Ruling coalition forcibly enacts adverse bills

   The ruling Liberal Democratic and Komei parties used their majority in the House of Councilors plenary session from June 29 until before dawn on June 30 to force the enactment of bills to dissolve and privatize the Social Insurance Agency, to lift the five-year statute of limitation for pension benefit claims, and to liberalize Amakudari (high government officials’ practice of parachuting into corporate executive positions).

   In order to pass the bill to liberalize Amakudari through amending the National Public Service Law, the ruling block even imposed an extraordinary measure to skip the vote in the committee where the bill had been referred to. In the plenary session, the Democratic, Social Democratic, and People’s New parties walked out of the Chamber, while the Japanese Communist Party voted against the bill.

   On June 29, the JCP Dietmembers group held an emergency meeting and confirmed their policy to vote for a no-confidence motion against the Abe Cabinet (see separate item).

   In the House of Representatives plenary session later in the day, JCP Vice Chair Ishii Ikuko took the rostrum to deliver an address in favor of the motion (see separate item). The motion was rejected by the ruling parties.

   “In this Diet session, the ruling parties forcibly pushed through bills almost 20 times in both Houses. The Abe Cabinet has indeed revealed its true authoritarian colors,” JCP Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi said to reporters on June 30.

   Pointing out that “an unreliable opposition party” fails to act as a check on the adverse politics, Ichida stressed the importance of the JCP’s advance in the House of Councilors election.

   The current session of the Diet, which had been extended until July 5, effectively closed.                     - Akahata, June 30 and July 1, 2007