Shii reports on his visit to the U.S.

Japan Press Weekly

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

Shii reports on his visit to the U.S.

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo reported on the outcome of his visit to the United States at an inner-party meeting on May 21.

Shii concluded that in its eight-day visit to the U.S the JCP delegation he led succeeded in carrying out two jobs: conveying to the international society Japanese citizens’ call for a world without nuclear weapons, and reiterating to the U.S. government that people in Okinawa as well as other parts of Japan demand a base-free Okinawa and a Japan-U.S. relationship based on an equal footing and friendship.

Recalling his activities in New York calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons on the occasion of the NPT Review Conference, Shii praised the Japanese civil movement against atomic and hydrogen bombs, describing it as “a driving force to push international politics to achieve a nuclear weapons-free world.”

Shii analyzed his visit to the U.S. from three angles. First, as factors that realized this U.S. tour, he stressed that the “anti-communist wall” has started to fall down in the U.S. and that the JCP further developed and refined its theory of imperialism, which has enabled itself to see the U.S. from a different perspective.

Secondly, he emphasized that the JCP’s decade-long diplomatic activities as opposition party has finally reached the U.S. By opening a door for dialogue with the U.S. government, the JCP has set up a foundation to realize its Program calling for the abrogation of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty and creation of a bilateral friendship treaty, he said.

Thirdly, in stark contrast to the JCP position and actions to advance its position, he criticized the Japanese government for failing to represent Japanese citizens’ demands in negotiating with the U.S. government.

- Akahata, May 22, 2010