January 29, 2014
Calling for a halt to the planned consumption tax hike, 1,600 small business owners on January 28 gathered from across Japan to hold a rally at Tokyo’s Hibiya Amphitheater.
The rally was organized by the national liaison committee of small business owners’ organizations.
On behalf of the organizer, Kokubun Minoru, president of the National Federation of Merchant and Industrialists Organizations (Zenshoren), said, “Let’s work to force a change in policies and achieve support for small- and medium-sized enterprises, a cancellation of the consumption tax increase, and wage hikes in order to enable the recovery of the economy.”
Tokyo gubernatorial candidate Utsunomiya Kenji and Japanese Communist Party member of the House of Councilors Koike Akira delivered speeches in solidarity.
Utsunomiya in his speech promised to oppose the introduction of a higher consumption tax rate and allocate a part of Tokyo’s budget to assisting SMEs and local shopping areas.
The JCP lawmaker expressed his determination to work hard together with the people on the common task of stopping the planned sales tax hike in April.
After the rally, participants marched in demonstration to the Diet building, holding banners, reading, “No more tax burdens on the general public! No more excessive tax breaks for large corporations!” and “Stop Abe’s anti-people policies!”
The rally organizer includes Zenshoren, the Japanese Medical and Dental Practitioners for the Improvement of Medical Care (Hodanren), the national federation of book-lenders’ unions, the Franchisees Association of Japan, and 36 prefectural organizations of small-business owners.
The rally was organized by the national liaison committee of small business owners’ organizations.
On behalf of the organizer, Kokubun Minoru, president of the National Federation of Merchant and Industrialists Organizations (Zenshoren), said, “Let’s work to force a change in policies and achieve support for small- and medium-sized enterprises, a cancellation of the consumption tax increase, and wage hikes in order to enable the recovery of the economy.”
Tokyo gubernatorial candidate Utsunomiya Kenji and Japanese Communist Party member of the House of Councilors Koike Akira delivered speeches in solidarity.
Utsunomiya in his speech promised to oppose the introduction of a higher consumption tax rate and allocate a part of Tokyo’s budget to assisting SMEs and local shopping areas.
The JCP lawmaker expressed his determination to work hard together with the people on the common task of stopping the planned sales tax hike in April.
After the rally, participants marched in demonstration to the Diet building, holding banners, reading, “No more tax burdens on the general public! No more excessive tax breaks for large corporations!” and “Stop Abe’s anti-people policies!”
The rally organizer includes Zenshoren, the Japanese Medical and Dental Practitioners for the Improvement of Medical Care (Hodanren), the national federation of book-lenders’ unions, the Franchisees Association of Japan, and 36 prefectural organizations of small-business owners.
