Japan Press Weekly

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2011 September 21 - 27 [SCANDAL]

Former Ozawa secretaries found guilty

The Tokyo District Court on September 26 gave suspended prison terms to three former aides of Democratic Party of Japan kingpin Ozawa Ichiro for falsifying funds reports of Ozawa’s political fund management body Rikuzankai.

The judge acknowledged the false entries in the funds reports, involving about 2.17 billion yen in total, the largest ever in a court case, as a “heinous crime” in violation of the Political Funds Control Law.

The court stated that the defendants had tried to evade the revelation of the fact that Ozawa’s fund management body for many years had been collecting funds by maintaining cozy relations with Mizutani Construction Corp. and other major construction companies.

It criticized their actions as increasing public distrust over political activities and the flow of political funds.

Japanese Communist Party Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi on the same day commented that with the ruling the suspicions against Ozawa has further deepened and called on the Diet to summon Ozawa and the defendants as witnesses.

At a press conference in the Diet building, Ichida stressed that it is necessary for the Diet to investigate the alleged illegal use of tax money over public construction works projects as well as make clear where the political and moral responsibilities lie.

Ichida also called on Prime Minister Noda Yoshihiko and the DPJ leadership to reveal before the public the whole picture behind the allegation involving the party’s former president.