JCP proposes ban on donations from companies and organizations

The Japanese Communist Party on February 5 submitted two bills to the House of Councilors to root out political corruption.

One is a bill for a ban on donations from companies and organizations and is aimed at ending donations from all kinds of organizations including companies, industrial organizations and trade unions to political parties, and prohibiting buying and selling tickets of fund-raising parties held by politicians, which is actually an evasion of the law.

The other is aimed at abolition of the government subsidies system for political parties which is unconstitutional because it infringes on the individual person's freedom of political thought and belief.

These strict regulations are necessary, the JCP says, in light of recently exposed scandals that involve secretaries to influential members of parliament. Secretaries to Liberal Democratic Party and Democratic Party of Japan are accused of using their political influence to profit from intervening in biddings for public works projects.

The 2000 law prohibited corporations and organizations from donating to politicians, but donations to political parties are not banned at present and individual politicians can receive money through party branches.

In Japan, the government subsidies for political parties began in 1995 ostensibly to help end donations from companies and organizations. All parties except the JCP are given tax money amounting to 30 billion yen every year. In 2001, the LDP received 14.5 billion yen.

The JCP has consistently refused to receive donations from companies and organizations as well as government subsidies. (end)