LDP and Komei ram education bill through Lower House committee

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LDP and Komei ram education bill through Lower House committee

The ruling Liberal Democratic and Komei parties on November 15 used their majority to push a bill to adversely revise the Fundamental Law of Education, which the Abe cabinet gives top priority to in the current Diet session, through the House of Representatives Special Committee.

In defiance of the opposition parties' unanimous demand that discussion on the bill be continued, the ruling coalition rammed it through the committee immediately after a hearing on the bill.

Later in the day, the secretary generals of the four opposition parties including the Japanese Communist Party, held a meeting and agreed that the ruling parties had reneged on the agreement between the ruling and opposition parties that a public hearing be held without linking it to the vote. Based on the common understanding that the precondition of Diet deliberations had been destroyed, the four parties agreed on the policy that they will refuse discussions in all committees.

After the vote, the four opposition parties' Diet policy commission chairs requested House of Representatives Speaker Kono Yohei to send back the bill to the committee. JCP Diet Policy Commission Chair Kokuta Keiji severely criticized the ruling parties for having insisted on setting the date of the vote before holding a public hearing as well as for having forced through the bill in the committee.

The four opposition leaders, including JCP Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi, at the meeting criticized the government for putting the bill to a vote while shelving such issues that call the qualification of the government as the submitter of the bill into question, including the planting of pre-scripted questions in town meetings.

As regards the scandal in which Agriculture Vice Minister Yamamoto Taku tried to lure People's New Party House of Representative member Itokawa Masaaki into cooperating on the passage of the bill by offering LDP membership and favorable treatment in the next general election, the four opposition parties agreed to hold the LDP responsible on the grounds that Yamamoto's act amounts to bribe-giving to buy a vote in support of the bill by offering a Diet seat.

The four parties also confirmed their agreement to demand that Prime Minister Abe Shinzo dismiss Foreign Minister Aso Taro for repeatedly making statements encouraging discussions on Japan's nuclear armament.
-Akahata, November 16, 2006