April 22, 2013
Akahata editorial (excerpts)
Prime Minister Abe Shinzo at a Lower House Budget Committee meeting on April 16 expressed that he is considering submitting a bill to protect “secret information” to the Diet at an early date.
The bill is to punish public employees who leak information the government stamps as confidential or any outside persons who try to obtain the information. The bill, if enacted, will threaten the sovereign people’s right to access information.
Reportedly, the bill the prime minister has in mind will be similar to a bill the previous government gave up submitting due to fierce protest from the legal professional, the Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association, and media-related workers.
The former government led by the Democratic Party aimed at designating as unavailable information under the bill not only related to military matters but also areas concerning the broad categories of national security, diplomacy, and public safety and social order. The bill the DPJ designed intended to impose sentences of up to 10 years imprisonment on violators.
A secrets protection law ostensibly prevents state secrets from being made public. It, in fact, conceals important information regarding national policies from the general public. It paves the way for the government to do what it wants to do without coming under public scrutiny regarding national policies. Such a law encroaches on the public’s and the media’s right to access to information that should be in the public domain.
The Constitution guarantees the people’s right to know. It is an essential factor to maintain the principle of popular sovereignty and promote democracy.
The Japanese people have the bitter experience of having allowed the county to wage wars of aggression. They were unable to have access to information at that time and had no way to criticize the government and its military authorities during the prewar era. To never allow the same mistake to be repeated, it is vital for the public today to make use of the right to information, inform other people of ominous moves, and prevent abuses of power.
Related past articles:
> Gov’t’s intent to deepen military alliance is unacceptable [May 22, 2012]
> Media workers oppose bill eroding right to know and restricting press freedom [March 1 and 2, 2012]
> Japan-U.S. military alliance lies behind a secret protection bill [January 18, 2012]
Prime Minister Abe Shinzo at a Lower House Budget Committee meeting on April 16 expressed that he is considering submitting a bill to protect “secret information” to the Diet at an early date.
The bill is to punish public employees who leak information the government stamps as confidential or any outside persons who try to obtain the information. The bill, if enacted, will threaten the sovereign people’s right to access information.
Reportedly, the bill the prime minister has in mind will be similar to a bill the previous government gave up submitting due to fierce protest from the legal professional, the Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association, and media-related workers.
The former government led by the Democratic Party aimed at designating as unavailable information under the bill not only related to military matters but also areas concerning the broad categories of national security, diplomacy, and public safety and social order. The bill the DPJ designed intended to impose sentences of up to 10 years imprisonment on violators.
A secrets protection law ostensibly prevents state secrets from being made public. It, in fact, conceals important information regarding national policies from the general public. It paves the way for the government to do what it wants to do without coming under public scrutiny regarding national policies. Such a law encroaches on the public’s and the media’s right to access to information that should be in the public domain.
The Constitution guarantees the people’s right to know. It is an essential factor to maintain the principle of popular sovereignty and promote democracy.
The Japanese people have the bitter experience of having allowed the county to wage wars of aggression. They were unable to have access to information at that time and had no way to criticize the government and its military authorities during the prewar era. To never allow the same mistake to be repeated, it is vital for the public today to make use of the right to information, inform other people of ominous moves, and prevent abuses of power.
Related past articles:
> Gov’t’s intent to deepen military alliance is unacceptable [May 22, 2012]
> Media workers oppose bill eroding right to know and restricting press freedom [March 1 and 2, 2012]
> Japan-U.S. military alliance lies behind a secret protection bill [January 18, 2012]
