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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 08 TOKYO 000232 
 
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 02/05/10 
 
INDEX: 
 
1) Top headlines 
2) Editorials 
 
Futenma: 
3) PM: I'm determined to make a decision by May (Sankei) 
 
Foreign relations: 
4) Okada asks New Zealand to investigate Sea Shepherd's harassment 
of research whaling ship (Yomiuri) 
 
Defense & security: 
5) LDP submits bill for resumption of MSDF refueling mission 
(Nikkei) 
6) "Yuai boat" to set sail in May (Tokyo Shimbun) 
 
Politics: 
7) Ozawa not indicted (Asahi) 
8) DPJ should use Ozawa affair as a chance to make a clean start 
(Asahi) 
9) DPJ members voice opposition to allotments for children of 
foreign workers (Nikkei) 
10) Diet debate (Yomiuri) 
11) Yamasaki: I won't quit LDP (Tokyo Shimbun) 
 
Economy: 
12) BOJ sees protracted deflation (Asahi) 
13) METI expands eco subsidy to include 43 models (Mainichi) 
14) PM wants quick response to accelerator trouble in order to 
regain trust (Tokyo Shimbun) 
 
Articles: 
 
1) TOP HEADLINES 
 
Asahi: 
Ozawa not to be indicted, will not resign as secretary general 
 
Mainichi: 
Asashoryu retires over assault incident 
 
Yomiuri: 
Ozawa not to be indicted; Diet member Ishikawa, two others indicted 
 
Nikkei: 
Toyota's Prius to be recalled in Japan, U.S. 
 
Sankei: 
Yokozuna Asashoryu retires over assault incident 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
Ozawa not to be indicted; Diet member Ishikawa, two others indicted 
 
Akahata: 
Three close aides of Ozawa indicted; Ozawa not indicted for 
"insufficient evidence" 
 
2) EDITORIALS 
 
Asahi: 
(1) Non-indictment of Ozawa: He can't possibly keep his job 
 
TOKYO 00000232  002 OF 008 
 
 
 
Mainichi: 
(1) Non-indictment of Ozawa: He cannot evade political 
responsibility 
(2) Asashoryu's retirement: Sumo Association, his stable master must 
do serious soul-searching 
Yomiuri: 
(1) Non-indictment of Ozawa: He cannot evade serious political 
responsibility 
 
Nikkei: 
(1) Ozawa has very grave responsibility even if not indicted 
(2) Prosecutors should give "rigorous and fair" explanation 
 
Sankei: 
(1) Non-indictment of Secretary General Ozawa: We question his 
political responsibility 
 
Tokyo Shimbun: 
(1) Non-indictment of Ozawa over Rikuzan-kai affair: The people's 
suspicions have not been dispelled 
 
Akahata: 
(1) Non-indictment of Ozawa: Critical stage for Diet to find out the 
truth 
 
3) Hatoyama: Understand my determination for Futenma relocation 
 
SANKEI (Page 5) (Abridged) 
February 5, 2010 
 
The House of Councillors Audit Committee met yesterday for 
interpellations over government reports on the settlement of 
accounts for fiscal 2008, with Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and all 
his cabinet ministers attending. In a question-and-answer session, 
Hatoyama was asked about the pending issue of relocating the U.S. 
military's Futenma airfield facility from its current location in 
Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture. In his reply, Hatoyama reiterated his 
determination to pick a relocation site, saying: "If I don't make a 
decision by the end of May, it would mean that I'm unable to make a 
decision as a politician. I would like you to understand my 
determination to do so." 
 
"I thought that I should reach a conclusion before the election for 
the House of Councillors in July or August," Hatoyama explained when 
asked why he made up his mind to reach a conclusion at the end of 
May. "It's not a solution to leave the Futenma facility intact at 
its current location," he added, "and there's no need to think about 
what to do if and when it's impossible to relocate the Futenma 
facility." Hatoyama thus ruled out the option of continuing to use 
the Futenma airfield. 
 
4) Foreign minister asks for cooperation in investigation into act 
of obstruction to research whaling 
 
YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada on Feb. 4 met with New Zealand 
Minister of Trade and Minister Responsible for International Climate 
Change Negotiations Tim Groser at the Foreign Ministry. Okada during 
the meeting asked for cooperation in Japan's investigation into a 
 
TOKYO 00000232  003 OF 008 
 
 
case in which a small high-speed vessel belonging to Sea Shepherd, a 
U.S. anti-whaling group, collided with Japan's patrol ship in an 
attempt to obstruct its research whaling fleet. Groser replied, "I 
am against violent protest activities. I would like to cooperate in 
the investigation." 
 
5) LDP submits bill for resumption of MSDF refueling mission 
 
NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the Japan Renaissance Party 
yesterday jointly submitted to the House of Councillors a bill that 
would resume the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in 
the Indian Ocean. The bill sets the period of the mission at two 
years and endorses an extension of the mission. 
 
6) Defense Ministry to dispatch MSDF transport ship in May on 
humanitarian assistance mission under "Yuai boat" program 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
In a press conference yesterday, Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa 
announced that the ministry will send a Maritime Self-Defense 
Force's (MSDF) transport ship in late May to join the "Pacific 
Partnership" U.S. Pacific Fleet humanitarian civic assistance 
mission in the Asia-Pacific region. This dispatch will be the first 
step in the "Yuai boat" program advocated by Prime Minister Yukio 
Hatoyama to make use of SDF vessels to provide aid for victims of 
natural disasters. 
 
The team will visit Vietnam and Cambodia for about two months from 
May 23 through July 15. 
 
7) Ozawa not indicted, will not resign as DPJ secretary general 
 
ASAHI (Top play) (Abridged) 
February 5, 2010 
 
The Special Investigation Division of the Tokyo District Prosecutors 
Office indicted on Feb. 4 House of Representatives member Tomohiro 
Ishikawa, 36, and two others in connection with a land deal 
involving Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) Secretary General Ichiro 
Ozawa's fund management organization, Rikuzan-kai on charges of 
violation of the Political Funds Control Law (false reporting). 
Ozawa was not indicted due to insufficient evidence of his 
involvement with this affair. He announced on the evening of the 
same day his intention to continue to serve as secretary general but 
said that he "feels responsible" for the indictment of Ishikawa and 
the two others. 
 
The other two suspects are Ozawa's government-funded first secretary 
and former bookkeeper Takanori Okubo, 48, and former secretary 
Mitsutomo Ikeda, 32. 
 
8) Commentary on non-indictment of DPJ Secretary General Ozawa over 
land deal scandal: Make this an opportunity for a fresh start for 
the government 
 
ASAHI (Page 1) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
TOKYO 00000232  004 OF 008 
 
 
 
Katsuyuki Yakushiji, political editor 
 
The decision not to indict Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) Secretary 
General Ichiro Ozawa must have come as a surprise to many people. 
The newspapers and TV stations reported prominently on Ozawa's 
political funds day in and day out, so there had been keen interest 
in the progress of the investigations of the Tokyo District 
Prosecutors Office's Special Investigation Division. 
 
The reason Ozawa was not indicted is insufficient evidence. While 
legally, this case has been settled, it leaves a sense that 
something is not quite right. 
 
First, the indictment of three former secretaries of Ozawa is 
unusual. This clearly reflects the character of Ozawa's office and 
cannot be explained away by claiming "I left everything in the hands 
of the secretaries." 
 
Our investigations have also shown that there are other inexplicable 
facts. Why is it that Ozawa's fund management organizations own more 
than 10 properties? What happened to the funds of the Liberal Party 
headed by Ozawa after it was dissolved? Such questions have remained 
unanswered. 
 
Japan cannot claim to be a normal democratic country if a politician 
involved with enormous amounts of mysterious funds serves as the 
secretary general of the ruling party and controls its national 
administration. 
 
An even more serious problem is that the DPJ has betrayed the 
people's expectations on the change of administration in such a 
short time. 
 
Both Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Ozawa are plagued by money 
scandals. The political leadership is frantically dealing with 
scandals and has not been able to tackle important domestic and 
foreign policy issues. Policy debate has been sidetracked in the 
Diet. Such unproductive politics have dominated the scene for a long 
time. 
 
The people's hopes have turned into despair and anguish. Next they 
may well become resentment, distrust, and apathy if this situation 
remains unchanged. 
 
The Prime Minister has said that he wants "Mr. Ozawa to take charge 
of the House of Councillors election." Does he intend to let his 
party continue to be incapable of cleansing itself or speaking up? 
What is needed now is to reset the administration. 
 
The DPJ achieved a change of administration thanks to Ozawa's power. 
However, what the people want is transparent and just politics; not 
politics controlled by Ozawa, who is following in the footsteps of 
the Liberal Democratic Party. 
 
The DPJ should not betray the people any longer. 
 
9) Objections to foreign workers receiving child allowances 
 
NIKKEI (Page 5) (Abridged) 
February 5, 2010 
 
 
TOKYO 00000232  005 OF 008 
 
 
Objections have been raised in the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) 
with regard to who should receive child allowances. The bill 
approved by the cabinet stipulates that allowances will be paid to 
all residents in Japan, so they will be paid even to foreigners 
working in nursing homes and other foreign workers who do not have 
Japanese citizenship. According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and 
Welfare (MHLW), even if the children of these foreigners do not live 
in Japan, allowances will basically be paid for each of the children 
if they have registries or other documents from their home country 
showing the number of children. 
 
The DPJ received a briefing from the MHLW at an informal meeting on 
Feb. 4. Diet members who participated in the meeting voiced the 
following objections: "Paying out allowances to foreigners living in 
Japan who are unlikely to contribute to Japan's social security in 
the future runs counter to the purpose of the bill" and "This will 
merely result in the outflow of tax money overseas." 
 
The MHLW explained, "Under the existing child benefits law, on which 
the child allowance bill is based, benefits are paid to foreign 
workers in Japan." This was refuted by the Diet members, who argued 
that the purpose of the child allowance bill, which is "to support 
the healthy growth of children who will be responsible for society 
in the next generation," is fundamentally different from the child 
benefits law. 
 
10) Question and answers from Feb. 4 House of Councillors Audit 
Committee session 
 
YOMIURI (Page 10) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
The following is the gist of major questions and answers exchanged 
in an Upper House Audit Committee session on Feb. 4. Questioners 
were Mitsuyoshi Yanagisawa, Masayoshi Nataniya, and Shinkun Haku 
(all Democratic Party of Japan members); Kazuya Maruyama, Junzo 
Yamamoto, and Nobuo Kishi (all Liberal Democratic Party members); 
Kiyohiro Araki and Masayoshi Hamada (both New Komeito members); 
Sohei Nihi (Japanese Communist Party); and Seiji Mataichi (Social 
Democratic Party). 
 
& Rikuzan-kai scandal 
 
Maruyama: DPJ Secretary General Ichiro Ozawa should take 
responsibility (over the scandal involving his fund management 
organization, Rikuzan-kai). 
 
Prime Minister Hatoyama: I believe what Secretary General Ozawa 
says, and I will watch developments calmly for now. That is natural 
both as a peer and as a human. 
 
Maruyama: Can't you urge Mr. Ozawa to decide to resign? 
 
Prime Minister: Media (organizations) seem to be trying to create a 
certain image between Secretary General Ozawa and myself. I say 
things firmly to Mr. Ozawa when I need to. The image (that I cannot 
say things to Mr. Ozawa) is false. I will monitor things calmly. 
 
Yamamoto: You said, "I want Mr. Ozawa to be in charge of in the 
coming Upper House election." That could be taken as pressure on the 
prosecutors. 
 
 
TOKYO 00000232  006 OF 008 
 
 
Prime Minister: As DPJ president, I haven't announced my intention 
to make any changes to the party leadership, including Secretary 
General Ozawa. Mr. Ozawa is currently serving as secretary general, 
and I simply said, "I am planning to go ahead with the Upper House 
election under the current situation." It's not pressure on the 
prosecutors or anything of the sort. 
 
& Futenma relocation issue 
 
Yamamoto: Foreign Minister Okada, your have referred to the 
possibility of the continued use of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma 
Air Station. 
 
Foreign Minister Okada: I made that statement based on the belief 
that (Futenma Air Station) must not remain in its current location. 
We will put all the options on the table, including the Japan-U.S. 
agreement (to relocate the base to Nago, Okinawa Prefecture), and 
discuss the possibilities. 
 
Yamamoto: Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirano, you said, "There is no 
reason to take the results of the Nago mayoral election into 
account." 
 
Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirano: The phase "take into account" has 
been used often lately. The misunderstanding can be cleared up if 
the media properly reports on what I said before and after that 
sentence. We are aware of course that the results of the mayoral 
election reflect the popular will. 
 
Kishi: The Prime Minister should also comment on the results of the 
Nago mayoral election. 
 
Prime Minister: The Nago mayoral election reflects the popular will, 
and it was also the popular will that elected Mr. Nakaima as 
governor. LDP candidates were defeated by DPJ, People's New Party, 
and SDP candidates in the House of Representatives election last 
summer. That was also the popular will. Needless to say, we must 
lend our ears to the popular will. I will take responsibility in the 
end. 
 
& Abduction issue 
 
Haku: I want to hear about your determination to resolve the issue 
of abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea. 
 
Prime Minister: The government will make utmost efforts to bring all 
the victims back to Japan. Collecting information and cooperation 
with the countries concerned are essential. 
 
Haku: Is it possible that there were accomplices in Japan? 
 
National Public Safety Commission Chairman Nakai: My view is that 
there is such a possibility. I cannot say whether individual cases 
have been investigated. 
 
Haku: Japan should take in persecuted North Korean defectors 
flexibly. 
 
Nakai: The North Korea human rights law is designed to help Japanese 
nationals and their descendents among the North Korean defectors. I 
want to eliminate this framework in cooperation with other 
government agencies. 
 
TOKYO 00000232  007 OF 008 
 
 
 
& Nuclear abolition 
 
Hamada: I want to see Japan spearhead the drive to eliminate nuclear 
weapons. 
 
Prime Minister: (Before the UN General Assembly last September), I 
announced my determination to take the initiative in the campaign to 
eliminate nuclear weapons on behalf of Japan, the only country to 
have been attacked with atomic bombs, driven by our moral 
responsibility. That determination has not changed. 
 
11) Taku Yamasaki decides to stay in LDP 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
Former vice president Taku Yamasaki, 73, of the Liberal Democratic 
Party (LDP) had suggested that he would leave the party if the party 
refused to endorse him as a party candidate for the proportional 
representation segment in this summer's House of Councillors 
election. But he revealed yesterday he would stay in the LDP, 
remarking: "LDP President Sadakazu Tanigaki asked me to cooperate in 
reconstructing the party based on my experience. I took his words 
seriously." 
 
Tanigaki has offered Yamasaki such posts as director of the Forward 
Policy Study Unit. Yamasaki is expected to accept this offer. 
 
12) BOJ Policy Board member thinks deflationary trend will continue 
 
ASAHI (Page 11) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
Seiji Nakamura, a member of the Policy Board of the Bank of Japan, 
gave in Fukuoka City on Feb 4 a speech in which he expressed the 
view that the current deflationary trend could become protracted. He 
said: "With the outlook that the economic turnaround will continue 
to be slow, demand, which is poor compared with supply, will not 
recover soon. As such, it is difficult to think that the downward 
pressure on prices will abate in the short term." 
 
Referring to the government's deteriorating fiscal position, 
Nakamura at a press conference held on the same day said: "A rise in 
interest rates owing to the risk premium on government bonds would 
be a serious matter. Unless the government addresses (fiscal 
reconstruction) before the market reacts, the situation will become 
messy." In reference to the "medium-term fiscal frame" now being 
drafted by the government, Nakamura said: "Unless such issues as 
what to do for the future of Japan, including a welfare policy, are 
taken into account, the public will not accept the initiative." 
 
13) List of vehicles eligible for subsidy program expanded to 
include 43 imported models 
 
MAINICHI (Page 4) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
The Ministry of Trade, Economy and Industry (METI) released the 
names of 43 models from 15 brands of imported cars that have been 
added to the list of vehicles eligible for the program, following a 
review of the subsidy system for purchases of eco-friendly cars. The 
 
TOKYO 00000232  008 OF 008 
 
 
U.S. government and Congress had been asking for the inclusion of 
more U.S. vehicles in the list. However, only eight U.S. models from 
five brands, such as Cadillac and Hummer, will qualify for the 
program. The remaining 35 were all European vehicles. The U.S. is 
not satisfied with the outcome. However, METI Minister Masayuki 
Naoshima on the 4th announced that the government has no intention 
of further increasing the number of vehicles eligible for the 
program. 
 
Following the Japanese government's announcement, U.S. Trade 
Representative Kirk released a statement, which read, "I am 
disappointed at Japan's announcement that limits the number of 
vehicle models." He is determined to work on the Japanese government 
to take a second look at the application of the program. 
 
14) Hatoyama calls for Toyota's prompt action to regain trust 
 
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 9) (Full) 
February 5, 2010 
 
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Masayuki Naoshima called on 
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama at the Prime Minister's Official 
Residence (Kantei) yesterday and reported on the issue of Toyota 
Motor Corp's massive recall over defective accelerator pedals. 
According to Naoshima, he visited the Kantei at the request of 
Hatoyama and reported on the details of the explanation Toyota Vice 
President Shinichi Sasaki provided to him on the 3rd. 
 
In response, Hatoyama said: "I hope the company will take prompt 
action to regain and secure the users' trust," based on the 
awareness that it took too long for Toyota decide on the recall, 
according to Naoshima. 
 
ROOS