 
 
Respondents were also asked if they trust politicians. To this 
question, negative answers totaled about 80 PERCENT , broken down 
into "not at all" at 21 PERCENT  and "not very much" at 57 PERCENT . 
Those who have no expectations for the currently existing political 
parties also accounted for 61 PERCENT . 
 
7) Aso's visit to China postponed due to China's strong reaction to 
 
TOKYO 00000594  006 OF 009 
 
 
his reference to application of U.S.-Japan Security Treaty to 
Senkakus 
 
SANKEI (Page 2) (Full) 
March 18, 2009 
 
Prime Minister Taro Aso's plan to visit China in late March has been 
postponed, it was learned yesterday. China informally informed Japan 
of its difficulty in arranging the schedule, but the real reason 
seems to be Beijing's strong reaction to the latest flap over 
sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. Finding 
it increasingly difficult to run the government due to the impact of 
the global economic crisis, China's leaders apparently are taking a 
hard-line stance on the sovereignty issue and marine interests. 
 
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao officially invited Prime Minister Aso to 
visit China during their December 13 summit. Coordination was 
underway for Aso's visit on March 27-29, following failed efforts to 
coordinate one for March 20-21. 
 
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang made this comment on 
March 17 about Prime Minister Aso's China visit: "The two countries 
are discussing a specific timeframe through diplomatic channels, and 
the question of postponing or calling it off does not exist." But 
several Government sources admitted that China had asked Japan 
through diplomatic channels to postpone the prime minister's visit. 
At the same time, China has expressed its unhappiness about the Aso 
administration's latest stance on the Senkaku Islands, according to 
the sources. 
 
In connection with the Senkakus, Prime Minister Aso, during the 
Japan-China summit meeting that took place ahead of the 
Japan-China-ROK summit in December, lodged a protest with China over 
a Chinese marine research vessel's incursion into Japanese waters. 
Although Premier Wen rebutted Aso, the matter did not escalate into 
a serious problem as Wen did not dwell on it any further. 
 
Prime Minister Aso made this statement about the Senkakus in the 
Lower House Budget Committee on Feb. 26: "They are part of Japan's 
territory, so they are subject to the (U.S.-Japan) Security Treaty." 
This prompted China to immediately take a hard stance. Chinese 
Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu in a press conference on the 
same day rebutted Aso: "We express our strong dissatisfaction. 
Diaoyu is part of China's territory, and China has indisputable 
sovereignty over the islands." 
 
In his speech to a military panel of the National People's Congress 
on March 11, Chinese President Hu Jintao urged the Chinese military 
to defend the country's sovereignty, security and territory. China's 
hard-line stance to secure marine interests also has now become 
clear. On March 8, a Chinese naval vessel interfered with the 
navigation of a U.S. Navy research vessel in China's exclusive 
economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea. A Hong Kong civic group 
announced on March 13 a plan to set out in May and land on the 
Senkaku Islands. 
 
The governments of Japan and China intend to coordinate the 
timetable for Aso's China visit by May. But if the Senkaku issue 
rekindles, the plan is certain to face difficulties. 
 
8) Japan, ASEAN agree on cooperation on security front 
 
 
TOKYO 00000594  007 OF 009 
 
 
YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) 
March 18, 2009 
 
The Defense Ministry held a security meeting by national defense 
vice minister-level officials from Japan and Association of 
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries for the first time at a 
Tokyo hotel yesterday. The participants agreed to promote 
cooperation in dealing with their common security challenges, such 
as damages from piracy and natural disasters. Vice Defense Minister 
Kohei Masuda chaired the meeting, which was joined by 
representatives from the nine ASEAN countries, except for Burma. 
Views were exchanged on ways for cooperation in these three areas: 
(1) natural disasters, including earthquakes; (2) maritime safety, 
such as anti-piracy; and (3) international peacekeeping operations. 
 
9) Mori, South Korean premier agree on need to prevent North's 
"satellite" launch 
 
YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) 
March 18, 2009 
 
Hajime Furukawa, Istanbul 
 
Former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori of the Liberal Democratic Party 
and South Korean Prime Minister Han Sung-chu agreed on the view in 
their meeting on the afternoon of March 17, local time, that Japan, 
the U.S. and South Korea should take joint steps to prevent North 
Korea from launching a missile, which Pyongyang calls a "satellite." 
 
 
Mori met with Turkish President Abdullah Gul on the night of the 
16th, local time. In reference to the additional economic package 
that Prime Minister Taro Aso had instructed the ruling coalition to 
work out, he said: "The prime minister gives priority to boosting 
the economy over holding an election or dissolving the House of 
Representatives." 
 
10) North may announce reinvestigation into abductees around launch 
of "satellite" in effort to avoid sanctions; Government having hard 
time 
 
SANKEI (Page 5) (Abridged slightly) 
March 18, 2009 
 
The government is having a hard time over how to deal with the 
expected launch of a long-range ballistic missile, which North Korea 
claims to be a satellite. The reason is because there has been 
information that either before or after the missile launch, 
Pyongyang might inform Tokyo that it is ready to conduct a 
reinvestigation into the fate of Japanese nationals abducted to the 
North. Once a missile is launched, the government intends to step up 
its sanctions against the North. But if Japan takes a hard-line 
stance, the North might harden its stance regarding the abduction 
issue. 
 
In bilateral working-level meeting last August, the North promised 
to set up an abduction issue reinvestigation committee, but the 
North has yet to deliver on its promise. Once the envisaged 
committee is set in motion, Japan would have to lift the ban on 
personnel exchanges and charter flights from North Korea. 
 
If the North launches a missile, the government intends to step up 
 
TOKYO 00000594  008 OF 009 
 
 
sanctions against the North by for instance totally prohibiting 
exports to that country. But in the event a reinvestigation is 
conducted, Japan would have to strengthen and ease its sanctions at 
the same time -- contradictory steps. "The North's intention to 
apply pressure on Japan is clearly looming over the rumor," a 
government source said. 
 
At the same time, the North seemingly intends to drive a wedge 
between Japan, the United States, and South Korea, which are united 
over North Korea policy. Another government source took this view: 
"China and Russia are already reluctant to adopt a sanctions 
resolution against the North in a UN Security Council meeting to be 
held after the missile launch. The North intends to prompt Japan to 
soften its stance in the meeting with the aim of lowering the level 
of condemnation to a chairman's statement." 
 
Regarding the relationship between the missile launch and the 
abduction issue, Prime Minister Taro Aso simply said on March 16: 
"There is no need to show our hand." At the same time, there is this 
view in the Foreign Ministry: "The missile and abduction issues are 
fundamentally two separate matters. We must deal with them 
separately." In any case, the government is being vexed by the 
expected missile launch. 
 
11) BOJ to provide up to 1 trillion yen in subordinated loans to 
help leading and regional banks reinforce their capital: Prevention 
of credit crunch eyed 
 
NIKKEI (Page 1) (Excerpts) 
March 18, 2009 
 
The Bank of Japan (BOJ) during a regular meeting of the Policy Board 
on March 17 decided to consider extending subordinated loans to 
banks with the aim of helping them reinforce their capital. A total 
of 1 trillion yen will be loaned to leading banks that are engaging 
in international operations. BOJ Governor Shirakawa told a news 
conference on the evening of the same day that there is concern that 
if stock plunges continue, banks would constrain lending in 
compliance with their capital ratios. The central bank will create a 
framework that will compliment the injection of public money by the 
government with aim of stabilizing the financial system and shoring 
up the economy, by helping banks reinforce their capital ratios. 
 
With the recent plunges in stock prices in mind, Governor Shirakawa 
expressed a sense of alarm, "(The financial crisis) is beginning to 
have a negative impact on the overall management of financial 
institutions, as can be seen in losses in the values of securities 
and increased credit costs. The BOJ is alarmed that if stock plunges 
continue toward May, when many companies release interim settlement 
of accounts, due to worsening corporate performances, banks would 
strengthen their credit crunch policy out of concern about a decline 
in their capital ratios. 
 
The BOJ is considering extending subordinated loans to commercial 
banks. Subordinated loans are given lower repayment priority than 
credited loans in exchange for higher borrowing rates. Banks can 
include subordinated loans as part of their capital. This way, they 
can make up for a decline in their capital caused by plunges in 
stocks they hold. According to the gist of the loan proposal 
released by the BOJ, banks eligible for such loans are those that 
are required to maintain a capital ratio needed for international 
operations -- over 8 PERCENT . Fourteen leading and regional banks 
 
TOKYO 00000594  009 OF 009 
 
 
will be eligible for the scheme. A total amount of such loans is 1 
trillion yen. The upper limit of loans that can be extended to one 
bank will be set. A lending interest rate and the period of lending 
will be decided later. Though Shirakawa did not specify when to 
implement the plan, he said, "I would like to look into the plan as 
soon as possible." 
 
12) LDP proposes 14 trillion yen scale additional economic stimulus 
package 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 1) (Full) 
March 18, 2009 
 
The Liberal Democratic Party's International Competitiveness 
Research Council, chaired by former Finance Minister Koji Omi, 
finalized on March 17 a set of interim proposals that would total 
roughly 14.7 trillion yen in public spending. The package focuses on 
the improvement of social infrastructure in local areas and 
information technology infrastructure. The report was presented at a 
meeting of the LDP Japanese Economy Revitalization Strategic Council 
last evening, bringing efforts to compile additional economic 
stimulus measures into full gear. 
 
This is the first time for the government and the ruling parties to 
indicate the specific scale of (real water) spending for the 
additional stimulus package that would entail fiscal action. The 
proposals lists projects that would be carried out in a single year 
and the amount of public spending involved. 
 
Specifically, the report calls for the use of approximately 11.6 
trillion yen to improve social infrastructure in local areas, 
speeding up the timetable. In addition to projects to improve road 
systems, such as the building of highways and measures to deal with 
busy railroad crossings that are rarely open, the package also 
proposes: (1) increasing the number of runways at local airports; 
(2) improving ports and harbor facilities to enable port calls by 
large vessels; and (3) building a linear motor system between Haneda 
and Narita, and Tokyo and Osaka. 
 
The package also includes a proposal for consolidating information 
technology infrastructure (about 900 million yen), such as antenna 
installations for public buildings in the run-up to the overall 
shift of the TV broadcasting system to the terrestrial broadcasting 
system, and new R&D (approximately 1.7 trillion yen). 
 
Construction bonds have been proposed as a funding source. The LDP 
will now expedite the compilation of the additional package, using 
the proposals offered by the LDP panel as reference. 
 
ZUMWALT