JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 04/24/09

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 09 TOKYO 000950

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TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO PGOV PINR ECON ELAB JA

SUBJECT: JAPANESE MORNING PRESS HIGHLIGHTS 04/24/09

Index:

Anti-piracy measures:
1) Anti-piracy bill passes the House of Representatives [Mainichi]

2) Government breathes sigh of relief as anti-piracy bill passes
Lower House, thanks in part to the opposition camp's inability to
line up against the measure [Mainichi]
3) Japan considering 2 billion yen to Somalia at Brussels pledging
conference [Tokyo Shimbun]

Constitutional issues:

4) Prime Minister Aso wants serious consideration to be given to
changing interpretation of Constitution to allow use of right of
collective self-defense [Sankei]
5) Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) reacts negatively to ruling
camp's plan to restart constitutional commission's deliberations on
amending the Constitution [Asahi]

Nakasone diplomacy:

6) Foreign Minister Nakasone to travel to Iran during upcoming
holidays [Yomiuri]
7) Nakasone in speech on non-proliferation to call for increased
funding of IAEA [Asahi]
8) China registers its unhappiness with Prime Minister Aso's gift to
Yasukuni Shrine [Asahi]

9) Government's broadcaster NHK accused of "anti-Japan bias" in
program on history of Japanese rule of Taiwan [Sankei]

Diet affairs:
10) Diet session now being run at the pace of the ruling parties
[Yomiuri]
11) DPJ's Maehara: If it looks like there will not be a change of
government, party will ask Ichiro Ozawa to resign as party head
[Yomiuri]

12) Government predicts minus 3.3% growth rate for economy in fiscal
2009, worst level in postwar period [Yomiuri]

13) China's new system of requiring foreign companies to share IT
secrets raises objections from Japan, U.S., EU [Yomiuri]

14) Fisheries Agency campaign: Whale meat is more eco-friendly than
beef [Sankei]

Articles:
1) Anti-piracy bill passes Lower House

MAINICHI (Page 1) (Excerpt)
April 24, 2009

Yasushi Sengoku

The anti-piracy bill that will expand the duties of the Self-Defense
Forces (SDF) dispatched to waters off Somalia in Eastern Africa to
include guarding foreign-owned vessels passed the House of
Representatives on April 23 by a majority of approval votes from the
ruling parties. It was then sent to the House of Councillors. All
four opposition parties - Democratic Party of Japan, Japanese

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Communist Party, Social Democratic Party, and Peoples New Party -
voted against the measure. The opposition camp does not plan to drag
out deliberation on the bill in the Upper House. Even if the bill is
voted down in the upper chamber, it will be passed by the Lower
House by an overriding two-thirds vote. The outlook is that the bill
will be enacted during the current Diet session.

2) Opposition bloc out of step

MAINICHI (Page 5) (Abridged)
April 24, 2009

Ryo Matsuo, Yasushi Sengoku

A government-introduced antipiracy bill, bearing the Self-Defense
Forces' antipiracy mission off Somalia in mind, passed through the
House of Representatives yesterday. The legislation is now easily
expected to clear the Diet during its current session. The
government feels relieved and deflated. "I never expected it as soon
as this," one official said. The Diet has been divided with the
ruling coalition holding a majority of the seats in its lower
chamber and the opposition parties dominating its upper chamber. The
government and the ruling parties do not want to raise the hurdle of
the SDF's overseas activities, while the leading opposition
Democratic Party of Japan (Minshuto) wants to avoid being involved
too much in security issues that could disturb the opposition
parties' joint struggles and the DPJ's unity. The breakdown of talks
over DPJ-proposed revisions to the bill can be said to have
unexpectedly resulted from the concurrence of their respective
expectations. The ruling and opposition parties avoided frontal
debate in the House of Representatives, failing to discuss the point
at issue.

The government bill is simple, based on maritime security operations
under the Self-Defense Forces Law's Article 82. The bill adds such
measures as allowing the SDF to defend foreign ships that have
nothing to do with Japan and fire on pirate ships that refuse orders
to stop (i.e., easing the government's weapons use standards for the
SDF). Meanwhile, it prescribes nothing about the Diet's role or
commitment to such maritime security operations, only mandating the
government to submit a report to the Diet.

3) International conference pledges 20.8 billion yen in assistance
to Somalia, with Japan considering 2 billion yen package

TOKYO (Page 6) (Abridged)
April 24, 2009

By Hiroshi Hoshi in Brussels

An international conference aimed at stabilizing Somalia, which
continues to be wracked by internal conflict and incidents of
piracy, was held on April 23 in Brussels. The participants agreed to
provide assistance totaling $213 million (or approximately 20.8
billion yen) for such projects as beefing up public security
organizations. Japan is considering donating over 2 billion yen for
such efforts as the peacekeeping activities of the African Union
(AU) in Somalia.

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon stressed: "Piracy has
its roots in Somalia's lawlessness. If we strengthen public safety
on land, the seas will be safe." He urged some 60 countries and

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regions to provide financial assistance for such efforts as beefing
up the public security organizations of the provisional government
in Somalia, economic reconstruction, and peacekeeping operations by
the AU. Somali President Sharif Sheik Ahmed said, "Reconstruction is
indeed the only way to resolve the piracy issue," and he asked for
cooperation to create a coastal patrol squad. He praised the
conference, saying, "This has been an historical opportunity to
share out problem with the international community."

Japan over the last two years has provided a total of $67 million
for reconstruction assistance. State Secretary for Foreign Affairs
Seiko Hashimoto did not specify at the conference how much Japan
would provide, but she revealed to the press that Japan was
considering an additional donation of approximately 2 billion yen.
4) Aso mulls constitutional reform for collective self-defense

SANKEI (Top play) (Abridged)
April 24, 2009

Prime Minister Taro Aso yesterday met at his office with former
Ambassador to the United States Shunji Yanai, who presided over a
security affairs advisory panel for then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe,
to hear his views concerning the government's conventional
interpretation of the Constitution. The government has been taking
the position that it is unconstitutional for Japan to exercise the
right of collective self-defense. In the wake of North Korea's
launch of a ballistic missile and the Maritime Self-Defense Force's
start of antipiracy activities, Aso is believed to have judged that
there are impending situations where there is need to reinterpret
the Constitution so that Japan can participate in collective
self-defense. If the prime minister moves in the direction of
reinterpretation, Japan will take a big step forward in
strengthening its alliance with the United States and making
international contributions.

The meeting was held with Assistant Chief Cabinet Secretary Kyoji
Yanagisawa (for security affairs) also attending. Yanai spelled out
the advisory panel's discussions and explained that constitutional
reinterpretation is a pressing issue, according to Yanagisawa.

"What the advisory panel discussed has been left as is," Aso told
reporters after the meeting, "so I just listened to him." Aso added,
"The report's wording is long, so I think I'll have to study it."
With this, Aso indicated that he was positive about changing the
government's constitutional interpretation. In June 2008, the
advisory panel presented a report to then Prime Minister Yasuo
Fukuda.

The advisory panel's policy proposals focused on the advisability of
participating in collective self-defense in four cases: 1) defending
U.S. naval vessels on the high seas; 2) intercepting ballistic
missiles targeted at the United States; 3) use of weapons in
international peace activities; and 4) backing up foreign troops in
United Nations peacekeeping operations. The report concluded that it
would be possible for Japan to do so if the government alters its
constitutional interpretation to allow collective self-defense.

However, Prime Minister Fukuda at the time ruled out the possibility
of changing the government's constitutional interpretation. He told
reporters: "I've never said that I would change (the government's
interpretation. The report is over, so it's concluded." The advisory
panel's report was then sealed.

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5) Ruling coalition submits a constitution examination council
motion; DPJ reacts to it as forcible

ASAHI (Page 4) (Abridged)
April 24, 2009

The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the New Komeito yesterday
presented to the House of Representatives Rules and Administration
Committee a motion to propose a provision specifying the size of and
requirements for decisions by the Lower House Constitution
examination council that will discuss constitutional revision plans.
The council's size has yet to be determined and it has not yet
deliberated on any matter. The ruling coalition intends to set the
council in motion before the current Diet session closes, with the
national referendum law scheduled to take effect in May next year.

The ruling bloc plans to have the council adopt the motion before
the May 3 Constitution Memorial Day with the aim of presenting a
provision during a Lower House plenary session. Nevertheless, in
view of a negative reaction from the major opposition Democratic
Party of Japan, whether the provision will be approved in the
current Diet session remains unclear.

The ruling bloc's plan is designed to set the total number of
council members at 50, the same as the budget committee, and to
assign seats in proportion to the size of political parties. Under
its plan, a decision can be made by a majority of those present and
the council can meet even while the Diet is out of session.

DPJ principal director Koichiro Genba reacted strongly to the plan,
saying: "We have never said that we are opposed to the provision,
but it is regrettable that the matter is being handled in a forcible
manner. Do the LDP and the New Komeito want to use the Constitution
as a tool of political bargaining?" There are no prospects to
present the provision to the opposition-controlled House of
Councillors.

6) Foreign Minister Nakasone to visit Iran

YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full)
April 24, 2009

Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone has decided to visit Iran during
the Golden Week holidays in early May. He is expected to hold talks
with his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Mottaki in Teheran. In order
to stabilize Afghanistan, a neighboring country of Iran, the two
foreign ministers will confirm bilateral cooperation, including
preventing the distribution of narcotics by strengthening security
around the border, as well as helping Afghan refugees support their
return to the country. Nakasone is also expected to take up Iran's
enriched-uranium nuclear program as an agenda item for discussion.

7) Nakasone to announce an increase in Japan's financial
contribution to IAEA for nuclear disarmament

ASAHI (Page 4) (Abridged)
April 24, 2009

Atsuko Niuchi

Following President Barack Obama's announcement in his Prague speech

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that the U.S. would aim at achieving a nuclear-weapons free world,
Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone will announce in a speech in
Tokyo on April 27 Japan's comprehensive policy toward nuclear
disarmament. He will specifically announce that Japan will increase
its financial contribution to the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) in order to reinforce the nuclear nonproliferation system. He
also will call upon nuclear powers other than the United States and
Russia, such as China, to join the nuclear disarmament initiative.

Tokyo has already announced its "strong support" for the Obama
speech. To give a boost to the Obama administration's nuclear
disarmament effort, Nakasone is expected to point out some 10 items,
such as: (1) the need for nuclear powers to reduce their nuclear
arms in a transparent manner, (2) bringing the Comprehensive Nuclear
Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) into effect, and (3) an early start of talks
on the Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty. Japan puts especially high
priority on the role of the IAEA, which supports the nuclear
nonproliferation (NPT) system through inspections. Nakasone will
announce an increase in Japan's financial contribution to that body,
which has been suffering from a budgetary shortage due to an
increase in inspections.

The IAEA's main budget consists of a regular budget that includes
inspection expenses, and a technical cooperation fund. The body's
regular budget for fiscal 2009 comes to 300 million euros, of which
Japan's contribution accounts for 16.5%. In addition, 16% of the
IAEA's technological cooperation fund of 85 million dollars comes
from Japan.

8) China expresses displeasure to Aso's offering to Yasukuni Shrine

ASAHI (Page 4) (Full)
April 24, 2009

Kengo Sakajiri, Beijing

In reaction to Prime Minister Taro's Aso provision of an offering to
Yasukuni Shrine, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman released a
statement yesterday and indicated: "We expressed our great concern
and displeasure to the Japanese side through diplomatic channels."
Earlier, on April 21, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu
took a constrained view. It is believed that because of unceasing
criticism, the Chinese Foreign Ministry decided to lodge its
protest.

9) Machimura faction members slam NHK program on Japan's rule over
Taiwan as overly anti-Japanese

SANKEI (Page 2) (Abridged slightly)
April 24, 2009

The faction in the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) headed by former
Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura held its general meeting
yesterday. In the session, many members criticized NHK's program
titled "The First-Class Country in Asia," aired on April 5 as the
first installment of the series called "NHK Special: Japan Debut."

The program looked at Japan's rule over Taiwan [between 1895 and
1945]. House of Representatives member Tomomi Inada criticized it,
saying: "In Taiwan, there are many pro-Japan people, such as former
President Lee Teng-hui. But the program focused only on
anti-Japanese aspects." Machimura, too, followed suit, commenting:

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"I watched the program, and I had many questions about it." Former
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe noted: "The weekly magazine Shuken Shincho
also mentioned the program, and I feel the program was terrible. I
want people to watch this series with interest."

Former Education, Science and Technology Minister Nariaki Nakamura,
too, expressed his intention to the press corps to send an open
letter to NHK as the head of the parliamentary league that considers
Japan's future and history education.

10) Ruling camp managing Diet affairs at its own pace

YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full)
April 24, 2009

The leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has
continued to take a bullish attitude in managing Diet affairs,
aiming at an early enactment of the fiscal 2009 supplementary budget
and related bills. The move is aimed to appeal its stance of giving
priority to the economy to the public, as well as to leave room for
an early dissolution of the House of Representatives.

Calling the government' effort for compiling the extra budget for
fiscal 2009 worth more than 15 trillion yen "the largest-ever
operation," LDP Diet Affairs Committee Chairman Tadamori Oshima has
said that the Diet should carry out deliberations even during the
Golden Week of holidays. Cabinet ministers have been urged to
refrain from overseas trips.

In a meeting yesterday of the Diet affairs committee chiefs of the
LDP and the main opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ),an
agreement was reached as the LDP asserted that Finance Minister
Kaoru Yosano should deliver a policy speech on April 27 when the
extra budget and related bills are presented; and that
interpellation by representatives from each political party should
be held on April 28 based on Yosano's policy speech. The DPJ has
been facing a headwind due to the indictment of its leader Ichiro
Ozawa's first state-funded secretary for violating the Political
Funds Control Law over donations from Nishimatsu Construction Co.
Therefore, the ruling coalition has seized control of the pace of
Diet debate. In a gathering of the LDP Lower House members held last
evening in Chiba City, Secretary General Hiroyuki Hosoda stressed:
"We are determined to run (the extra budget and related bills) no
matter how hard the DPJ opposes."

The LDP leadership's prediction is that if the extra budget and
related bills are enacted, the conditions will be satisfied for
Prime Minister Taro Aso to dissolve the Lower House. Oshima, an aide
to Aso, appears to be motivated to increase options as many as
possible for Lower House dissolution until the September expiration
of the terms of the Lower House members, including the possibility
of dissolution in May, according to a person close to him.

The ruling bloc aims to get the extra budget and related bill
through the Lower House on May 8 and enact them by May 15. However,
it cannot manage the House of Councillors as it likes, since the
DPJ-led opposition camp controls the upper chamber. The ruling camp
of the Upper House yesterday called for holding Yosano's speech on
the 27th and interpellation by representatives from political
parties on the 28th. The opposition, however, refused to hold the
interpellation on the 28th. The DPJ caucus in the Upper House
intends to propose holding the interpellation on May 7.

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DPJ Diet Affairs Committee Chairman Kenji Yamaoka told reporters
yesterday:

"We will not accept the idea that deliberations should be ended
because certain amount of time is spent. If the ruling camp
defiantly cuts deliberations in the Lower House, we will spend
appropriate time for deliberations in the Upper House."

11) DPJ's Maehara: Ozawa might be urged to resign if a change in
government impossible

YOMIURI (Page 4) (Full)
April 24, 2009

Seiji Maehara, former president of the Democratic Party of Japan
(DPJ),delivered a speech yesterday in Chigasaki City, Kanagawa
Prefecture. Referring in it to the question of whether DPJ President
Ichiro Ozawa will resign from his post, He stated:

"President Ozawa will make a decision on his own as to whether to
remain in or step down from his post. However, if we determine that
it is impossible for our party to bring about a change in government
under his leadership, the DPJ will be required to fulfill the
capability of self-cleansing. Since there is a time limit, I
together with likeminded colleagues will have to consider asking him
to quit his post."

Maehara indicated in his remarks that he and his colleagues as a
group would urge Ozawa to resign if the support rate for the DPJ
considerably dropped.

12) Government projects minus 3.3% GDP growth in fiscal 2009

YOMIURI (Page 2) (Full)
April 24, 2009

The government decided yesterday to revise its projected real gross
domestic product (GDP) growth for fiscal 2009 downward to 3.3% and
its nominal growth rate to minus 3%. This is the worst ever level.

The nation's GDP is expected to shrink for the second straight
fiscal year. The government will announce the projection on April

27.

The government had set the real growth rate at 0% and the nominal
rate at 0.1% in fiscal 2009 as of January, but it had to largely
revise these figures downward, reflecting the gloomy economic
situation since the latter half of 2008.

The government says that although the real growth rate will shrink
by about 5.2% unless it takes special fiscal steps, its additional
economic package will serve to bring down the rate to minus 3.3%.

13) Ignoring opposition from Japan, U.S., Europe, China to launch
new system that would deal heavy blow to Japanese IT firms

YOMIURI (Page 11) (Full)
April 24, 2009

Despite strong opposition from Japan, the U.S., and Europe, China
has decided to launch a system to force foreign manufacturers of

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information technology (IT) products to disclose key information
about them. Japanese firms had optimistically thought that China
would not introduce what was considered to be an impractical system.
If Japan's leading manufacturers are forced to pull out of the
Chinese market with its high growth potential, the Japanese economy,
which still shows no signs of recovery, will unavoidably receive a
serious blow.

Recently, an increasing number of information-technology (IT)
products equipped with devices that allow the owner to identify them
have been marketed, for example, a system of verification by using a
personal identification number (PIN) or identification by the veins
on one's palm. Source codes are the base of the information-security
software program. Industrialized countries have introduced a
mutual-recognition system, under which certification is mutually
recognized between importing and exporting countries and regions.
Given this, the disclosure of source codes is unnecessary among
them. But China's new system will unprecedentedly require foreign
companies to disclose their products' source codes.

China reportedly has asked the governments of Japan, the U.S., and
European countries to take action in line with international rules
of the World Trade Organization (WTO). But it will take more than
one year until the procedures complete. Under the current situation,
they remain unable to find effective means to have China give up the
system.

Observers take the view that China's tough stance may reflect its
confidence as the Chinese market is becoming more attractive to many
countries amid all industrialized countries' markets shrink due to
the global recession.

14) Whale meat more eco-friendly than beef? CO2 emitted during whale
meat production less than one tenth of that for beef

SANKEI (Page 2) (Excerpts)
April 24, 2009

The amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases
discharged in the production of whale meat is less than one tenth of
that for beef production, according to research results by the
Fisheries Research Agency (FRA). This shows that a certain aspect of
whale meat is more eco-friendly than beef. Spotlighting this data, a
Fisheries Agency official commented: "We can use this data as
material for seeking anti-whaling countries' understanding in
negotiations on the resumption of commercial whaling."

After the contents of the stomach and other parts of whales caught
by research whaling ships in the Antarctic Ocean and other seas are
fully investigated, their meat is distributed across the nation. The
FRA calculated the amounts of CO2 emissions based on the amounts of
fuel used by research whaling vessels several years ago.

As a result, the agency estimates that about 2.5 kg of CO2 is
discharged in the process of producing 1 kilogram of meat from a
whale seized in waters about 1,000 km from Japan. Even in the case
of whales caught in the Antarctic Ocean, located more than 10,000 km
from Japan, the amount is estimated to be no more than about 3 kg.

Meanwhile, the volume of greenhouse gases discharged in the process
of livestock farmers producing 1 kg of beef is calculated to be 36.4
kg, over ten times more than in whale meat production.

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The Fisheries Agency thinks it would be easier to obtain
understanding from anti-whaling countries if Japan emphasizes the
advantages of whaling in terms of environmental protection. Such
data may be used in future international negotiations.

ZUMWALT