  Government subsidies to political parties hamper progress in government by political parties -- Akahata editorial, September 12The 2003 political funds reports show that the Liberal Democratic Party as well as the Democratic Party of Japan are increasingly dependent on government subsidies. By contrast, the Japanese Communist Party refuses to receive government subsidies or corporate donations, and finances itself by party membership dues, organ paper subscription fees, and donations from individual supporters. How political funds are raised reveals each party's characteristics and is a major issue that has an important bearing on government policies pushed by political parties and democracy. Growing share of burden for political finance is 85 percent Citizens must be able to exercise the right to choose a political party they support or donate to without being forced by the government. However, this system of government subsidies forces every Japanese citizen to contribute 250 yen. The total amount of subsidies in 2003 was 31.7 billion yen. It violates people's freedom of thought and creed guaranteed by the Constitution as their basic rights. The JCP is calling for the unconstitutional government subsidies to be abolished and is making an effort to ban corporate donations to political parties, the major cause of political corruption. While being heavily dependent on the government subsidies, all parties except the JCP receive corporate donations. The share of the government subsidy in each party's income is 59.9 percent (15.4 billion yen) for the LDP and 84.6 percent (9.7 billion yen) for the DPJ. Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro is forcing people to endure financial hardships by preaching the virtue of "self-help." But he keeps contradicting himself when he continues with the compulsory donation system that gives the LDP 15 billion yen in tax money, in violation of human rights. If a political party stops making efforts to be financially self-reliant, it will become a parasite on tax revenues. Up to a decade ago, political parties were doing without government subsidies. Increasing dependency on tax revenues since the introduction of this subsidy system is conducive to weakening government by political parties. Any party standing for parliamentary democracy should call for government subsidies to political parties to be abolished. Covert donations betray public Publication of reports submitted by political parties and political organizations on political funds is aimed at giving the sovereign people materials on which to judge political parties over money matters. The LDP's biggest faction led by former Prime Minister Hashimoto Ryutaro concealed 100 million yen it received in donations from the political arm of the Japan Dental Association, and the faction's treasurer was arrested by the Special Investigation Team of the Tokyo Public Prosecutors' Office. The prosecutors questioned Hashimoto in person over the covert donation. Akahata has discovered recently that the Mori faction, from which Prime Minister Koizumi has come, omitted 100 million yen from its political funds report, although the money was distributed among its faction members as seasonal bonuses in summer and winter. Concerning donations from the JDA's political arm, it has been exposed that part of donations to LDP politicians were made through the LDP head office to evade the law. Public watch and criticism is most effective in preventing political corruption and concession hunting. It is illegal for political parties to conceal the actual source of their political funds. It amounts to betraying the public. Politics has the responsibility to establish facts and prevent recurrence of scandals, without passing the responsibility to the judiciary alone. (end) |