Japan Press Weekly

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2010 May 19 - 25 [JCP]

Shii speaks at Foreign Correspondents’ Club

Shii said that at meetings with U.N. officials and government representatives attending the NPT Review Conference, JCP delegates called for a start of international negotiations for the abolition of nuclear weapons. He expressed that he was happy to see this call was included in a draft report written by the Main Committee I of the NPT Review Conference.

Reporting on the delegation’s activities to deliver to the U.S. government the demands of Okinawans calling for the unconditional return of the U.S. Futenma base and a base-free Okinawa, Shii stressed that the JCP and U.S. government officials agreed on the importance of exchanging opinions even though they have different stances.

In response to a German reporter asking how the increase in the party’s youth membership affects the JCP and the society, Shii said, “I recognize a rise in the political consciousness of young people in regard to issues of employment and peace. We’d like to respond to their needs and build a strong party presence among them,” referring to the 5,200 participants to a May 16 youth rally calling for decent working conditions as well as the 400 young Japanese people he marched with in an anti-nuclear demonstration in Manhattan on May 2.
- Akahata, May 20, 2010