Japan Press Weekly

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2011 February 16 - 22 [POLITICS]

Shii demands revision of budget

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on February 17 at a Diet press conference demanded that the FY 2011 budget draft be modified to one giving generous support to the household economy and domestic demand.

Shii pointed out that the government draft, while stressing the need to secure funds for social security, provides two trillion yen in tax breaks to large corporations and large asset holders and cuts back on social welfare service-related budgets.

Shii stated, “It is essential to redraw the draft so as to improve people’s livelihoods and help establish economic recovery,” and went on to explain a JCP 5-pillar draft proposal.

First is a package of comprehensive wage-hike policies. He called for the implementation of this package to establish job security, stating, “The government should take comprehensive measures to ensure full-time positions to non-regular workers, increase the minimum wage, and push up the pay scale of workers in small- and midsized-enterprises (SMEs). It should not leave all these measures up to corporations or labor-management decisions.” Shii emphasized the positive effects of returning part of corporate internal reserves (244 trillion yen) to benefit people’s well-being and the society at large.

The second pillar calls for a shift from cutbacks in social security programs and for their overall improvement.

The third pillar is to stop considering taking part in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and instead raise the national food-sufficiency rate, revitalize agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries, and establish trade rules respecting food sovereignty. Shii demanded that the government explore economic ties with Asian nations based on equality and mutual benefit.

The fourth pillar is to activate local economies with assistance being provided to SMEs, regional industries, and local shopping areas. He stated, “SMEs representing 70% of employment in Japan along with local merchants must become energized. Without their energy, Japan can neither overcome its economic crisis nor promote a domestic demand-led economy.”

As the fifth pillar, Shii stated, “It is vital to secure financial resources by finding ways to increase tax revenues and stop wasting money.” He pointed out that the first thing to do is to end the preferential taxation to the rich and require them to pay an appropriate share in taxes. He also proposed that the wasteful use of tax money for military spending and for large public works projects be reviewed so that about three trillion yen can be redirected to social uses.