JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 TOKYO 003126 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 11//08 Index: Opinion polls: 1) Aso Cabinet support rate at 37 PERCENT , drops below non-support rate of 41 PERCENT in Asahi poll, with 63 PERCENT of public unappreciative of government's planned handouts (Asahi) 2) Kyodo poll finds Aso Cabinet support rate of 40.9 PERCENT now below the non-support rate of 42.2 PERCENT (Tokyo Shimbun) Aso diplomacy: 3) Prime Minister Aso to meet President-elect Obama at APEC meeting in late November (Yomiuri) 4) Aso to meet separately with leaders of newly emerging economies at financial summit (Yomiuri) Defense and security affairs: 5) U.S. Embassy apologizes for unannounced arrival of U.S. nuclear-powered submarine at Naha's White Beach (Mainichi) 6) U.S., Japan to basically review tactics for responding to Korean contingency (Yomiuri) Tamogami incident: 7) Former ASDF chief Tamogami is unrepentant of historical views in appearing before Diet, denies giving order to subordinates to write contest essays (Asahi) 8) Main exchanges of Tamogami in his Diet testimony (Tokyo Shimbun) 9) Democratic Party of Japan to pursue Tamogami incident at length in the Diet, putting aside issue of bill extending the MSDF refueling mission in Indian Ocean (Yomiuri) 10) National Defense University uses textbook that justifies the past war, calling it "basically self-defense" (Akahata) 11) Corporate bankruptcies breaking all records in October with 1,231 cases (Yomiuri) Articles: 1) Poll: 63 PERCENT see Aso's cash payout policy as unnecessary; Cabinet support down to 37 PERCENT ASAHI (Top play) (Abridged) November 11, 2008 Only 26 PERCENT of the nation's voting population think Prime Minister Aso's plan to hand out cash benefits to individual households-a showcase of the government's additional package of economic stimulus measures-is a necessary policy, the Asahi Shimbun found from its telephone-based public opinion survey conducted Nov. 8-9 regarding a potential general election for the House of Representatives. Meanwhile, negative answers accounted for 63 PERCENT , overwhelming positive responses. The Aso cabinet's support rate was 37 PERCENT , with its nonsupport rate at 41 PERCENT . The nonsupport rate topped the support rate for the first time, with the approval rating at 41 PERCENT and the disapproval rating at 38 PERCENT in the last survey. The Aso cabinet's approval rating fell below 40 PERCENT for the first time. Among men, the support rate was markedly down from 42 PERCENT to 36 PERCENT . Among those in their 30s to 60s, the nonsupport rate was higher than the support rate. In the public's choice of political parties for proportional representation in the TOKYO 00003126 002 OF 009 SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08 next general election for the House of Representatives, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party scored 30 PERCENT (33 PERCENT in the last survey),with the leading opposition Democratic Party of Japan (Minshuto) at 33 PERCENT (30 PERCENT in the last survey). Asked about the desirable form of government, the option of an LDP-led coalition government was somewhat down from 33 PERCENT to 29 PERCENT , with a DPJ-led coalition up from 37 PERCENT to 40 PERCENT . In the breakdown of public support for political parties, the LDP stood at 30 PERCENT (32 PERCENT in the last survey),with the DPJ at 24 PERCENT (19 PERCENT in the last survey). 2) Poll: 58 PERCENT don't appreciate gov't payouts; Cabinet support down to 42 PERCENT TOKYO SHIMBUN (Top play) (Abridged) November 11, 2008 A total of 58.1 PERCENT of respondents do not appreciate Prime Minister Taro Aso's plan to pay out 2 trillion yen in cash benefits to households as part of the government's new economic stimulus package, according to a telephone-based public opinion survey conducted across the nation by Kyodo News on Nov. 8-9. Meanwhile, 31.4 PERCENT answered "yes" when asked whether they appreciate it. In the survey, respondents were asked about the government's new package of economic stimulus measures adding up to 27 trillion yen. Asked whether they appreciate the economic package, 47.9 PERCENT answered "no," with only 37.1 PERCENT saying "yes." The figures show that the government's economic stimulus package has failed to obtain public support. This can be taken as indicating that the public thinks the efficacy of such government payouts is unclear and that the public is concerned about a finance crisis resulting from such spending. The approval rating for the Aso cabinet was 40.9 PERCENT , down 1.6 percentage points from the last survey conducted Oct. 18-19. The disapproval rating was 42.2 PERCENT , up 3.2 points. The nonsupport rate topped the support rate for the first time since the Aso cabinet's inauguration. Asked about the desirable form of government, 43.2 PERCENT of the respondents opted for a coalition government centering on the leading opposition Democratic Party of Japan (Minshuto),with 36.1 PERCENT choosing a coalition led by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. Meanwhile, the DPJ marked 35.5 PERCENT in the popularity ranking of political parties for proportional representation in the next election for the House of Representatives, with the LDP at 33.6 PERCENT . The LDP was below the DPJ both in the public choice of government and in the popularity ranking of political parties for proportional representation. In the breakdown of public support for political parties, the LDP stood at 33.8 PERCENT and the DPJ at 26.5 PERCENT . The New Komeito, the LDP's coalition partner, was at 3.5 PERCENT . Among other political parties, the Social Democratic Party was at 3.0 PERCENT , the Japanese Communist Party at 2.5 PERCENT , the People's New Party at 0.5 PERCENT , and the New Party Nippon at 0.1 PERCENT . 3) Prime Minister Aso to hold talks with U.S. President-elect Obama late this month TOKYO 00003126 003 OF 009 SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08 YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) November 11, 2008 Government officials revealed yesterday that coordination is underway for Prime Minister Taro Aso to meet with U.S. President-elect Barack Obama in the United States, after Aso attends the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Conference in Peru on Nov. 22-23. According to the government officials, during a telephone conversation with Obama on the morning Nov. 7, Aso conveyed his hopes to stop over at the United States on his way back from Peru and Obama told Aso that he would like to meet him. 4) Prime Minister Aso to hold summit meets with leaders of emerging countries YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) November 12, 2008 Prime Minister Taro Aso will make a four-day trip to the United States from tomorrow to attend an emergency financial summit that will take place in Washington Nov. 14-15 (local time). The government is now arranging summit meetings for Aso with Brazilian President Silva, Indonesian President Yudhoyono and British Prime Minister Brown on the 14th (local time). Aso wants to hold such meetings with the top leaders of newly developing countries in order to show them Japan's intent to play a "bridging" role between developing and industrial countries, according to a government official. In his visit to Washington, therefore, Aso intends to give priority to holding meetings with the leaders of emerging countries, rather than with Group of Eight (G-8) leaders. Appointing former Vice Finance Minister for International Affairs Toyoo Gyoten and former Administrative Vice Foreign Minister Yoshiji Nogami as special advisors to the cabinet, the government has already dispatched them to South Korea and Indonesia, which will send their leaders to the upcoming financial summit. The government also plans to send envoys to India and China in order to seek their cooperation for such Japan's proposals as forming an international framework for supervising and controlling financial institutions, reviewing market-value accounting, as well as introducing regulations on rating companies. 5) U.S. nuclear sub calls at Okinawa without notice, U.S. Embassy apologizes for 'error in reporting' MAINICHI (Page 1) (Abridged) November 11, 2008 The USS Providence, a 69,000-ton nuclear-powered attack submarine of the U.S. Navy, made a port call yesterday at waters off White Beach, a U.S. military facility in Okinawa Prefecture's Uruma City, without prior notice to the Japanese government. The Providence stayed there for about two hours. This is the second port call without prior notice since the U.S. government stated in August 1964 that it would inform the Japanese government at least 24 hours before entering port. The U.S. Embassy in Japan apologized to the Foreign Ministry in response to its protest, saying it was due to an error in reporting within the U.S. Navy. TOKYO 00003126 004 OF 009 SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08 The Providence belongs to the U.S. Navy's Atlantic Fleet. She stayed at waters 5.1 kilometers off the naval berth of White Beach from around 10 a.m. to a little before noon on Nov. 10. The Foreign Ministry explained that there were no abnormal readouts to show radiation leaks. An Okinawa-based patrol ship of the Japan Coast Guard happened to spot the Providence yesterday at around 10 a.m. The JCG reported the submarine's presence there to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT),which is in charge of checking radiation leakage. MEXT reported it to the Foreign Ministry's Status of U.S. Forces Agreement Division. A MEXT monitoring team was then prepared for the scheduled port call of the USS Hampton, another U.S. nuclear-powered submarine, as the Japanese government had received prior notice from the U.S. government about its port call scheduled for the afternoon of Nov. 10. Shinichi Nishimiya, director general of the North American Affairs Bureau at the Foreign Ministry, called U.S. Embassy Minister Zumwalt at around 11 a.m. yesterday to lodge a protest. 6) Japan, U.S. to carry out basic review of Korean contingency tactics, focusing on over a dozen items, including selection of airports YOMIURI (Page 1) (Full) November 11, 2008 It has been learned that the Japanese and U.S. governments have begun to work on a basic review of the joint tactical plan of the U.S forces and the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) for meeting a regional contingency, such as a Korean Peninsula emergency, as well as a Japan emergency. This was revealed on Nov. 10 by multiple informed sources. More than a dozen items from the plan are up for consideration, including the selection of private airports to be used by U.S. forces during a contingency, the arrangements for transporting wounded U.S. soldiers and selection of the hospitals that will accept them. With the deteriorating health of North Korea's General Secretary Kim Jong Il, the two governments see elements of instability on the Korean Peninsula, and plan to accelerate the work of reviewing the plan, aiming at completion by next fall. This will be the second basic revision of the plan, following one carried out during 2006-2007. Both governments have never announced the existence of such a plan. The contents of the current study covers more than a dozen items including the following: 1) selection of private airports and harbors to be used by the U.S. forces during an emergency situation; 2) air space control that includes flight restrictions; 3) transport of wounded U.S. soldiers and a system of medical support that would include facilities to accept the casualties; 4) handling by the Japanese government of persons regarded as prisoners of war by the U.S.; 5) coordination regarding the priority use of radio frequencies by the U.S. forces and the SDF; 6) response to CBRN attacks; 7) the strengthening of intelligence sharing between Japan and the U.S.; 8) close inspection of facilities prioritized for protecting U.S. forces; 9) consideration of mutual logistical support; and 10) handling of the war dead and those missing in action. In the selection of private airports and harbors, the U.S. forces TOKYO 00003126 005 OF 009 SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08 have proposed the use of approximately 30 facilities, and since last year in the spring, coordination has been going on. But with such new factors as rumors of unstable health of General Secretary Kim Jong Il, the Japanese side has speeded up coordination with relevant organs. The government will clarify the role sharing of relevant ministries and agencies, such as providing medical support, use of frequencies, and responding to CBRN attacks. 7) Tamogami denies giving an order for sending essays to contest before Upper House Defense Committee as unsworn witness ASAHI (Top play) (Excerpts) Evening, November 11, 2008 The House of Councillors Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee summoned earlier today Toshio Tamogami, who has been dismissed from the post of Air Self-Defense Force chief of staff due to his essay justifying Japan's war of aggression and colonial rule, as an unsworn witness. Tamogami admitted that he had informed the Air Staff Office Education Division chief of the essay contest but he also indicated that he had not issued an order for sending essays to the competition. He also denied any improper relations with the APA Group that organized the contest, such as the provision of funds. Main points from Tamogami's testimony ? Although he informed the Air Staff Office of the essay contest he did not give an order for sending essays. ? He has not received funds, such as "car fees," from the APA Group that organized the essay contest. ? He was not warned when he contributed a similar essay to the ASDF journal in May 2007. This time around, his essay has become a hot topic because it has created a stir. ? He told the ASDF deputy chief of staff that it would be better to examine his essay (in the process of a disciplinary action) to make it clear where the problem lies. ? Freedom of speech for SDF personnel should not be controlled. He thinks it is strange to control the freedom of speech based on the government's view. 8) Gist of questions to and answers by Tamogami in Diet TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full) November 11, 2008 Former Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Toshio Tamogami was summoned to the House of Councillors Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee as an unsworn witness yesterday. Major exchanges there are as follows: Keiichiro Asao (Democratic Party of Japan): Whom in the Air Self-Defense Force did you tell about the essay contest? Tamogami: I mentioned the essay contest to the Air Staff Office's Education Division chief. Some persons claim that I instructed members to submit essays, but if I had given such an instruction, more than 1,000 (ASDF personnel) would have sent essays. Asao: Did you receive funds or any benefits from the APA Group (the organizer of the essay contest)? Tamogami: No. I didn't receive anything. TOKYO 00003126 006 OF 009 SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08 Asao: Did the Internal Bureau of the Defense Ministry issue a warning to you for contributing that essay to its internal magazine in May of last year? Tamogami: No, it didn't. Asao: Why do you think that essay has become a problem now? Tamogami: That is because the essay evoked public criticism, I think. Asao: Why didn't the ministry issue a warning last year? Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada: Since it (the essay in question) was carried in an internal magazine, we did not pay close attention. We did not check it fully. Asao: The lack of a check was the government's mistake. Hamada: I do not deny that (the essay) affected many SDF members. Asao: Do you think the responsibility rests with Director General of the Defense Ministry's Secretariat Kimito Nakae? Hamada: That is right. Asao: Was your essay intended to prompt the people to realize the need to change the government's interpretation of the Constitution over the use of the right to collective self-defense? Tamogami: Although I did not make such an appeal in my latest essay, I think it would be better to change the interpretation because views are divided over the issue of how to protect the nation. Asao: For what reason do you think you were dismissed? Tamogami: I was dismissed for the reason that I expressed a view contradictory to a statement by then Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama (apologizing for Japan's colonial rule and aggression),but I believe my view is not wrong. From the viewpoint of civilian control, I think it is politically quite natural for the ministry to dismiss me, based on the judgment that my view is different (from successive Japanese administrations). I do not think at all what I wrote is wrong, and I think (what I wrote) is necessary in order for Japan to move in the right direction. Tadashi Inuzuka (DPJ): Why wasn't disciplinary action taken? Hamada: We wanted to avoid demoralizing SDF members by allowing him to make a new assertion different from the government's view (in a disciplinary trial). Inuzuka: If there were a trial, would you have expressed your own view? Tamogami: Since I think the Murayama statement was a political statement, I would have insisted that we have the right of free speech. 9) DPJ ready to pursue Tamogami essay issue at length, treating it separately from refueling bill TOKYO 00003126 007 OF 009 SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08 YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full) November 12, 2008 Ex-Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Toshio Tamogami was summoned to the House of Councillors Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee as an unsworn witness to testify on his controversial essay yesterday. The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) has asserted that this incident revealed that civilian control over Self-Defense Force's (SDF) ranking officers is not properly functioning. The main opposition party intends to pursue at length the government and the ruling c*:dE+ut linking it to a bill amending the New Antiterrorism Special Measures Law to continue the SDF's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean. The bill is scheduled to be voted on at the said committee tomorrow. The opposition camp has been pursuing the responsibility of the prime minister and the defense minister for having appointed Tamogami as ASDF chief of staff, despite his repeated expression of his private views about Japan's wartime aggression to SDF and external audiences. DPJ President Ozawa told reporters in Kobe yesterday afternoon: "His (Tamogami) views and thinking were present in the ASDF from before. Despite this, the government appointed him but when the facts were revealed, forced him to retire. Such a way of disposing of the matter presents a very serious problem." He pointed out the prime minister's responsibility for appointing him and criticized the government's method of disposing of the problem. Japanese Communist Party Chairman Shii also emphasized in a news conference: "It is necessary to clarify why the government left this issue unattended." In an executive meeting of the said committee held yesterday afternoon, the DPJ called for: (1) intensive deliberations to be joined by the prime minister, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the chiefs of staff of the Ground Self-Defense Force, the Maritime Self-Defense Force, and the Air Self-Defense Force; and (2) a live telecast question-and-answer session with the participation of the prime minister. But the party said that it would accept a plan to hold intensive deliberations after a vote is taken on the refueling bill. Such a stance reflects the calculation of the party, as explained by a senior Upper House member, that if the ruling parties promise to conduct intensive deliberations after a vote, the party will find it easier to thoroughly grill them over the issue without soliciting public criticism of its approach as an attempt to delay the voting." Upper House Secretary General Kenji Hirata said in a press conference yesterday that the Tamogami issue and the voting of the refueling bill are separate matters. Criticism even from among ruling party members Even some ruling party members criticized Tamogami's replies in the meeting of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. New Komeito President Ota contended in a news conference: "His replies remarkably lack the ability to be aware of the responsibility and the social impact of acts and deeds by himself as the top ASDF officer." He added: "Future options for personnel TOKYO 00003126 008 OF 009 SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08 appointments should be reconsidered, and proper education should be given to SDF officers, including senior members." In the ruling camp, a senior Upper House member stated: "The participation of the four chiefs of staff might be difficult, because if so, they will be pressed to make political statements, but I think intensive deliberations joined by the prime minister will be unavoidable." 10) Akahata obtains National Defense Academy textbook justifying past wars from Japan-Sino War to Great East Asian War as acts of "self-defense" AKAHATA (Top play) (Abridged slightly) November 11, 2008 An "overview on national defense," a required subject at National Defense Academy, is using a textbook titled the Introduction to Defense, which specifically calls World War II a "rising national interests and warfare based on self-defense." Akahata has discovered this from material obtained as of Nov. 10 from government sources. The textbook bears some similarity to an essay by dismissed Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Toshio Tamogami, who wrote that Japan is not an aggressor nation, a position at a variance with the government's position. With this, the teaching of history at the National Defense Academy is likely to be called into question. The Introduction to Defense was published in March 2007 during the former Abe cabinet by the National Defense Academy for use in national defense classrooms. The 143-page textbook, which is defined as a comprehensive textbook combining all defense areas to be handled in the four-year education period based on defense science to taught at National Defense Academy, consists of seven chapters, including security, the present strategy, Japan's defense and the SDF. The textbook sees aggression by Hitler's Nazi Germany and Japan's militarism as only natural in its Chapter 4 Section 2 on history of world wars. The text states: "In Germany under the onerous and punitive Versailles System, it was natural for nationalism to flare up and for that country to resolve to retaliate. This feverish nationalism spread to Italy, Japan, Spain and other countries." Chapter 4 Section 3 on history of Japan's wars discusses Japan's past wars by referring to them as the Japan-China War, Japan-Russian War, World War I, Manchurian Incident, China Incident, Great East Asia War-- the names used in those days. The textbook also discusses Japan's wars of aggression (acts) since the Meiji Era from a viewpoint of self-defense, stating: The cause of the wars was basically self-defense against the invasion of Asia by Western powers as part of rising self-interests and the clashes that accompanied such." On Nov. 9, the Mainichi Shimbun carried a commentary by National Defense Academy President Makoto Iokibe that read: "I have reexamined the contents of history education at National Defense Academy, and I could not find any contents that glorified that war." 11) Record number of 1,231 companies went bankrupt in October YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full) TOKYO 00003126 009 OF 009 SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 11//08 November 12, 2008 The private credit research company Teikoku Databank (TDB) released yesterday the results of a research. According to the results, 1,231 companies (total liabilities of more than 10 million yen) went into bankruptcy in October. The number was up 13.7 PERCENT from October last year, making the largest number since April 2005, when statistical criteria were revised. The possibility is strong that the total number of companies going bankrupt this year will reach a record high since 2005, because 10,524 companies have already gone under since January. Total liabilities were approximately 979 billion yen, 2.2 times those in the same month last year, making this the second largest amount since September, when liabilities marked a record high due to the failure of Lehman Brothers, Japan. In October, there were 12 major bankruptcies with a total deficit of more than 10 billion yen. About 80 PERCENT of the 1,231 companies went bankrupt due to the business slump. Breaking the number down by industrial groupings, many construction and real estate companies became bankrupt and the bankruptcies of manufacturers were up 30.4 percent from last October. SCHIEFFER