DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 03/02/07

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TOKYO 000896

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SUBJECT: DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 03/02/07


INDEX:

(1) Government's panel envisions forming an overseas
intelligence-gathering entity, but such challenges as how to train
personnel remain unresolved

(2) Advice to Abe administration from Isao Iijima, secretary to
former Prime Minister Koizumi: Don't waste postal reform effort

(3) Internet poll: 80% feel gaps expanding

(4) Joint development of East China Sea gas fields: Japan proposes
development in wide area along Japan-China median line; Proposal
puts drawing of demarcation line on hold

(5) Draft plan by LDP, Minshuto, Komeito proposes setting up of
cabinet minister post in charge of oceanic affairs, focusing on
preservation of maritime resources

(Corrected copy) Papers to be sent to prosecutors on ASDF colonel on
suspicion of leaking defense secrets

ARTICLES:

(1) Government's panel envisions forming an overseas
intelligence-gathering entity, but such challenges as how to train
personnel remain unresolved

SANKEI (Page 5) (Excerpts)
March 1, 2007

Taro Saito

The government's Council to Consider Strengthening
Intelligence-Gathering Functions (chaired by Chief Cabinet Secretary
Yasuhisa Shiozaki) issued its interim report yesterday on
establishing a Japanese-version National Security Council (JNSC).
The report aims at the creation of an intelligence-gathering body
capable of planning foreign and security policies under the
leadership of the Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei). The
report also points out the need to enhance Japan's capability of
gathering foreign intelligence, even envisioning the possibility of
founding an external intelligence organization.

"Various kinds of intelligence exist, such as open source
information and information obtained from satellites, but human
intelligence (HUMINT) is the freshest," said Chief Cabinet Secretary
Shiozaki in an interview with the Sankei Shimbun yesterday. He
stressed the importance of confidentially obtaining intelligence
from other countries' key officials and intelligence professionals.
In the process of forming an interim report, Shiozaki revealed that
the group debated the question of "whether to establish an external
intelligence organization and how it would function," adding: "This
matter remains under debate. We will continue to discuss it
carefully."

Other countries are highly capable of analyzing open source
information and can monitor situations using their
intelligence-gathering satellites. It has been noted that compared
to other countries, Japan lacks active measures to gather
intelligence, for instance, working on other countries via human
networks and manipulating public opinion.


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Major points of interim report

7 Japan lacks information on such problems as international
terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and North
Korea because of difficulties in obtaining information on them
abroad. We will promptly start discussions on measures and methods
to gather more specialized and systematic information on other
countries' people via human networks, as well as on the way the
information-gathering system should function.

7 In Japan, there is the significant difference in penalties for
violation of confidentiality between laws. For example, the maximum
prison term for violation of confidentiality under the National
Civil Service Law is one year or less. This penalty is insufficient
in terms of being a deterrent. There is need to discuss new
legislation.

7 Measures for the protection of intelligence, such as setting the
uniform standard applicable to the government offices, are important
as the premise for information gathering and sharing. Swiftly put
into practice such measures for prevention of leakage of
electromagnetic waves and prevention of wiretapping.

7 Install the post of a capable Cabinet intelligence analyst
(tentative name) in the Cabinet Intelligence Office. Allow the same
person to stay in the post for a long time because of securing
expertise.

7 The intelligence analyst will draft an information assessment
paper and refer it to a joint intelligence council. The assessment
paper will be presented to the prime minister, the chief cabinet
secretary, and other officials.

SIPDIS

7 The policy-planning section should be separated off from the
information sector. Reorganize the Cabinet Intelligence Council to
allow the Kantei's policy-planning sector to participate in it.

Interview with Chief Cabinet Secretary Shiozaki: Systematic policy
necessary for decision on policy choices

Taro Saito

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki, chair of the Council to
Consider Strengthening Intelligence-Gathering Functions, yesterday
gave an interview to the Sankei Shimbun to discuss the significance
of strengthening such functions.

Q: What is so important about strengthening the
intelligence-gathering functions?

A: "As evidenced by North Korea's missile and nuclear weapons
development programs and its energy issue, the situation forces us
to take into consideration both foreign and security affairs when we
make a decision. In order for Japan to survive, the Kantei needs to
make swift decisions. A good policy will come out only when there is
a mechanism to gather as much correct information as possible from
various sources, analyze it and offer it in accordance to policy
needs."

Q: What is the problem about the present information-intensive
system?

A: "The current system was not necessarily appropriate. In line with

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the Kantei leadership's interests, role sharing and coordination
among intelligence agencies must be considered and carried out. It
is important for intelligence to be come under the Cabinet
Intelligence director and then to be sent to the secretariat of the
Japanese National Security Council (JNSC). We will form a system
under which the secretariat will create a systematic policy and
policy options and cabinet members will participate in the JNSC to
make a decision."

Q: Do you think the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has sufficiently
gathered foreign information?

A: "When I previously served as senior vice foreign minister, I read
a lot of information that was kept closed to the public. Such
information was of great help. But it was not enough."

Q: What will the newly created post of intelligence analyst be
like?

A: "We will hire intelligence analysts from among experts, civil
servants or private-sector personnel, based on their specialties and
on a subject-by-subject basis. We are also discussing how to treat
them so as to have them work in their posts for a long time."

(2) Advice to Abe administration from Isao Iijima, secretary to
former Prime Minister Koizumi: Don't waste postal reform effort

MAINICHI (Page 5) (Full)
March 1, 2007

There is no need to worry about the Abe cabinet's plummeting support
rates in the polls. I believe that the Abe administration will
become the most stable government among the LDP-led governments
during the party's 51 years. Since the economy has improved, the
unemployment rate decreased to 4.1% and the annual average ratio of
jobs to applicants topped 100% for the first time in 14 years.

When the Koizumi government was inaugurated, Japan was
simultaneously experiencing deflation and falling stock prices, and
both the employment and the effective ratios of job offers to job
seekers were low. Therefore, the present economic situation is
completely different from that under the Koizumi government. The
economy is now stable, as it already hit the bottom. Good-standing
companies have begun growing. I assume that disparities among
regions spread in terms of figures, since good companies are
unevenly distributed. There is no need to be afraid of the regional
divide. Since the ruling coalition holds an absolute stable majority
in the Diet, there will be no crisis in the Abe administration
unless Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wants to quit his job.

As former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi regarded postal
privatization as the top priority issue, he did not hesitate to
dissolve the Lower House in order to implement policies even though
some in his party opposed his postal-privatization plan. The public
supported him, didn't they? I don't want Abe to waste Koizumi's
passion for postal reform. You cannot fool the public. The Koizumi
government was in a tough spot in January 2002 when the prime
minister sacked then Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka. Koizumi went
along with Tanaka's effort to reform the Foreign Ministry, but
Tanaka was unable to direct and supervise her subordinates and she
did not have confidence in them at all. She then resisted Koizumi.
The cabinet was divided. As the media focused their attention on
Tanaka, the cabinet support rates in polls dropped by 20 to 30

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percentage points. But Koizumi did not take any measures toward the
media aimed at boosting cabinet approval rates.

With that lesson in mind, the Abe cabinet should utilize bureaucrats
further. Under the parliamentary cabinet system, the leadership by
the Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei) and political
leadership mean that the Kantei sets the government's policy targets
and the prime minister then makes decisions on policies. If the
Kantei makes too many policies and councils, bureaucrats will have
no choice but to remain on the sidelines. It is only natural for the
prime minister to order bureaucrats to draft policies, letting them
research and report. Boldness lies in holding in reserve the right
to make final decisions. I believe that in this lies the source of a
prime minister's power.

(3) Internet poll: 80% feel gaps expanding

YOMIURI (Page 13) (Abridged)
March 1, 2007

The Yomiuri Shimbun, in its recent second installment (Feb. 21-27)
of an annual series on Japan, looked into facts about the social
divide and efforts for its correction. For this series, the Yomiuri
Shimbun polled Internet users with NTT Resonant Inc. to probe their
attitudes. In this attitude survey, about 80% of respondents were
actually feeling the expansion of a social divide. Meanwhile, more
than 70% were poised to accept it to a limited extent.

Concerning the present state of the social divide, respondents were
asked whether they thought the gap was expanding among the Japanese
people. In response to this question, 81% answered "yes." They were
further asked to pick one or more areas where they thought the gap
was expanding. Among their answers, "wage gap among industries or
companies" accounted for 81%, followed by "educational gap resulting
from the income of parents" and "wage gap between full-time and
part-time workers doing the same job."

Meanwhile, 73% answered that there are acceptable and unacceptable
gaps. In the areas of unacceptable gaps, "regional gap between urban
and rural districts" accounted for 62%, with "educational gap"
reaching 54%, and "gap between full-time and part-time workers" at
48%. The proportion of "results-based wage gap among full-time
workers" was low. What can be read from these figures is the mindset
of people; they are concerned about gaps that cannot be resolved via
their own efforts, but they tend to accept gaps resulting from
competition.

Many of those interviewed said they would accept a results-based
gap. Masahiro Yamada, a professor at Tokyo Gakugei University, notes
two different types of people whose opinions are "poles apart" in
the recent trend of their arguments. Yamada cites people negative
about the existence of gaps and people affirmative about it. "What I
can see from the survey results is," Yamada says, "many
people-premised on the existence of gaps-are concerned about the
existence of unacceptable gaps in itself." He added, "They show a
balanced view that is coolheaded and commonsense."

Among those who responded to the survey, 36%, or 393 persons,
answered that the gap has expanded for the worse. Among these 393
persons, 99 were over age 60, topping all other age brackets. For
one thing, there are many people who live on their pensions after
retirement. In point of fact, however, the proportion of those who
gave that answer among those aged 60 and over was 31%, which is

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a way that both sides will find acceptable by avoiding drawing a
demarcation line in disputed sea areas, as was the case in the
bilateral fisheries agreement.

The Chinese side has proposed joint development of areas off the
Senkaku Islands. Japan's new proposal does not cover such sea
areas.

In the event an agreement is reached on a specific plan for joint
development, Japan will flexibly deal with the issue of shouldering
the cost of drilling facilities China has already built. It wants to
enter into detailed talks with China as soon as possible in order to
discuss: (1) selecting drilling companies; (2) setting quotas for
the drilling of natural gas; (3) joint resources control method and
cost-sharing, and so forth.

The Chinese side has not yet made any clear-cut response to the
Japanese proposal. To begin with, China has not recognized the
validity of the Japan-China median line. As such, implementing joint
projects based on the Japanese proposal will require a political
decision.

(5) Draft plan by LDP, Minshuto, Komeito proposes setting up of
cabinet minister post in charge of oceanic affairs, focusing on
preservation of maritime resources

MAINICHI (Page 2) (Full)
March 2, 2007

A draft plan for a "maritime basic bill," which would stipulate the
nation's comprehensive policy in connection with ocean affairs such
as development and usage of fishery and mineral resources, as well
as environment preservation, was revealed on March 1. The draft plan
was compiled by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP),its
coalition partner, New Komeito, and the leading opposition party,
Minshuto (Democratic Party of Japan). The draft calls for
establishing a minister post in charge of maritime policy, as well
as for a cabinet decision on a basic maritime plan. With the aim of
coming up with measures toward China's ongoing gas exploration in
the East China Sea, the draft stipulates that Japan would take
necessary measures to prevent China from conducting activities that
infringe on Japan's sovereign rights in its exclusive economic zone
(EEZ). The three parties are now under coordination to get the bill
through the Diet during the current session, submitting it as
lawmaker-initiated legislation.

The draft is aimed to enhance the work of securing maritime
resources, over which international conflicts have intensified by
unifying oceanic policies under the various jurisdictions of the
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
other government agencies.

The draft stipulates based on international cooperation Japan would
become a new ocean-oriented country aimed at peaceful and proactive
development and use of ocean, as well as protection of ocean
environment. It also suggests the establishment of comprehensive
ocean policy headquarters headed by the prime minister, the
improvement in maritime research, and promotion of ocean security.

(Corrected copy) Papers to be sent to prosecutors on ASDF colonel on
suspicion of leaking defense secrets


TOKYO 00000896 007 OF 007


ASAHI (Page 1) (Full)
March 2, 2007

The Defense Ministry and the Self-Defense Forces' Police Command
authorities have decided to send papers to the Tokyo District Public
Prosecutors Office on an Air Self-Defense Force colonel, 49, on
suspicion of leaking defense secrets against the Self-Defense Forces
Law, as a case falling under indictment. The SDF Police Command has
investigated the leakage of classified information over a Yomiuri
Shimbun article of May 2005 that reported that a Chinese naval
submarine was stalled in the South China Sea due to an accident. In
this incident, the ASDF colonel, posted to the Defense Intelligence
Headquarters at the Defense Ministry, is alleged to have provided a
Yomiuri Shimbun reporter with confidential information. The Defense
Ministry and the SDF Police Command are now in final coordination
with prosecutors. This is the first case of sending papers on an SDF
officer on suspicion of leaking defense secrets newly incorporated
in an amendment of 2001 to the Self-Defense Forces Law.

The colonel has admitted to the allegations, authorities said. The
SDF law, in its amendment, charges those who instigated leaking
defense secrets. In this case, a Yomiuri Shimbun reporter, who wrote
the article, was also subject to the charge. At this point, however,
the authorities do not seem to take it that the reporter does not
fall under instigation.

The Yomiuri article was carried in the morning edition dated May 31,

2005. In the article, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported that Japanese and
US defense sources identified the vessel as a "Ming-class"
diesel-powered attack submarine of the Chinese navy "with an
identification number in the 300s."

The article contained top-secret information provided by the United
States. The US government strongly requested the Japanese government
to control information in a thoroughgoing way. Shortly after the
article was carried, the Defense Agency's investigative authorities
at the time filed a criminal complaint with the SDF Police Command
against an unknown suspect. According to the Police Command's
investigations, the colonel got to know the Yomiuri Shimbun reporter
through his acquaintance and is suspected of having leaked
information to the reporter about the Chinese submarine right before
the article came out.

According to the Defense Ministry, a newspaper reporter could be
charged with instigation in case that reporter's news coverage is an
infraction of the criminal code, or otherwise in case that
reporter's news coverage is generally unacceptable in such forms as
playing footsie. As a result of questioning the colonel, the SDF
Police Command seems to have judged that the colonel does not come
under either case.

The investigation was aimed at showing Japan's efforts for
information security to the United States. However, media reports
have also noted that those covered and media reporters could be
unnecessarily dispirited.

SCHIEFFER