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Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

Public service workers call for privatization bills to be scrapped

Calling for the defense of public services, unions of government employees and other public service workers on February 10 issued statements criticizing the medical "reform" bills and bills to privatize public service projects.

On February 10, the day when the Koizumi Cabinet approved these bills, the Federation of Government and Public Service Employees Unions (Kokko-roren) held a rally calling for opposition to the bill to put public services on the market.

Speaking on behalf of Kokko-roren, President Horiguchi Shiro criticized the government for proposing a so-called administrative reform with the aim of providing large corporations with business opportunities by relieving the state of responsibility for public services.

"Clearly, the Koizumi 'reform' policy is failing. We will increase the struggle to stop the 'structural reform' agenda that further widens the gap between rich and poor. The call for a 'small government' is a call for compromising safety and for forcing the public to pay more for public services," Horiguchi said.

Criticizing the government for trying to cut jobs by five percent and hold down wages, he said that "the need now is to restore basic labor rights to public sector employees through a democratic reform of the status of government and public sector employees.

The National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren) Secretary General Ban'nai Mitsuo published a statement on the same day criticizing the government for trying to open the public services to for-profit companies without the excessive "deregulation" and opening them to the private sector.

Ban'nai said the first thing the government must do is to admit that the recent revelations of fraud and illegal business operations in the private sector are products of "deregulation" that gives priority to maximizing profits through "improving efficiency."

The Japan Federation of Medical Workers' Unions published a statement criticizing the bills to adversely revise the medical services.

It stated: "The proposed bills will lead to shifting a heavier burden of costs onto patients and reducing medical insurance benefits. They will destroy the medical system that Japan established after World War II."
- Akahata, February 11, 2006