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P 292252Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY TOKYO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8369
INFO RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/USDOJ WASHDC PRIORITY
RULSDMK/USDOT WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//J5//
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHHMHBA/COMPACFLT PEARL HARBOR HI
RHMFIUU/HQ PACAF HICKAM AFB HI//CC/PA//
RHMFIUU/USFJ //J5/JO21//
RUYNAAC/COMNAVFORJAPAN YOKOSUKA JA
RUAYJAA/CTF 72
RUEHNH/AMCONSUL NAHA 3024
RUEHFK/AMCONSUL FUKUOKA 0666
RUEHOK/AMCONSUL OSAKA KOBE 4449
RUEHNAG/AMCONSUL NAGOYA 8731
RUEHKSO/AMCONSUL SAPPORO 1239
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 6099
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 2096
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2320
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 07 TOKYO 003018
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR E, P, EB, EAP/J, EAP/P, EAP/PD, PA;
WHITE HOUSE/NSC/NEC; JUSTICE FOR STU CHEMTOB IN ANTI-TRUST DIVISION;
TREASURY/OASIA/IMI/JAPAN; DEPT PASS USTR/PUBLIC AFFAIRS OFFICE;
SECDEF FOR JCS-J-5/JAPAN,
DASD/ISA/EAPR/JAPAN; DEPT PASS ELECTRONICALLY TO USDA
FAS/ITP FOR SCHROETER; PACOM HONOLULU FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ADVISOR;
CINCPAC FLT/PA/ COMNAVFORJAPAN/PA.
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OIIP KMDR KPAO PGOV PINR ECON ELAB JA
SUBJECT: DAILY SUMMARY OF JAPANESE PRESS 10/29/08
INDEX:
(1) Poll on Aso cabinet, political parties (Asahi)
(2) Editorial: MSDF must raise its information security awareness
(Sankei)
(3) Editorial: Court ruling on Aegis info leak: Appropriate approach
needed in designating and controlling classified information
(Mainichi)
(4) Prime Minister Aso: Is a cup noodle about 400 yen? (Tokyo
Shimbun)
(5) Questioning on Cessna crash possible: Maher (Okinawa Times)
(6) No prospects for V-shaped facility's offshore move (Okinawa
Times)
ARTICLES:
(1) Poll on Aso cabinet, political parties
ASAHI (Page 4) (Full)
October 28, 2008
Questions & Answers
(Figures shown in percentage, rounded off. The three figures from
left to right in each row denote the results of Oct. 4-5, Oct.
11-12, and Oct. 25-26 surveys.)
Q: Do you support the Aso cabinet?
Yes 41 42 41
No 42 38 38
Q: Which political party do you support now?
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) 32 30 32
Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ or Minshuto) 23 22 19
New Komeito (NK) 4 4 4
Japanese Communist Party (JCP) 2 2 2
Social Democratic Party (SDP or Shaminto) 1 1 1
People's New Party (PNP or Kokumin Shinto) 0 0 0
Reform Club (RC or Kaikaku Kurabu) 0 0 0
New Party Nippon (NPN or Shinto Nippon) 0 0 0
Other political parties 0 0 0
None 31 34 35
No answer (N/A) + don't know (D/K) 7 7 7
Q: To what extent are you interested in the next general election
for the House of Representatives? (One choice only)
Very interested 35 38 36
Somewhat interested 44 39 43
Not very interested 17 16 17
Not interested at all 3 6 4
Q: If you were to vote now in a general election for the House of
Representatives, which political party would you like to vote for in
your proportional representation bloc?
TOKYO 00003018 002 OF 007
LDP 33 32 33
DPJ 34 32 30
NK 4 5 4
JCP 3 4 2
SDP 1 1 1
PNP 0 0 0
RC 0 0 0
NPN 0 0 0
Other political parties 1 0 1
N/A+D/K 24 26 29
Q: In your single-seat electoral district, which political party's
candidate would you like to vote for?
LDP 31 30 31
DPJ 30 29 26
NK 3 4 2
JCP 3 3 2
SDP 1 0 1
PNP 0 0 0
RC 0 0 0
NPN 0 0 0
Other political parties 0 0 0
Independent 2 2 2
N/A+D/K 30 32 36
Q: Would you like the current LDP-led coalition government to
continue, or would you otherwise like it to be replaced with a
DPJ-led coalition government?
LDP-led coalition 34 32 33
DPJ-led coalition 40 38 37
Q: Which one between Prime Minister Aso and DPJ President Ichiro
Ozawa do you think is more appropriate for prime minister?
Mr. Aso 50 53 52
Mr. Ozawa 22 20 20
Q: Do you think it would be better for Japan to have the ruling and
opposition parties change places at times?
Yes 73 70 73
No 19 20 19
Q: Do you think the House of Representatives should be dissolved as
early as possible for a general election, or do you otherwise think
there is no need to hurry? (Figures in parentheses denote the
results of a survey conducted Sept. 2-3.)
Dissolve as early as possible 33 (56)
No need to hurry 57 (33)
Q: The global expansion of the financial crisis has caused such
repercussions as a stock market crash in Japan as well. To what
extent are you interested in the financial crisis? (One choice
only)
Very interested 39
Somewhat interested 44
Not very interested 14
Not interested at all 3
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Q: Do you have expectations for Prime Minister Aso in dealing with
the financial crisis?
Yes 52
No 40
Q: The government and the ruling parties are planning an
across-the-board income tax reduction in order to boost the nation's
economy. The tax reduction is estimated at approximately 2 trillion
yen. Do you appreciate this tax break?
Yes 40
No 41
Q: In its campaign for a general election, the DPJ will pledge to
make highways free in stages. Meanwhile, the governing parties are
planning substantial reductions in local highway tolls. Do you
consider much about the issue of highway tolls when voting for a
political party or a candidate in the next general election?
Yes 29
No 64
Polling methodology: The survey was conducted over the telephone on
a computer-aided random digit dialing (RDD) basis. Respondents were
chosen from among the nation's voting population on a three-stage
random-sampling basis. Valid answers were obtained from 1,036
persons (57 PERCENT ) for the Oct. 4-5 survey, 1,040 persons (60
PERCENT ) for the Oct. 11-12 survey, and 1,045 persons (61 PERCENT )
for the Oct. 25-26 survey.
(2) Editorial: MSDF must raise its information security awareness
SANKEI (Page 2) (Full)
October 29, 2008
In delivering a sentence (on Oct. 28) to a Maritime Self-Defense
Force (MSDF) officer who had leaked classified information on the
Aegis naval air defense system, the Yokohama District Court severely
criticized the MSDF's sloppiness in information control, while
pointing out its lack of information security awareness regarding
high-level military secrets.
Learning lessons from the ruling, the MSDF, which manages all kinds
of classified military information and data, must carry out thorough
information control.
The court sentenced Lt. Cmdr. Sumitaka Matsuuchi, a member of the
service section of the MSDF Yokosuka Base who was charged with
violating the Law Concerning the Protection of Secrets for the
Japan-U.S. Mutual Defense Assistance Agreement, to two years and six
months in prison, suspended for four years, generally in line with
the prosecutors' demand for three years in prison.
The guilty decision was appropriate even though the leaked
information on the Aegis system, which is reportedly the most
important military information for the Japan-U.S. alliance, did not
find its way out of the MSDF.
The most contentious point in the trial was whether the MSDF
lieutenant commander -- Matsuuchi's acquaintance and a former
TOKYO 00003018 004 OF 007
instructor at the MSDF First Service School -- who had received data
on the capability of the Aegis system classified as a special
defense secret from Matsuuchi constituted "others" as specified in
the law prohibiting the act of leaking classified information.
It is the first time that a judicial decision has been made over a
violation of the defense secret protection law since it came into
effect in 1954. Attention was focused on what decision the court
would make.
Under the law, a person handling special secrets who leaked a secret
that was obtained in the line of duty to others can receive a
maximum prison sentence of 10 years.
It was natural for the court to clearly define the defendant as an
"operator (gyomusha)" and the lieutenant commander as constituting
"others" and to point out that the defendant "lacked security
awareness as an operator handling defense secrets."
What is also important is that the presiding judge stated: "In the
event the information fell into the hands of a third country,
Japan's security could have been harmed. Such a consequence is
grave."
America's trust in Japan has diminished tremendously by this
incident in which data on the Aegis system that reportedly
constitutes the foundation of the Japan-U.S. security system.
It has become clear that the defendant had copied the Aegis data
onto his personal computer, that he had sent a CD containing the
data to the former instructor, that the data had spread to other
members from there, and that a total of 38 persons had been involved
in the incident.
As was pointed out by the ruling, the defendant alone should not be
blamed and the MSDF, too, should reflect on its lax awareness of
classified information that lies beneath the incident.
(3) Editorial: Court ruling on Aegis info leak: Appropriate approach
needed in designating and controlling classified information
MAINICHI (Page 5) (Full)
October 29, 2008
The Yokohama District Court found a Maritime Self-Defense Force
lieutenant commander guilty of leaking within the MSDF information
on the Aegis naval air defense system, which is a special defense
secret provided by the U.S., in violation of the Law Concerning the
Protection of Secrets for the Japan-U.S. Mutual Defense Assistance
Agreement.
It is only natural for the Ministry of Defense (MOD) to beef up the
control of secret information related to security. However, we also
want it not to excessively expand the scope of secret information
when it designates classified information.
The incident was brought to light in January last year. Following
the arrest of the Chinese wife of a petty officer second class by
the Kanagawa Prefectural Police on suspicion of violating the
Immigrant Control and Refugee Recognition Law, a file containing
information on the Aegis destroyer was found at the home of the
petty officer second class. Investigation by the prefectural police
TOKYO 00003018 005 OF 007
and the MSDF Criminal Investigation Command found that the
lieutenant commander leaked the information. He was arrested and
indicted 11 months later.
Internal investigation by MOD found that 38 MSDF members copied the
leaked file without permission. Fifty-eight persons, including the
lieutenant commander were punished in March this year.
Aside from this case, the investigation also revealed that a
textbook compiled by the MSDF First Technical School in Edajima
City, Hiroshima Prefecture, carried details of special defense
secrets.
A report compiled by the government's Council to Reform the Defense
Ministry pointed out that the leak of such special defense secrets
is an extraordinary expansion of leakage. The information leak
countermeasures council set up by MOD clarified the scope of
responsibility and placed a ban on MSDF members from bringing in PCs
for personal use to their workplaces. Needless to say, it is
imperative to eradicate ill-disciplined sloppy control of defense
secrets and adopt and implement strict rules.
The incident this time has followed an unusual course of
developments into a diplomatic issue between Japan and the U.S. The
Japanese side offered an apology for the leak of the information at
the Japan-U.S. defense summit held in April last year. The
governments of Japan and the U.S. signed the General Security of
Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA). The pact is designed to
cater to increased secret information sharing between the two
countries, including the missile defense system. The signing of such
an accord is apparently the reflection of the U.S. having raised
distrust in Japan's intelligence and security system.
The matter was not leaked to outsiders. Fault was also on MOD,
because its system of checking information leaks was far from being
sufficient, as the sentence noted. Nevertheless, the defendant was
held criminally responsible. Regarding this point, some have pointed
out that the Japanese side gave consideration to the U.S. The court
decision may reflect its judgment that it is necessary to indicate a
tough stance toward matters that could hamper Japan from receiving
military technology and state-of-the-art weapons from the U.S.
Secret defense information includes defense secrets under the SDF
Law and ministry secrets as well as classified defense secrets. It
is the defense minister who designates classified information. If
secret protection policy expands to cover items more than necessary,
it would lead to excessive secrecy and acceleration of information
hiding, incurring public distrust in defense and security policy. We
want MOD to reach a balanced decision between the protection of
confidential information, whose leak will threaten national
security, and information disclosure to the public.
(4) Prime Minister Aso: Is a cup noodle about 400 yen?
TOKYO SHIMBUN (Page 2) (Full)
October 29, 2008
When asked about the price of a "cup noodle" (instant noodles) in a
House of Councillors Foreign and Defense Affairs Committee session
yesterday, Prime Minister Taro Aso was stuck for an answer, but he
then said: "I don't know exactly because I haven't bought any cup
noodles recently. When Nisshin Food first produced them (cup
TOKYO 00003018 006 OF 007
noodles), they were cheap. Now, a package is about 400 yen? Isn't
that high?" Hiroe Makiyama of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ)
made this question in connection with the widening income
disparities. When Makiyama told him, "They sell for about 170 yen,"
Aso gave a wry smile.
Aso revealed his true colors, even though he has tried to make the
public think that by his visiting a supermarket in Tokyo and
delivering an outdoor speech in Akihabara, while going to exclusive
hotel bars.
(5) Questioning on Cessna crash possible: Maher
OKINAWA TIMES (Page 29) (Full)
October 29, 2008
In the wake of the recent crash at Nago City's Makiya of a Cessna
light aircraft belonging to the U.S. military, Kevin Maher, U.S.
consul general in Okinawa, indicated yesterday that the U.S.
military would comply with Okinawa prefectural police's request to
question the crashed aircraft's crew. Meanwhile, Nago Mayor
Yoshikazu Shimabukuro has made an investigative request. "The U.S.
Air Force will cooperate with the Okinawa prefectural police's
investigation," Maher told the Okinawa Times in an interview. "I
think it's possible (for the local police to question the four U.S.
military personnel)," he added. The Okinawa Socialist Masses Party
(OSMP) also made a request yesterday to look into the accident, and
Maher said he has explained to the party that the U.S. military
would not refuse the questioning of them.
In addition, Maher also indicated that the aircraft flight this time
was made off duty, saying: "I have not been told that they were on
duty. We're not talking about that." He further said the Air Force's
accident investigation committee would independently investigate the
accident so there will be no pressure from military headquarters.
(6) No prospects for V-shaped facility's offshore move
OKINAWA TIMES (Page 2) (Full)
October 29, 2008
It has now been three years since Japan and the United States
reached an intergovernmental agreement on an interim report
regarding the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan, which was titled
"U.S.-Japan: Transformation and Realignment for the Future." The
planned relocation of Futenma airfield to Nago City's Henoko has now
become a major point at issue as a step to mitigate Okinawa's
base-hosting burden in the process of realigning the U.S. military
presence in Japan. Futenma relocation was originally based on a 1996
agreement of the Japan-U.S. Special Action Committee on Okinawa
(SACO), and an alternative facility was to be installed in an
offshore area situated 2.2 kilometers off the coast of Henoko.
Okinawa Prefecture and Nago City accepted this offshore relocation
plan. Meanwhile, the original Futenma relocation plan has now
changed to the current plan to build a V-shaped pair of airstrips
(in a coastal area of Camp Schwab in Nago).
However, Okinawa Prefecture and Nago City have been claiming that
they cannot accept the Futenma relocation as long as it is based on
the current plan. They are holding consultations with the
government, but the issue cannot be expected to reach a settlement.
TOKYO 00003018 007 OF 007
Okinawa Prefecture and its base-hosting municipalities called for
the government to restore the original offshore relocation plan
before launching an environmental impact assessment for the
construction of an alternative facility. In August 2007, however,
the government presented an assessment plan, leaving the local hosts
behind, and the procedures for an environmental assessment began
automatically.
The environmental assessment, which was started in March this year,
is now eight months behind the original schedule. However, the
government repaired its relations with Okinawa by showing
consideration for its base-hosting localities with the construction
site's offshore move in mind. In August, the government launched
working teams to discuss the construction and environmental
assessment plans with officials from Okinawa and its
municipalities.
However, as seen from the recent remarks made by the American
Embassy's Deputy Chief of Mission to Japan Zumwalt, who arrived at
his Tokyo post in July this year, the U.S. government does not agree
to move the Futenma replacement facility into the sea even after the
next administration comes into office. The Japanese government and
Okinawa Prefecture remain unable to find out a "rational reason"
that is needed to convince the United States. Meanwhile, the
domestic political situation is also fluid. As it stands, there is
still no knowing whether the government will be able to make a final
political decision.
SCHIEFFER