Egypt must maintain peace with Israel
Egypt, which has seen the end of the 30-year autocratic rule of ousted President Hosni Mubarak and is now exploring ways toward a democratic system, is shifting its diplomatic policy.
A good example is the opening of its border with the Palestinian-controlled Gaza Strip, which opened a crack in the Israeli blockade of Gaza.
On Saturday, the Egyptian government opened its crossing points on the border, significantly easing immigration controls on Palestinians by permitting free passage for men aged 41 or older, women and children.
The recovery of free passage of the territory's Palestinian population, long confined to a narrow strip of land, can be seen as a humanitarian measure taken by Egypt's new leadership.
Prior to the border-opening, the Egyptian government brought about a reconciliation between the two rival Palestinian organizations.
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Egypt mediates accord
Egypt mediated between the moderate Fatah, which aims to establish a Palestinian state through negotiations with Israel, and Hamas, the Islamic fundamentalist group that refuses to recognize Israel, successfully persuading the two groups to form a unity government.
Hamas ousted Fatah from Gaza by force four years ago, establishing its solo rule of Gaza, from which Hamas militants began to fire rockets into Israeli territory.
Israel then enforced a blockade on Gaza, blocking the flow of people and supplies, to weaken the militant group.
Egypt, which in 1979 became the first Arab country to conclude a peace treaty with Israel, has followed a diplomatic policy that other Arabic nations consider "pro-Israel."
Therefore Israel, which regards Hamas with hostility, can hardly welcome the shift in Egypt's diplomatic stance. The United States has also expressed concern over Hamas taking part in the Palestinian government.
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'Cold peace' brings change
Egypt has taken its own road in diplomatic policy chiefly because of the existence of a "cold peace" between it and Israel.
Many people in Egypt do not welcome the peace treaty with Israel on the grounds that Israel oppresses Palestinians. This sentiment has been a barrier to exchanges of cultural figures and intellectuals between Egypt and Israel, as well as the showing of Israeli films in Egypt.
The political upheaval in Egypt has probably taken the lid off of the long-smoldering anti-Israeli sentiment, resulting in the shift in the country's diplomatic policy.
Stability in Egypt will continue to be the biggest factor in improving ties between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
Egypt has been ruled, since the overthrow of Mubarak in February, by a caretaker government under the country's Armed Forces Supreme Council. A new government will be formally launched after the election for the People's Assembly scheduled for September and the presidential election in November.
The Group of Eight major powers, including Japan, have expressed their intention to give sizable financial aid to Egypt and Tunisia to support their democratic movements and to shore up their economies, which have been hit hard in the aftermath of the social upheaval.
Egypt, a leading power in the Arab world, must fulfill its responsibility of maintaining its peace with Israel, a country that is key to stability in the Middle East.
Parties must form framework to accelerate restoration efforts
The Liberal Democratic Party, New Komeito and the Sunrise Party of Japan submitted a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Naoto Kan's Cabinet to the House of Representatives on Wednesday.
This is understandable when we look back on Kan's many blundering responses to events related to the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Voting on the motion was expected to take place Thursday.
Many dissidents from groups supporting former Democratic Party of Japan President Ichiro Ozawa, who has taken a hard-nosed attitude toward the current party leadership, were expected to vote for the motion. This really is an abnormal situation.
Normally in times of a national crisis, it is best for politicians on both sides of the fence to unite behind the incumbent prime minister to deal with national emergencies.
However, the Cabinet's responses to the massive earthquake have caused so many problems that the current political climate is far from cooperative.
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Chaos continues unabated
The Cabinet failed to make full use of bureaucrats because of its misguided "initiative by politicians" policy, resulting in delays in measures aimed at helping earthquake survivors. Work to formulate special laws related to the earthquake also has been delayed.
In its responses to the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant crisis, the Cabinet has repeatedly provided erroneous information, and differing opinions have frequently been expressed within the Cabinet. This chaotic situation continues unabated.
In Wednesday's one-on-one debate session between Kan and two opposition party leaders, LDP President Sadakazu Tanigaki asked Kan to step down, saying, "Restoration work is impossible under Prime Minister Kan, who has lost the confidence of the general public." New Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi followed suit and said, "The government's responses in formulating restoration programs are far too slow."
Kan refused to step down and even said he was considering a lengthy extension of the ordinary Diet session, suggesting a yearlong session, and early compilation of a second fiscal 2010 supplementary budget. This is an extremely extemporaneous attitude.
Initially, the prime minister did not intend to extend the current session and planned to leave compilation of the second supplementary budget to sometime during summer to avoid destabilizing his administration. However, he suddenly changed his mind in an effort to reduce the number of DPJ members expected to vote for the no-confidence motion.
Placing priority on extending the life of his administration rather than carrying out necessary policies is hardly likely to win public trust.
What is important now is to construct a political framework under which politicians can swiftly, and with courage, tackle important problems, including efforts to reconstruct the earthquake-stricken areas.
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'Save-the-nation coalition'
Tanigaki said in Wednesday's debate it would be possible to establish a new framework if Kan stepped down. He intimated that Kan's resignation was a prerequisite to possible cooperation between the ruling and opposition parties and formation of an administration based on an emergency "save-the-nation coalition." We hope Tanigaki comes up with clear and concrete ideas on how such a framework can be realized.
To pass the no-confidence motion, around 80 DPJ members would have to vote for it. This is quite a hurdle to overcome, but if the lower house passes the motion, the Kan Cabinet should resign en masse. If the ruling and opposition parties can cooperate after this, restoration measures will be put on the right track much earlier than expected.
Unified local elections, scheduled last April, were postponed in the earthquake-hit areas. People in these areas strongly hope reconstruction will be carried out as soon as possible. Taking this into account, Kan must not dissolve the lower house for a general election.
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