JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 06/26/08

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E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO PGOV PINR ECON ELAB JA SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 06/26/08 Index: 1) Top headlines 2) Editorials 3) Prime Minister's daily schedule (Nikkei) Diplomatic agenda: 4) President Bush in telephone conversation with Prime Minister Fukuda stresses that U.S. will not forget the abduction issue (Sankei) 5) G8 Foreign Ministers Meeting today to focus on response to North Korea's nuclear declaration (Tokyo Shimbun) 6) Government's plans to play up at the G8 Summit the dispatch SDF personnel to Sudan as Japan's international contribution (Nikkei) 7) Secret emissary sent to Pyongyang by Baghdad last month prior to nuclear declaration, possibly to ask for no mention of secret pact between DPRK, Iran (Sankei) 8) METI Minister Imari suddenly visits Iraq, promises cooperation, including technical training, to boost oil production (Nikkei) 9) Foreign Ministry set ups new China and Mongolia Division (Sankei) 10) IWC working group set up at annual meeting, but resistance coming from Australia, anti-whaling groups (Sankei) Economic agenda: 11) LDP scrutinizing harshly the government's draft set of economic and fiscal policy guidelines (Tokyo Shimbun) 12) Government and ruling camp set to work on drafting a supplemental budget (Yomiuri) 13) Prime minister's statements on tax increases shake up his party (Mainichi) Political agenda: 14) Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) to end boycott of Diet and return to session during the extraordinary session if only to pummel the LDP on medical care, etc. (Nikkei) 15) Opposition to President Ozawa is building in the DPJ, spreading across junior to mid-level lawmakers, who want a real party presidential election in the fall (Mainichi) 16) LDP team, upset by the pub taxi scandal, to propose a freeze on entertainment expenses by bureaucrats (Yomiuri) Articles: 1) TOP HEADLINES Asahi: Sankei: Tokyo Shimbun More than 1400 bureaucrats receive gifts from taxi drivers; 33 punished Mainichi: Government to allow unregistered children to be listed on resident certificates Yomiuri: Eel trader paid 10 million yen in hush money to cover false labeling Nikkei: Top truck manufacturers raise prices of all models for first time; 3 PERCENT -5 PERCENT starting in August TOKYO 00001753 002 OF 012 Akahata: Not delivered today 2) EDITORIALS Asahi: (1) Shareholders meeting: Tensions generated with reappointments of presidents voted down (2) Papers on two Aegis duty officers sent to prosecutors: Are they only crewmen responsible for accident? Mainichi: (1) Goodwill to pull out of labor dispatch business: Protect dispatched workers (2) New strains of flu: Concrete measures needed Yomiuri: (1) Regular inspection of nuclear power plants: Balance safety with operation (2) Use resourcefulness to develop bicycle that can carry two children Nikkei: (1) There are issues that are more important than regulating convenience stores (2) Prime minister should not slight Yanai report on security Sankei: (1) North Korea's nuclear declaration: Call for resubmission, if incomplete (2) Goodwill to pull out of dispatch business: Serious warning to labor dispatch business operators Tokyo Shimbun: (1) Carbon dioxide emissions measures set by Tokyo metropolitan government (2) Decentralization: Downsize local offices of central government Akahata: (1) Not delivered today 3) Prime Minister's Official Residence (Kantei) Prime Minister's schedule, June 25 NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) June 26, 2008 10:00 Met at the Kantei with LDP Youth Section Head Inoue and Election Campaign Department Head Shibayama. Later, met Deputy Foreign Minister Sasae. 11:15 Met LDP Human Rights Research Council Chairman Ota. Followed by Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Futahashi. 12:07 Met Futahashi. 13:28 TOKYO 00001753 003 OF 012 Met Futahashi. 14:25 Met Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry's Employment Security Bureau Director General Ota. Met Asia Peace Contribution Center President Haruo Nishihara. 15:22 Met Special Advisor Ito. Followed by Aged Society NGO Association President Keiko Higuchi. 17:01 Underwent treatment by a dentist in Minami-Aoyama. 18:02 Dined with Tokyo University Professor Hiroshi Yoshikawa, chairman of the Social Security National Conference, Special Advisor Ito, and others at a Japanese restaurant in the Imperial Hotel. 20:30 Talked with U.S. President Bush on the phone at his official residence. 4) U.S. will not forget abduction issue: Bush SANKEI (Page 5) (Abridged) June 26, 2008 Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda had a telephone conversation with U.S. President Bush yesterday evening and exchanged views on North Korea. In the talks, Bush told Fukuda that he "will never forget" the pending issue of Japanese nationals abducted to North Korea. Bush added, "I fully understand Japan's concern, and the United States wants to continue to cooperate closely with Japan." With this, Bush reiterated what he told Fukuda during their meeting in November last year, stressing that he remains committed to attaching importance to the abduction issue. Fukuda said, "We're making utmost efforts in our talks with North Korea to resolve various pending problems, including the abduction issue, but I'd like to ask for the United States' continued cooperation." Meanwhile, North Korea is expected to declare its nuclear programs today. In this connection, Fukuda noted that it is important to push ahead with the six-party process of having North Korea abandon its nuclear programs. The telephone conversation was held for about 20 minutes. The U.S. government has indicated that it will inform the U.S. Congress of its intention to remove North Korea from its terrorism blacklist. In Japan, there has been a strong reaction to the idea of delisting North Korea. Given this fact, Fukuda offered on June 24 to hold talks with Bush over the telephone. Fukuda is scheduled to meet with Bush on July 6 on the sidelines of the upcoming summit meeting of Group of Eight (G-8) leaders to be held at Lake Toya in Japan's northernmost main island Hokkaido. 5) G-8 foreign ministers meeting starts today, with focus on response to North Korea's pending nuclear declaration TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) June 26, 2008 A two-day meeting of the foreign ministers of the Group of Eight starts today at the State Guesthouse in Kyoto. In the run-up to the TOKYO 00001753 004 OF 012 G-8 summit in July, the ministers are expected to exchange views on such subjects as North Korea's denuclearization, reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan, and peace in the Middle East. With Pyongyang expected to make a declaration on its nuclear activities June 26, the participants are likely to discuss how to proceed in pressing the North to steadily scrap its nuclear programs. Japan intends to obtain the understanding and cooperation of the G-8 member countries on an early implementation by the DRPK of its pledge to reinvestigate the abduction issue, as promised in recent bilateral working-level talks. Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura, in a separate meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on the afternoon of June 27, is expected to ask Washington once again to proceed cautiously in delisting North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism in return for Pyongyang's nuclear declaration. As part of efforts of reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan, the G-8 foreign ministers are expected to draw up a joint statement that promises added assistance to the region bordering Pakistan, which has become a breeding ground for terrorists. Foreign Minister Koumura will meet separately with his British, Italian and Canadian counterparts on the afternoon of June 26 prior to the G-8 ministerial. The ministers meeting will be followed by other events, including a meeting between the foreign ministers of Japan and Australia, as well as a trilateral Japan-U.S.-Australia strategic dialogue. 6) Government to dispatch SDF personnel to UNMIS headquarters in Sudan to demonstrate eagerness for international contributions NIKKEI (Page 2) (Full) June 26, 2008 The government has decided to dispatch several Self-Defense Force personnel to the Headquarters of the United Nations Mission (UNMIS) for peacekeeping operations (PKO) in southern Sudan. Prior to the Group of Eight Summit (Lake Toya Summit) starting on July 7, which Japan will chair, the government aims to demonstrate its eagerness for international contributions. The plan will be announced next week. The government is also mapping out measures of reconstruction assistance in Afghanistan. It intends to hurriedly work out details. These plans are part of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda's promise to make Japan a "peace cooperation state." The government plans to dispatch two SDF personnel to UNMIS in August or later. It intends to dispatch an advance team composed of officials of the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry, and other relevant government agencies to Sudan in July. The UNMIS Headquarters in Khartoum is a core unit tasked with controlling all squads. The SDF personnel to be dispatched there are expected to engage in coordinating activities by more than 70 countries participating in the mission. The duties to be performed by UNMIS include having refugees return home and removing land mines. The government is also keeping in mind the possibility of dispatching a full-scale unit to UNMIS in Sudan in the future. The Foreign Ministry, eager to send SDF personnel to join PKO in TOKYO 00001753 005 OF 012 southern Sudan from the beginning, has dispatched the senior vice foreign minister and a parliamentary minister to collect information there. In the Defense Ministry, many officers initially voiced caution about the dispatch plan out of concern for security, but they appear to have changed their minds about it, with an eye on the upcoming Lake Toya Summit, in which African development will be high on the agenda. On reconstruction assistance in Afghanistan, the government's fact-finding team consisting of representatives from the Cabinet Secretariat, the Foreign Ministry, and the Defense Ministry visited the nation on June 8-18. The group had a first-hand look at the activities of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, and other places. Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura, Foreign Minister Masahiko Koumura, and Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba met yesterday to discuss the dispatch plan, based on the results of the team's visit to Afghanistan. But one of the participants said: "We have yet to determine any specific direction." As specific assistance measures for Afghanistan, the government has in mind logistic support for ISAF and participation in the Provisional Reconstruction Team (PRT). To implement these measures, however, new legislation will become necessary. Foreign Minister Koumura said in a speech on June 24: "We must fully consider whether new legislation will be adopted under the current Diet situation." 7) Iran gagged N. Korea SANKEI (Page 2) (Full) June 26, 2008 WASHINGTON-North Korea is expected to declare its nuclear programs today under an agreement reached at the six-party talks over its nuclear issue. In this connection, a special envoy from Iran visited North Korea in late May and asked North Korea not to touch on cooperative ties with Iran over nuclear development. In return, Iran promised more jobs for North Korean workers, including positions as nuclear scientists. This was revealed by an intelligence source with expertise on the Korean Peninsula. According to the source, the Iranian envoy is a high-ranking intelligence official. An official older than the high-ranking official was initially to have visited North Korea from Iran's Revolutionary Guard, a crack unit rumored to be taking part in nuclear development. However, this official fell sick. This is why Iran sent the intelligence official to North Korea instead. Iran also sent a delegation to Pyongyang in February this year. On that occasion, the Iranian delegation asked North Korea not to unveil its cooperative ties with Iran to the United States. The Iranian envoy's visit to North Korea this time was in response to a provisional agreement reached between the United States and North Korea in April. According to the source, the Iranian envoy in North Korea met with a high-ranking official for North Korea's nuclear policy. In that meeting, the envoy praised North Korea for its "brave attitude" of not caving in to the United States' pressure for a "complete and correct declaration" of North Korea's nuclear programs in this TOKYO 00001753 006 OF 012 April's talks between the United States and North Korea. In the provisional agreement, North Korea went no further than to word its "awareness" of concerns in the United States and other countries about its nuclear programs through proliferation and uranium enrichment. The envoy stressed that it was "an achievement for both North Korea and Iran." The Iranian envoy also told Pyongyang that Iran would accept more of North Korea's nuclear engineers and experts who want to work in Iran as a measure in return for North Korea's cooperation with Iran. At the same time, the envoy also promised to hire them for a long period of time, according to the source. North Korea is now in the process of disabling its nuclear facility in Yongbyon. Meanwhile, North Korea can secure jobs for its nuclear engineers and others. Moreover, it will be possible for North Korea to maintain its technological capability for nuclear development. The Iranian embassy in Japan released a comment, saying: "The Iranian Embassy strongly denies such a rumor. At the same time, Iran's nuclear technology for peaceful purposes-which is under the International Atomic Energy Agency's complete inspection-is developed by Iran's engineers, and we again stress that in this area Iran has no cooperative ties with any foreign countries at all. Several foreign sources spread falsehoods about relations between Iran and North Korea in an aim to confuse relations between Iran and Japan. We regret that the media carries articles about such falsehoods." 8) METI minister in Baghdad promises to help Iraq increase oil output NIKKEI (Page 1) (Full) June 26, 2008 Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Akira Amari, now visiting the Middle East, suddenly visited Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, on June 25 and met Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani, and other Iraqi government officials in succession. In the meetings, both sides agreed on the importance of revitalizing the Iraqi oil industry, which was seriously damaged in the Iraq war, as well as the increase of oil output as part of efforts to rehabilitate its economy. The two countries issued a joint statement specifying Japan's promise to cooperate in training engineers and constructing infrastructure. By offering assistance to Iraq, which has the world's third-largest oil reserves, Japan is also aiming to curb oil price hikes. Amari left Kuwait for Baghdad on the morning of the 25th, local time, by a Self-Defense Force C-130 transport plane and stayed there for about seven and a half hours. He is the second cabinet minister to visit Iraq since the end of the Iraq war, following then Foreign Minister Taro Aso in August 2006. To advance the reconstruction of Iraq, both sides agreed on the need to deepen wide-ranging bilateral economic cooperation mainly in the energy area. The two sides also shared strong concern about the negative effect of recent soaring oil prices on the world economy and developing countries. As measures to train oil and natural gas engineers, Japan promised to accept 100 trainees annually for five years starting in 2009. TOKYO 00001753 007 OF 012 Amari also indicated a willingness to continue extending up to 3.5 billion dollars in yen loans to reconstruct Iraq, including infrastructure construction as a measure to resuscitate its oil industry. 9) Name of China Division to be changed to China and Mongolia Division SANKEI (Page 5) (Full) June 26, 2008 The name of the China Division of the Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau will be changed on June 27 to the China and Mongolia Division. The purpose of the change is to show Japan's stance of placing emphasis on Mongolia, a friendly country, in addition to matching international standards. The government will issue an ordinance and the Foreign Ministry's decision will come into effect the same day. Some have contended that it is not consistent because the China Division is in charge of China, Mongolia, and Taiwan. In his telephone talks January last year with then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Mongolian President Nambaryn Enkhbayar expressed support for Japan's bid for a nonpermanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, withdrawing his country's bid for a nonpermanent UNSC seat. With this, Japan will likely win a seat in the election this fall. Mongolia reportedly was pleased with the Japanese government's decision, with one official saying: "Our long-cherished dream has been realized." However, the China Division has identified itself internationally in English as the "China and Mongolia Division." But it is called in Japanese, the "China Division" because pro-China politicians opposed the idea of changing the name, according to a Foreign Ministry source. It is said that some ruling coalition members were concerned that the change might irritate China. China, meanwhile, appears to be indifferent, with one official saying: "That's Japan's internal problem." 10) IWC agrees to set up coastal whaling working group: Australia, antiwhaling groups stunned by unexpected move SANKEI (Page 6) (Excerpts) June 26, 2008 The International Whaling Commission (IWC) at its 60th plenary meeting in Santiago, Chile, agreed to set up a working group for discussion of key issues regarding which concessions cannot be expected due to conflict among member nations. Censure resolution submission matches and threats of secession have been usual scenes at IWC plenary meetings. This time, however, the meeting has been going unusually quietly. With "normalization" as the keyword, no resolutions or motions have been submitted. Members of delegations and nongovernmental organizations, which have been harshly criticizing Japan, were stunned by the outcome. The Australian delegation is critical of Japan's research whaling and sympathetic toward radical protest activities by environmental groups. Environment Minister Peter Garrett is taking part in the TOKYO 00001753 008 OF 012 meeting from Australia. Garrett is a former vocalist of "Midnight Oil," a popular Australian rock band. He has many fans. He is highly interested in environmental protection. He was first elected as a lawmaker in 2004 and became the environment minister of the Rudd administration, which was inaugurated in 2007. Garrett in an interview before leaving for Santiago said flamboyantly: "I will never, ever make a compromise with Japan. It is impossible for me to make concessions and allow it to kill whales, even if it's a few." However, most participating countries supported the chairman's management policy calling for an agreement instead of taking a vote. Participants also agreed to establish a working group for normalization aimed at finding a breakthrough in the stalemate through comprehensive talks on confrontational issues joined by a small number of persons. This has even generated the atmosphere of a thaw at the meeting. Garrett, left to fend for himself, stressed: "We are now at the threshold of a constructive discussion. We are not going to make a deal. There is no change in our policy of making no compromise with Japan." However, reporters responded skeptically, with one saying, "Perhaps you should face facts. Japan will never compromise unless it gets something in return." Glen Inwood, a staff member of the Institute of Cetacean Research who serves as the Japanese government's spokesman responsible for the foreign media, made an acrimonious remark: "Most member nations have come to Santiago with the determination to do something with the IWC, which is on the brink of collapse. Mr. Garrett has come with yet another new demand. He may be under some kind of misconception." 11) After stormy developments, LDP decides to leave draft 2008 basic economic and fiscal reform policies to Tanigaki; Matter likely to rekindle during budget compilation TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Abridged) June 26, 2008 The Liberal Democratic Party Policy Research Council yesterday discussed a draft of 2008 basic policies for economic and fiscal reform compiled by the government. Although the meeting erupted with fierce opposition to the policy to reduce social security expenses by 220 billion yen annually, council chairman Sadakazu Tanigaki managed to obtain the council's approval to leave the matter to him in the end. The government intends to adopt it at a cabinet meeting on June 27 after it is finally approved by the LDP General Council on the 26th. A renewed pitched battle is certain to take place over reducing spending during budget compilation. In the meeting, Tanigaki came under fire, with some members saying, "You are at the beck and call of the Finance Ministry," of "If this situation persists, Japan will sink." The draft specifies that the government will cut spending as deeply as possible. The draft is specifically designed to reduce social security spending by 1.1 trillion yen over five years from fiscal 2007 and to trim down public works. The draft had been presented to TOKYO 00001753 009 OF 012 a Policy Research Council meeting on June 24, but meeting with strong objections, it failed to win its endorsement. In yesterday's meeting, many members, mostly health and welfare policy specialists, raised objections to the draft, citing financially strapped local districts and the next Lower House election. Tanigaki asked the members to leave the matter to him, saying that trimming spending as much as possible is Prime Minister Fukuda's policy. But health and welfare policy specialists still insisted on revising the draft to keep social security spending intact. This prompted Tanigaki's deputy Hiroyuki Sonoda to propose carrying their discussion over to the upcoming budget compilation, thereby convincing the members to leave the matter to Tanigaki for now. After the meeting, Health, Labor and Welfare Division chief Seiichi Eto indicated to reporters that he would continue opposing the draft policy. The prime minister, too, expressed to the press his intention to uphold the reduction policy. 12) Government and ruling camp planning to compile supplemental budget, aiming a building internal solidarity; DPJ expected to join deliberations YOMIURI (Page 4) (Excerpts) June 26, 2008 The government and the ruling parties have decided informally to present to the extraordinary session of the Diet that opens in late August a supplemental budget for fiscal 2008 that would contain such outlays as measures to counter soaring oil prices and measure to restore the areas in Iwate and Miyagi devastated by the earthquake. The decision reflects alarm that with soaring oil prices, the lives of the people have been greatly affected, so unless something is done immediately to alleviate the situation, it could lead to a further destabilization of the Fukuda administration. This time, the compilation of the supplemental budget will be under the lead of the ruling parties. The Liberal Democratic Party's (LDP) and New Komeito's policy research council heads, Tanigaki and Saito, respectively, on the 24th met with Chief Cabinet Secretary Machimura and pointed out the need for compiling a supplemental at the time of presenting a set of measures to counter rising oil prices. Machimura reportedly indicated he would study such in association with the package of measures to deal with the natural disaster. 13) Prime Minister Fukuda's remarks about consumption tax confuse and shake up the ruling camp, disappointing those favoring a tax hike MAINICHI (Page 2) (Excerpts) June 26, 2008 Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda has been wavering back and forth in his remarks about raising the consumption tax. In an interview on June 17 to news companies of G-8 countries, he took a forward-looking stance, saying, "It's time to make a decision," but on his press conference on the 23rd, he retreated, only saying, "I was thinking in long units, such as two or three years." The prime Minister, who TOKYO 00001753 010 OF 012 already has lost momentum in fiscal reconstruction and suppressing expenditures, has now irritated the ruling camp, prior to the drastic tax-reform exercise this fall. "It would be better not to heat up the issue." The prime minister made this remark at a cabinet meeting on the 24th, driving the point home so that the ruling camp would not overreact to his consumption tax remark. He has let his aides know that he did not want anybody to talk about the consumption tax in August. The prime minister's latest remark has been taken a retreat by the LDP, but former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yosano could not conceal his disappointment. But former Secretary General Hidenao Nakagawa, who is cautious about raising taxes, told his aides, "The debate about raising the consumption tax has generally peaked." 14) Calls growing in DPJ to swiftly return to deliberations in next extra Diet session in order to pursue government over medical insurance system for elderly and other matters NIKKEI (Page 2) (Excerpts) June 26, 2008 In the closing stage of the previous regular Diet session, the major opposition Democratic Party of Japan boycotted Diet deliberations. Many in the party are voicing their eagerness to return swiftly to deliberations the in the next extraordinary Diet session that is likely to open in late August. The reason is that in order to realize President Ichiro Ozawa's plan to force the prime minister to dissolve the Lower House for a snap general election in the fall or beyond, it is essential to pursue the government in Diet deliberations on such issues as the medical insurance system for people 75 and older and the reform of road tax revenues. A plan has also cropped up to conduct deliberations right from the beginning of the upcoming Diet session after talks between the ruling and opposition camps. In an interview with Nikkei, Deputy President Naoto Kan said: "Absurdity has deepened (since the previous Diet session) over such issues as the medical and pension systems and bureaucrat-initiated bid-rigging scandals. It is important to discuss such issues, and they must be dealt with flexibly." In the last Diet session, the DPJ totally gutted deliberations after Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda effectively ignored the adoption by the Upper House of a censure motion against him. A hard-line stance was dominant in the DPJ leadership. But even after deciding to boycott deliberations, the DPJ continued attending sessions to discuss disaster countermeasures and the abduction issue as exceptions from a humanitarian viewpoint. After the previous Diet session closed, Secretary General Yukio Hatoyama said in a softer tone, "It is necessary to deal with matters flexibly in consideration of public opinion." On the night of June 23, Ozawa instructed Hatoyama to consult closely with the Upper House regarding future Diet affairs. They also confirmed a policy of making decisions after closely watching the trend of public opinion. 15) Junior, mid-level DPJ lawmakers looking for rival candidates against Ozawa for party leadership race TOKYO 00001753 011 OF 012 MAINICHI (Page 5) (Excerpts) June 26, 2008 Prior to the September presidential election, groups in the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ),including one led by former President Seiji Maehara, will hold study group sessions starting today. It seems that most party executive members and many DPJ lawmakers want to carry out a smooth election, reelecting Ichiro Ozawa so that he will lead the party until the next House of Representatives election. However, groups of junior and mid-level lawmakers, having distanced themselves from Ozawa, are trying to find rival candidates against the incumbent president. They are aiming at holding a full-fledged election by letting party members and supporters take part in the election for the first time in six years. The group called Ryoun-kai, headed by Maehara, will hold a study group session on June 26-27 in Kiso Town, Nagano Prefecture. The Maehara group will work out a strategy for the party leadership race, inviting Kozo Watanabe, a supreme advisor to the party, as a lecturer to the session. The group is in favor of fielding other candidates besides Ozawa, arguing that they cannot hold policy debate under Ozawa's leadership. Maehara, however, has remained silent since writing an article for a monthly magazine in which he challenged Ozawa along policy lines, caused a major fuss in which e-mails criticizing Maehara were sent to all his group members. A person close to Maehara said: "The article will serve as the policy platform for the leadership race. Since he has no intention to run in the election, he wanted to come up with constructive statements." But a different group member said: "His stance of facing down Ozawa is too strong, so it is difficult to win middle of the road members over our side." There is a party rumor that Yoshito Sengoku and Yukio Edano may become candidates. The group called Kasei-kai, led by Public Relations Committee Chairman Yoshihiko Noda, will hold a study session on July 2-3 at a hotel in Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture. Many in the group believe that the party needs a leadership election, in which candidates talk straightforwardly about the future of Japan. Yesterday, Noda and his followers got together in the Diet to prepare for the session. Attention is on whether Noda will express his intention to run in the presidential election. 16) LDP group proposes suspending entertainment expenditures for bureaucrats YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) June 26, 2008 The Liberal Democratic Party's (LDP) project team to stop the wasteful use of tax money (chaired by Senior Secretary General Hiroyuki Sonoda) decided yesterday to call on the government to suspend all entertainment expenditures for the ministries and agencies in the budget for fiscal 2008. The team will seek abolishment in principle in compiling a budget for fiscal 2009. Coming up with a set of proposals in early next week, the group will present it to the government. Entertainment expenditures for civil servants of the central government are disbursed from the welfare budget for health promotion and benefits of personnel. It has been discovered that some agencies spent tax money to purchase massage chairs and to hold TOKYO 00001753 012 OF 012 bowling contests. These practices came under heavy criticism. The LDP team has judged that it is unnecessary to disburse funds for entertaining expenses and decided to freeze the budget for such use this fiscal year. SCHIEFFER