Exclusion of NGOs from international conference on Afghanistan denounced

Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) barred some non-governmental aid organizations for Afghanistan from attending an international NGO meeting on Afghanistan (Jan. 20) and the first day of the Tokyo Reconstruction Conference (Jan. 21), both in Tokyo.

The reason MOFA gave for the rejection was that the representative of the NGOs in a newspaper interview criticized the Japanese government.

MOFA later retracted the decision after being severely criticized by Japanese and international NGOs and announced that it will allow two NGOs to take part in the conference. The two NGOs are the Japan Platform, an influential support organization which comprises business organizations, MOFA's Grant Aid Division, and others, to which the government gave 580 million yen (about 7.5 billion dollars), and NGO Peace Winds Japan.

Onishi Kensuke, who represents the two NGOs, said that MOFA, pressed by Liberal Democratic Party Lower House member Suzuki Muneo, on January 18 notified them of its cancellation of their entry. Suzuki, who was sent to Pakistan as Japanese government envoy, railed against Onishi's remarks in an interview with Asahi Shimbun on January 18 when he stated that he can't trust Japan's government on its Afghan aid policy. (end)