Don't use Diet extension to keep Kan in office
The government and ruling parties have started negotiations with opposition parties to extend the current Diet session by about 90 days.
The nation is facing a mountain of problems in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake. As a result, it is necessary to extend the session to speed the implementation of full-fledged reconstruction measures. But extension of the Diet session must be a separate issue from the timing of the resignation of Prime Minister Naoto Kan. It must not be an excuse for the prime minister to delay stepping down.
Calls for Kan's early resignation have come not only from the opposition but also from members of his inner circle, including Democratic Party of Japan Secretary General Katsuya Okada and Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku.
It is strange to see only the prime minister passionate about continuing his tenure. Recently, he abruptly displayed eagerness to pass a bill to oblige power companies to purchase power generated by renewable energy sources, and it was disturbing to hear him make the provocative remark, "If you don't want to see Kan's face, you'd better pass this bill."
The prime minister said he would seek cooperation from opposition parties to pass special legislation to allow the issuance of deficit-covering bonds as well as a second supplementary budget. If so, it should be a matter of course for him to clearly indicate when he will step down.
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2nd budget mustn't delay 3rd
The second supplementary budget is meant to allocate funds for the government to contribute to nuclear crisis compensation schemes and measures to address the so-called double-debt problem some disaster victims are facing in their efforts to recover. These are all important policy measures.
But the compilation of a smaller-than-expected second supplementary budget could delay the formulation of a third supplementary budget, which is expected to address full-scale reconstruction efforts.
It is understandable that Senior Vice Finance Minister Mitsuru Sakurai, who is involved in budget compilation, expressed a critical view, saying, "Delaying essential matters would be putting the cart before the horse."
State affairs will not proceed smoothly under the leadership of a prime minister who has expressed an intention to resign. Won't it just result in more "man-made disasters"? Little progress is expected to be made in the diplomatic arena as well. It is an urgent task to reestablish a political framework that will make Japan's presence strongly felt in the international community.
The DPJ must settle the fuss over the prime minister's fate as soon as possible and quickly prepare for a party election to choose Kan's successor as DPJ president.
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Strong administration needed
Under a divided Diet, it is essential to have a strong administration to handle the emergency situation after the disaster.
We consider it desirable for the DPJ to set up a new political framework, perhaps in the form of a grand coalition, for a set period with such parties as the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito in the name of national salvation. A noncabinet tie-up with these parties is another possibility.
The next DPJ presidential race will be an important step toward that end. Unless the next DPJ leader breaks away from the intraparty forces adamantly sticking to failed policy pledges, the DPJ will be unable to join hands with the opposition camp.
The opposition led by the LDP and Komeito lacks any means to force Kan to step down as prime minister, now that the no-confidence motion they submitted against his Cabinet has been rejected. It would be a responsible attitude for them to cooperate on quake-response measures and other urgent policy issues for the time being.
The opposition parties, for their part, also need to have strategies for creating a new political framework.
Precise response needed to quell 'hot spot' concerns
As the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant continues to unfold, high radiation readings have been confirmed in several isolated areas outside evacuation zones. Residents in these areas are feeling increasingly anxious about their radiation exposure.
The government must quickly expand the scope of radiation measurements to grasp the actual condition on the ground and take steps to remedy the problem.
"Hot spots" with high levels of radiation also were detected after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear meltdown in the former Soviet Union. Some were several thousand kilometers from the Chernobyl plant.
These hot spots apparently form when leaked radioactive substances are blown by the wind and fall on a small patch on land. Wind direction, topography and rainfall are factors that can concentrate radiation in small areas.
Since the government started measuring radiation levels in areas far from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, hot spots have been detected one after another.
Massive amounts of radioactive particles have been emitted into the environment since the Fukushima crisis started. Like the Chernobyl accident, the Fukushima crisis has been rated Level 7--the worst rank--on an internationally accepted scale for measuring the severity of nuclear accidents.
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Fears on rise in Tokyo area
It is not just residents in Fukushima and its neighboring prefectures who are concerned they may be living close to radiation hot spots. People in the Tokyo metropolitan area also are worried about the spread of radiation. Conducting extensive radiation checks and making their detailed data public would be one way to alleviate such anxiety.
Some city, ward, town and village governments in the Tokyo metropolitan area have started doing their own radiation checks. An increasing number of citizens also are apparently checking radiation levels themselves.
However, it is difficult for ordinary citizens to judge whether their health is safe based only on information they hear about radiation levels.
The government and local entities should consider how they can provide information more effectively and advise residents, in addition to increasing the number of measurement sites and frequency of the checks.
Just how "hot" these hot spots are varies depending on the concentration of the radioactive substance. Radiation levels at most of these spots have risen only slightly compared with before the Fukushima crisis erupted soon after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
In Japan, people are subject to about 1.5 millisieverts of radiation a year as they go about their daily lives. People in some areas of Brazil and India receive about 10 times this much. There is no need to be overly sensitive to small changes in radiation readings.
However, it is disconcerting that radiation levels are rather high in several spots outside evacuation areas.
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House-to-house measurements
Government checks in Fukushima Prefecture have found four locations where radiation readings exceeded 20 millisieverts per year. This is on a par with levels found in the 30-kilometer evacuation zone around the crippled nuclear plant.
The government has decided to take more precise measurements at these places to calculate contamination levels on a house-to-house basis to designate "specific evacuation recommendation spots."
These spots could be cleaned up by replacing radiation-polluted soil with clean soil, among other steps. If these operations prove hard to implement, the government will assist people who wish to evacuate.
The government should quickly get these plans up and running. A detailed response will be essential for soothing the unease felt by residents in affected areas.
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