Japan Press Weekly

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2011 September 14 - 20 [POLITICS]

Noda unwilling to respond to questions: Shii

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on September 15 at a press conference after his interpellation in the House of Representatives plenary session criticized Prime Minister Noda Yoshihiko for “failing to respond to my questions regarding key issues.”

During his question time, Shii pointed out that Noda’s post-disaster reconstruction policy which includes tax hikes, entry into the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade pact, and establishment of special fishing zones will cause negative impact on efforts to recover from the 3.11 disaster. He also asked Noda about his stance on the resumption of operations of suspended nuclear power plants (NPPs) and the transfer of the U.S. Futenma base in Okinawa.

However, Noda only “read from the answer sheet drafted by bureaucrats” in reply to Shii questions. Shi said, “[A]nd he was unwilling to properly engage in discussing the points I raised.”

Shii criticized Noda for “adhering to the nuclear ‘safety myth’” while claiming to have an intention to “reconsider” the “safety myth” of NPPs. During the question time, Noda indicated that he would give the green light to the restart of suspended NPPs if their safety is confirmed by NPP operators, the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency, and the Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan.

In the interpellation, Shii said that it is inappropriate if the government plans to conduct decontamination work only in areas in which the level of radioactivity reaches 20 mSv/h, Noda replied that he will not implement the decontamination plan in other areas.

Shii said, “His response was evasive, though he used polite language.”