JCP calls for further struggle against bad politics: Ordinary Diet session ends

The 154th ordinary Diet session, which drew wide public attention on the problems of "politics and money" and the contingency and some other bills, ended on July 31.

In a meeting of the Japanese Communist Party Dietmembers' assembly on the same day, JCP Chair Shii Kazuo stressed that it is of historical significance that the people have successfully blocked the contingency bills from passing the Diet. This is the first time since 1993, when the LDP started organizing coalition governments, that government-proposed "key bills" failed to pass in the House of Representatives, Shii said.

As suggested by the sharp drop in the support rate for the Koizumi Cabinet, which initially marked over 80 percent, the latest Diet session is outstanding in that the real nature of the cabinet was clearly exposed before the public, Shii pointed out.

Bribery scandals, such as the cases related to Suzuki Muneo, have surfaced one after another. Ignoring people's hardships under the depression, the LDP-government urged them to bear more burdens by revising the medical insurance system; also with an unprecedented submission to the U.S. and hostility to the Constitution, it attempted to introduce wartime bills. All these actions fueled the people's anger which drove the cabinet into a corner, Shii stressed.

Linked with mass struggles, inquiries increased in the Diet. When JCP lawmaker Sasaki Kensho exposed the "Muneo House" issue, the JCP took the lead in inquiring into the corruption and helped change the previous parliamentary atmosphere (in which every bill could smoothly pass the Diet), he said.

JCP Dietmembers argued that the contingency bills are aimed at allowing Japan to actually take part in U.S.-launched wars in Asia by mobilizing the public.

As key struggles against the contingency bills and other government plans toward the next autumn extraordinary Diet session, Shii clarified the following points:

Drawing lessons from their failure in the latest session, the government is maneuvering to redraft the contingency bills and compromise with some opposition parties. Referring to the latest U.S. hegemonist policy, especially its attempt to strike Iraq, he stressed that due caution be paid to such an attempt.

He also called for countering the government plan to increase a total of 3.2 trillion yen as additional burden for medical-, pension-, and employment-related payments. (end)