JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 05/14/08

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E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO PGOV PINR ECON ELAB JA SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 05/14/08 Index: 1) Top headlines 2) Editorials 3) Prime Minister's daily schedule (Nikkei) 4) Final news conference in Washington finds outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Japan Ryozo Kato upbeat about U.S.-Japan relations (Mainichi) 5) Korea Desk Director Sung Kim in press briefing says U.S., Japan and ROK will consult on restarting the Six-Party Talks (Yomiuri) 6) Prime Minister Fukuda planning trip to Italy in early June (Yomiuri) China quake: 7) Scale of energy expended in the devastating earthquake in Sichuan China was 32 times that of the Osaka-Kobe earthquake (Mainichi) 8) Government to provide China quake victims with relief aid equivalent to 500 million yen (Tokyo Shimbun) 9) Team of Japanese doctors and specialists ready to go help quake victims but the Chinese government has yet to ask for such help (Yomiuri) Africa aid: 10) Japan to assist Africa in improving rice cultivation (Yomiuri) 11) Vice Foreign Minister Yabunaka calls for increase in Japan's ODA budget, especially for African aid program (Sankei) Political agenda: 12) Road tax legislation finally passed by the Lower House revote (Asahi) 13) Next focus of attack against Fukuda Cabinet by Ozawa's Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) will be the issue of tapping pensions of elderly for medical care (Yomiuri) 14) Weary LDP feels a deep sense of impasse in the lopsided Diet (Mainichi) 15) Space bill clears the Lower House (Mainichi) 16) New Koga faction in the LDP launched after merger with Tanigaki faction (Asahi) Defense issues: 17) Court martial on the 16th of Marine in Okinawa accused of raping a schoolgirl (Nikkei) 18) Lawmaker Inoue pursues in Diet the issue of the private vehicles of U.S. military personnel not being garaged, as required by law (Nikkei) Articles: 1) TOP HEADLINES Asahi, Mainichi, Yomiuri, Sankei, Tokyo Shimbun and Akahata: More than 20,000 buried alive in China quake, death toll exceeds 12,000 Nikkei: Finance Ministry presents three tentative plans for care insurance reform, including one to increase payments by those requiring nursing care to 20 PERCENT TOKYO 00001311 002 OF 012 2) EDITORIALS Asahi: (1) China earthquake: Speedy rescue operation imperative (2) Stalled politics must end after road bill passed Mainichi: (1) Road revenue legislation readopted (2) Sichuan quake: Survivors must be rescued Yomiuri: (1) Prime minister must move to free up use of road-related taxes (2) Powerful Sichuan quake a disaster before Beijing Olympics Nikkei: (1) Road-related taxes must be freed up completely (2) China quake requires international aid Sankei: (1) All highway-related tax revenues must be moved into the general account through talks between ruling and opposition parties (2) Sichuan temblor: Japan must prepare itself against quakes through aid Tokyo Shimbun: (1) Road revenue legislation readopted: Time to listen to people's voices (2) Quake in China: Disaster relief requires cooperation Akahata: (1) Readopted road legislation symbolizes inflexible administration 3) Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei) Prime Minister's schedule, May 13 NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) May 14, 2008 08:01 Attended a cabinet meeting in Diet. 09:29 Met with Finance Minister Nukaga at Kantei. Afterwards, met with Space Shuttle Endeavour Capitan Dominic Gorie, astronaut Takao Doi and others. 10:20 Met with Ambassador to Botswana. Afterwards, met with Director-General for Policy Planning and Evaluation of MHLW Usui and Deputy Assistant Chief Cabinet Secretary Saka. 11:16 Met with Special Advisor to the Prime Minister Yamatani, followed by Japan Coast Guard Director-General Iwasaki. 14:52 Attended a Lower House plenary session. 15:55 Met with former Prime Minister Kaifu, joined by Land Minister TOKYO 00001311 003 OF 012 Fuyushiba. Kaifu remained. 16:13 Met with LDP Secretary General Ibuki. 16:35 Met with former Prime Minister Abe at the First Members' Office Building of the Lower House. 17:03 Met at Kantei with representatives of labor unions from the G-8, including Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo) Chairman Tsuyoshi Takagi, joined by Health and Labor Minister Masuzoe and Chief Cabinet Secretary Machimura. Masuzoe remained. Reporters: "Do you have a plan to report to former Prime Minister Koizumi about the (current state of diplomacy)?" Prime minister: "Possibly tomorrow by phone." 19:05 Arrived at Kantei residence. 4) Ambassador to U.S. Kato holds last press conference MAINICHI (Page 5) (Full) May 14, 2008 Kazuhiko Kusano, Washington Ambassador to U. S. Ryozo Kato, who will resign at the end of May, held his last press conference on May 12 in Washington. Kato, who will have served in his current post for six and a half years, becoming the longest-serving Japanese ambassador to the U.S. in the postwar period, stressed that Tokyo should continue to make Japan-U.S. relations the bedrock of its diplomacy. He stated: "There is no other country than the United States that has the capabilities to resolve problems." Kato pointed out changes in the U.S. side, saying: "I have seen many cases where the U.S. made decisions after hearing the views of Japan." Kato, who loves baseball, is expected to become the new commissioner of the Japan Professional Baseball League Organization. Yesterday, he revealed the utility of talks about baseball with U.S. government officials, noting: "It helped me when carrying out diplomacy." 5) Japan, U.S., ROK to meet to discuss resumption of six-party talks YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) May 14, 2008 Takeo Miyazaki, Washington U.S. State Department's Office of Korean Affairs Director Sung Kim yesterday met with the press and revealed that Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau Director-General Akitaka Saiki, and the South Korean chief delegate to the six-party talks would meet possibly early next week to discuss restarting the six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear issue. The meeting will be held in TOKYO 00001311 004 OF 012 response to North Korea's recent submission of the operation records of its nuclear facility. The venue for the trilateral meeting has yet to be decided, but the meeting is expected to discuss the resumption of the six-party talks, which have been stalled since last September, as Hill has previously indicated an intention to hold a trilateral session as a run-up to the six-party talks. Director Kim stayed in North Korea until May 10. During that time he received some 18,000 pages of documents related to North Korea's plutonium program from the North Korean side and returned home on May 12. Kim appreciated the submission of the documents by noting, "This is an important step, as it serves as a basis for (North Korea's planned submission of) a nuclear declaration. Seemingly, the documents contain every aspect." But when asked about an outlook as to when to resume the six-party talks, Kim simply said: "It's too early to say anything about the timing of the resumption of the talks." 6) Fukuda eyes visit to Italy in early June YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) May 14, 2008 Prime Minister Fukuda is considering attending the Food Summit to be held by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in Rome on June 3-5, according to informed sources yesterday. The leaders of Italy, France, and other countries are expected to participate in the said conference. Fukuda hopes to meet with the leaders on the sidelines of the conference prior to the Lake Toya Summit in July. He will make a judgment while ascertaining the Diet situation. 7) Energy expended in Sichuan quake 32 times the scale of the Hanshin quake MAINICHI (Page 3) (Abridged) May 14, 2008 The size of the Sichuan earthquake's energy was about 32 times the Hanshin (Osaka-Kobe) earthquake, Professor Kazuki Koketsu and his group at the University of Tokyo Earthquake Research Institute have found from their analysis. Koketsu and his team analyzed seismic waves that were observed around the world, and they found out that the fault that caused the earthquake was about 120 kilometers long and about 40 kilometers wide and had moved about 15 meters. The seismic center was north of an earthquake-prone region called the "north-south earthquake zone." A part of an earthquake fault longer than 300 kilometers-running from northeast to southwest through the Longmenshan mountains-is believed to have moved. The moment magnitude (Mw),which can be derived from the fault plane and other seismic factors to indicate the size of a massive quake more accurately, was 7.9 and overscaled the Hanshin earthquake's Mw6.9. An Mw increase of 1.0 equals a 32-fold increase of earthquake energy. The tremor that hit Sichuan this time was an earthquake of the so-called "reverse fault type." In this type of a quake, two faults TOKYO 00001311 005 OF 012 are pushed from east and west, with one fault plane riding over the other fault surface. Koketsu says the Sichuan earthquake was the world's largest inland quake of the reverse fault type. 8) Government to provide China with aid worth 500 million yen; 220 Japanese nationals confirmed safe TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) May 14, 2008 The government decided yesterday to offer 500 million yen worth of emergency grants and supplies to earthquake-hit China. Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda made the decision in response to a request from China. The government is making utmost efforts to confirm whereabouts of the Japanese nationals staying in Sichuan Province devastated by the quake and is also preparing to provide additional assistance such as dispatch of international rescue team members if requested. The Foreign Ministry announced last night that about 200 of the about 300 Japanese nationals who had submitted papers to stay in Sichuan Province for more than three months have been confirmed safe. Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said in a press conference yesterday afternoon: "We have confirmed as of now that no Japanese national has been affected by the quake." The government has emphasized that it is making arrangements to dispatch rescue team members from the Fire and Disaster Management Agency and other organizations, based on the International Rescue Team Dispatch Law. Machimura said: "We have already made preparations to send rescue teams and helicopters," besides funds and goods. In a joint meeting of the national defense-related departments in the Liberal Democratic Party, views calling for dispatching Self-Defense Force (SDF) troops to China were presented in succession. A lawmaker responsible for national defense policy urged the government to offer to China a plan to dispatch SDF troops, saying: "This will provide a good chance to make the real mission of the SDF understood." China, though, has been critical of Japan sending SDF personnel overseas. SDF members have never been dispatched to China since dispatching troops overseas became possible in 1992. The government is ready and willing to provide additional assistance, with Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura saying: "Japan is ready to send trained aid personnel if China makes a request." But as Machimura noted, "(China) is a self-sufficient country that wants to do everything by itself," the government sees it unlikely that Japan will be asked to dispatch a large-scale rescue team. 9) China quake: Japanese doctors unable to start assistance activities without request from China YOMIURI (Page 34) (Full) May 14, 2008 Japanese groups are getting ready to provide human assistance to China's quake-hit area, but so far, no formal request for such have come from the Chinese government as of May 13, the second day after the disaster. Concerned sources are increasingly becoming TOKYO 00001311 006 OF 012 impatient. A person in charge of the Japan Rescue Association, a nonprofit organization located in Itami City, Hyogo Prefecture, was disappointed, as an official in charge at the Chinese Consulate General in Osaka told him that China does not accept any assistance from foreign countries. This organization, established after the Hanshin-Awaji Great Earthquake, is prepared to dispatch four members and four or five rescue dogs to China. The Chinese Foreign Ministry on the afternoon of the 13th said that China extends its gratitude for and welcomes assistance offers made by various countries. On hearing that statement, the body once again offered assistance to the Consulate General. However, its offer was turned down again. Hiroaki Ishii (27) at the Rescue Department regretfully said, "Many people are buried alive. We want to go to the quake site as soon as possible." The Fire and Disaster Management Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is preparing about 20 firefighters to leave for China as the first step of activities by the International Fire-Fighting and Rescue Team. However, under the Japan Disaster Relief Team Dispatch Law they cannot dispatch them unless there is a request from China. Japanese Red Cross in Minato Ward, Tokyo, which is preparing to send doctors and nurses, has yet to decide what to do. A person in charge at MDDA, an international medical assistance organization that dispatches doctors to disaster-stricken areas abroad, said, "The disaster site is in a mountainous area. It is cold during the night. Relief activities must be carried out immediately." 10) Government to help Africa double rice production YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) May 14, 2008 The government decided yesterday to help Africa double rice production over the next decade. The government aim to have Africa boost productivity and deal with the increasingly serious food crisis from a long-term perspective. The assistance in the agricultural sector will be incorporated in an action plan to be announced at the African Development Conference later this month. Specifically, the government, making use of its know-how on rice cultivation, will take measures to (1) improve species suitable for the region; (2) foster experts; (3) teach production methods; and (4) improve the goods-distribution system. 11) Vice Foreign Minister Yabunaka stresses need to increase ODA budget and offer more assistance to Africa SANKEI (Page 2) (Full) May 14, 2008 Administrative Vice Foreign Minister Mitoji Yabunaka yesterday gave a speech at Yokohama City University's Kanazawa Hakkei Campus in Yokohama City. In the speech, Yabunaka referred to the significance of the 4th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) that would take place in the city from May 28, as well as the current state of African countries. Some 320 students and TOKYO 00001311 007 OF 012 citizens gathered in the hall to hear the speech. TICAD is called the "Japan-Africa summit," and Yabunaka emphasized: "Major topics for discussion in the TICAD include the environment and development issues, both of which are Japan's forte. TICAD has drawn international attention. With the Group of Eight Hokkaido Toyako Summit nearing, Japan's leadership will be put to the test." Development of Africa has become a task for the international community to address in order to prevent, for instance, poverty in Africa from turning into uncertainties for the international community. In this context, Yabunaka noted that Japan ranks in the fifth in terms of aid to Africa in 2006 after the United States, Britain, France, and Germany, and that in recent years, Japan's ODA to Africa had sharply decreased. Speaking of the features of Japan's aid, Yabunaka said: "Experts give technical guidance themselves to local people." He asserted that in order to increase the ODA budget, it is essential for the Japanese public to understand the need to increase ODA and support the increase. 12) Road revenue legislation enacted with revote, the third time under Fukuda administration ASAHI (Page 1) (Abridged slightly) May 14, 2008 A bill to keep road-related tax revenues earmarked for building and improving highways for 10 years cleared the Diet yesterday with a two-third House of Representatives override vote of the ruling parties. Now that the government and ruling bloc have weathered the storm regarding the road issue, they do not intend to extend the current Diet session, due to close on June 15. The political focus will now shift to such matters as a cabinet shuffle, expected to occur after the July G-8 Lake Toya Summit, and the Democratic Party of Japan's presidential race in September. The legislation was readopted with 336 lawmakers voting for it and 133 against it. The DPJ, Japanese Communist Party, and Social Democratic Party voted against it, while the People's New Party did not attend the session. Under the Fukuda administration, this is the third time that the ruling camp has taken a revote on legislation, following one on antiterrorism special measures legislation in January and tax-related bills in April that reinstated the provisional gasoline tax rate. Ahead of the revote, the government adopted a cabinet policy of freeing up road-related revenues for general spending starting in fiscal 2009. Prime Minister last night played up his determination to free up road revenued, telling reporters, "The ruling parties, including myself, will pursue it in a responsible manner." Concluding that bills of profound importance no longer wait passage, now that the road legislation has cleared the Diet, the government and ruling bloc have decided not to extend the current Diet session. They also apparently want to reduce opportunities for the opposition bloc to grill them on the road issue and the highly controversial health insurance system for the elderly. In the wake of the settlement of the road issue, the prime minister plans to boost public support for his cabinet, which has dropped to TOKYO 00001311 008 OF 012 20 PERCENT , by earnestly addressing his policy challenges, such as consumer affairs, social security, and the global environment. In particular, he intends to pave the way by June for establishing a consumer affairs agency next fiscal year. The National Council on Social Security is also scheduled to produce in June an interim report spelling out how the pension, medical, and nursing care systems should be revised. The prime minister also intends to come up with the government's comprehensive measures against global warming to make the upcoming G-8 Summit a success. Some ruling party members are calling for a cabinet shuffle, saying, "The prime minister should launch a new cabinet composed of cabinet ministers handpicked by himself in order to buoy up his administration." The prime minister is likely to look for the right timing to shuffle his cabinet after the summit and into the fall. Following his party's victory in the latest Lower House by-lection, DPJ President Ichiro Ozawa indicated that his party would not submit a censure motion against the prime minister in the current session of the Diet, saying, "He has been censured by the general public." His strategy to face the September presidential race while maintaining party unity to be prepared for Lower House dissolution and a snap general election. 13) Final phase of Diet session: Medical service system for elderly people to come into focus: President Ozawa gives priority to verbal confrontation, forgoes submission of censure motion YOMIURI (Page 4) (Excerpts) May 14, 2008 Now that the bill amending the Road Construction Revenues Special Exemption Law was enacted in a second vote in the Lower House, the focus of the final-phase of the Diet session will move to a battle between the ruling and opposition parties over a new medical service system for very old people. The opposition camp intends to steadily take part in deliberations on bills other than contentious ones, by putting off decision-making on the submission of a censure motion against Prime Minister Fukuda until the end of the session on June ¶15. As such, the possibility is strong that the Diet session will not be extended. Diet session unlikely to be extended Concerning a censure motion against the prime minister, Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ or Minshuto) President Ozawa at a press conference noted, "The DPJ will consider how to pursue the responsibility of the Fukuda cabinet, while revealing through Diet debate issues directly related to people's life, such as the new medical service system for very old people and the issue of pension premium contribution record errors." He thus indicated his policy of giving priority to Diet debate, forgoing decision-making on the submission of a censure motion until the end of the Diet session. Four opposition parties held a meeting of policy affairs chiefs in the Diet. Participants confirmed a policy of submitting before the end of the month a bill aimed at abolishing the said system. DPJ Policy Research Committee Chair Naoshima underscored, "It is discriminatory to establish a separate medical service system for those aged 75 or older." The DPJ is also mulling drafting a basic law for reforming the TOKYO 00001311 009 OF 012 national government employee system as another element in confronting the government and the ruling camp. Some LDP members are opposing the idea of limiting contact between politicians and bureaucrats. The DPJ hopes it can shake up the ruling parties in revision talks. In response, the government is trying to find a breakthrough in its effort to buoy the administration, by piling up achievements both on the domestic affairs and diplomatic fronts. 14) LDP, DPJ at impasse; new elderly healthcare system to become major political issue MAINICHI (Page 5) (Full) May 14, 2008 With the re-approval of a bill amending the Road Construction Revenues Special Exemption Law by the House of Representatives, the main focus of attention in the Diet has now shifted to maneuvering between the ruling and opposition parties over the new healthcare system for those 75 and over, with an eye on June 15 when the ongoing session ends. Four opposition parties have agreed in general to submit a bill abolishing the new medical service system for the elderly at the end of next March to the House of Councillors before the end of this month. However, their decision to forgo submitting a censure motion against Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda indicates the difficulty of forcing Fukuda to dissolve the Lower House to call a snap election. Despite the low support rates for his cabinet, Fukuda intends to play up his determination to manage his administration, with the upcoming Group of Eight summit in Hokkaido in mind. The impasse between the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and main opposition Democratic Party (DPJ) will likely continue. DPJ President Ichiro Ozawa clarified a stance of attacking the Fukuda administration over the healthcare system for the elderly by pointing out problematical points. He stated in press conference: "The government has not take any sincere response to the medical care system for the elderly and the pension-record mess." The four opposition parties yesterday held a first meeting of their officers in charge of the healthcare system issue. They generally agreed to reinstate the old medical service system on April 1 next year. The opposition parties also agreed to hold a meeting on May 16 to boil down such details as when the government should suspend the withholding of medical insurance premiums from the pension benefits. The DPJ, however, remains unable to come up with good material to hit the government and ruling coalition with during the remaining one month of the current session, because it has forgone a plan to submit to the Upper House a censure motion against the prime minister. Asked about whether his party would submit a censure motion against Fukuda, Ozawa just said: "While deliberating on issues in which the public have a strong interest, at the Diet, we will consider measures to pursue the responsibility of the Fukuda cabinet." One senior member in charge of Diet affairs made this comment: "If a censure motion is submitted after deliberations on the medical system bill, the submission of the motion would become just a ceremony." TOKYO 00001311 010 OF 012 15) Lower House passes space bill MAINICHI (Page 5) (Full) May 14, 2008 A lawmaker-sponsored basic bill on outer space, authorizing the use of outer space for defense and industrial purposes, was approved yesterday in a House of Representatives plenary session by a majority of lawmakers from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP),its coalition partner New Komeito, and the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). The outlook is that the bill will be sent to the House of Councillors and it there will be enacted during the current Diet session. The Social Democratic Party and Japanese Communist Party have rejected the legislation. The bill, which would allow the government to expand its space policy to security areas, will likely spark controversy. The government has translated the Diet resolution adopted in 1969 that the use of space is limited to "non-military purposes." The bill, however, stipulates Japan should promote its own aerospace industry that contributes to its security. This means Japan would remove a ban on the use of space for defense purposes for non-encroachment that is allowed by the Outer Space Treaty. In the wake of the launch of a Taepodong ballistic missile by North Korea in 1998, the government now operates three intelligence-gathering satellites. Since intelligence the satellites get has been provided to the Defense Ministry, some have contended that the satellites are spy satellites. However, the Defense Ministry is not allowed to develop satellites on its own and it has limited the use of its technology to "private level." The bill aimed to remove those regulations and it would make it possible for the ministry to introduce technologically-sophisticated reconnaissance satellites and possess early-warning satellites for missile defense. In this regard, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) explains that the use of outer space for defense purposes is in line with the pacifist spirit of the Constitution and falls within the scope of being exclusively for defense purpose only, not violating the 1969 Diet resolution. The Japanese Communist Party, however, disagrees: "The law will null the Diet resolution and promote a military-centered space policy." 16) LDP faction Chukochi-kai gets underway without fanfare, launched as the new Koga faction; Tanigaki assumes honorary position ASAHI (Page 4) (Full) May 14, 2008 The Koga and Tanigaki factions, both affiliated with the former Miyazawa faction (Kochi-kai) of the Liberal Democratic Party, have merged, forming the third largest faction in the party with its 61 members. Election Committee Chairman Makoto Koga will serve as chairman. However, with Sadakazu Tanigaki, a putative party presidential candidate, assuming the honorary position of representative organizer, the new faction made a start without fanfare. Koga at a fund-raising and coming-out party held in Tokyo yesterday emphatically said, "We want to go hand-in-hand in order to realize a TOKYO 00001311 011 OF 012 Kochi-kai-led administration, when the time comes." Tanigaki was beside Koga. They swore unity after a hiatus of seven and a half years. However, no senior members, including Koga, talked about who would assume the premiership if their faction ran the government. Tanigaki, who ran in the presidential race in 2006, had difficulty securing 20 sponsors. One senior member of the former Tanigaki faction said he had expected that he would be closer to the presidency if the two factions merged. However, he is viewed as lacking punch as policy research council chairman, as former Mori faction member commented. There is an atmosphere of hesitating to recommend Tanigaki as a candidate for the premiership. Even so, there is no other "standard-bearer" in the former Koga faction who can replace Tanigaki. Regarding the role Tanigaki is expected to play, a person from the former Koga faction who once served as a cabinet minister noted, "Having a presidential candidate serves as a negotiation card for a new faction. If Mr. Tanigaki behaves as such, that will do." 17) U.S. Marine to be court-martialed tomorrow over schoolgirl rape AKAHATA (Page 15) (Abridged) May 14, 2008 The U.S. Marine Corps in Japan announced yesterday that the U.S. military would court-martial Tyrone Luther Hadnott, a 38-year-old staff sergeant, tomorrow at Camp Zukeran (Camp Foster) in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, over an alleged rape. Hadnott was arrested in February this year in the Okinawa prefectural town of Chatan for allegedly raping a junior high school girl. The court-martial will be opened to the Japanese media. 18) No discussion for 4 years on U.S. military personnel's private vehicles AKAHATA (Page 15) (Full) May 14, 2008 Anyone buying an automobile is legally required to submit a certification of parking space to local police. Meanwhile, this certification is said to be unnecessary in the case of U.S. military personnel. On this issue, Japan and the United States held a meeting of their intergovernmental joint committee in July 2004 and agreed to reach a conclusion at the earliest possible date. Notwithstanding this agreement, the Japanese and U.S. governments have not discussed this matter for about four years. This fact was revealed by Shinichi Nishimiya, director general of the North American Affairs Bureau at the Foreign Ministry, in his Diet reply to a question asked by Satoshi Inoue, a House of Councillors member of the Japanese Communist Party, in a meeting yesterday of the House of Councillors Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. The Parking Space Law requires all automobile owners to submit a certification of parking space in order to eliminate illegal parking. In the case of cars privately owned by U.S. military personnel, however, they have been illegal with no parking space certification submitted. In July 2004, the joint committee agreed to submit a certification of off-base parking space. In the case of on-base parking space, a special committee was to meet every two TOKYO 00001311 012 OF 012 weeks for intensive discussions. Inoue asked about the progress of discussions. Nishimiya stated: "The special committee last met August 31, 2004. The Japanese and U.S. governments differed on this matter and have yet to reach an agreement." In Okinawa Prefecture, a total of 3,039 vehicles owned by U.S. military personnel were newly registered in the January-March period of 2008. According to Inoue, However, parking space was certified for only four cars. "The agreement itself has not been observed," Inoue stated. "Also," he went on, "there have been no discussions." With this, Inoue criticized the Japanese and U.S. governments. He quoted the governor of Okinawa Prefecture as criticizing the agreement for being failed as a "dead letter." He stressed that the situation should be improved at once. Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura stated: "There is a question as indicated, so we will make efforts to work it out so the agreement will be observed." DONOVAN