Japan Press Weekly

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2008 May 14 - 20 [JCP]

JCP Shii expresses sympathy for Sichuan quake victims

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on May 15 visited Chinese Ambassador Cui Tiankai at the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo to express sympathy for the victims of the recent earthquake in the Chinese province of Sichuan.

Shii stated, “I want to express my deep condolences over the death of so many people in this major earthquake and offer my sympathy to the Chinese people, in particular those people affected by the quake.”

Shii explained that the JCP is using Akahata to call for donations for the quake-hit areas and that the party in the Diet urged the government to extend necessary supplies and aid workers to China.

Thanking Shii for his sympathy for the quake-hit areas, Cui said that the recent disaster has no parallel in history and that various kinds of supplies, equipment, medical devices, and medicines are needed.

Shii expressed hope that the technologies and expertise of Japan as a country which has much experience with earthquakes be utilized in rescue and reconstruction efforts in China.

Cui said that he has been impressed by the heartfelt support extended from various circles in Japan, including the JCP. He will immediately convey Shii’s message to President Hu Jintao and other Chinese leaders.

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A 30-member Japanese rescue team arrived in Beijing on the evening of May 15.

On the same day, local JCP organizations took to the streets to raise funds for China’s quake-hit areas.

In front of Kamata Station in Tokyo, House of Representatives member Akamine Seiken called on passers-by to donate money for Chinese quake victims as well as for Myanmar’s cyclone victims.

In Takarazuka City in Hyogo Prefecture, which was hit by the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995, Seto Keiko, JCP candidate in the next House of Representatives election, and other JCP members and supporters took part in similar actions. - Akahata, May 16, 2008