Shii calls for change of government policies that favor Japanese business circles and U.S.

Japan Press Weekly

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

Shii calls for change of government policies that favor Japanese business circles and U.S.

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo said that the government’s policies in favor of the U.S. government and business circles should be changed on NHK’s “Sunday’s Debate” program aired on January 10.

Shii stated that this demand that the JCP has maintained will not change under the new government led by the Democratic Party of Japan. Although some positive changes are being introduced due to public pressure calling for a new direction in politics, this basic government stance of pro-business + pro-U.S. policies has not changed, he pointed out.

He raised the following examples showing the unchanged stance. The government postponed the abolition of the medical insurance system for the elderly aged 75 and older. It also postponed the revision of the Worker Dispatch Law for several more years without banning manufacturers from using temporary workers. It also cannot decide on its policy on the issue of the U.S. Futenma base in Okinawa.

Concerning the draft budget for the next fiscal year, Shii raised two problems.

One is the government’s failure to swiftly recover the damage caused by the former government’s measure to cut the annual growth of expenditures on social services by 220 billion yen. The premiums rate for the medical system for people over age 75 will increase by 14 percent in April. The “beneficiary-pays system” under the disabled person self-support law can be scrapped with 30 billion yen, but the government only allocated 10 billion yen to this program.

The other problem is the issue of financial resources. In the draft budget, the military budget increased to 4.8 trillion yen. 327 billion yen, the largest amount ever, is allocated for the stationing of the U.S. forces (the so-called “sympathy budget”) and their realignment. Tax reductions for major corporations and the wealthy are maintained. “In that way, the people’s tax burdens will be increased to cover these expenditures,” Shii said.

Asked about how to boost the economy, Shii stressed that the government should take measures to return to the society 200 trillion yen of excess corporate internal reserves. The establishment of an economy governed by rules is the best way to stimulate the economy, he added.

- Akahata, January 11, 2010