Press Conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary

JAPANESE

Opening Statement by Chief Cabinet Secretary Edano

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I have three items to report. I will first speak about today's Cabinet meeting. In addition to matters on the promulgation of laws, the submission of bills, government orders and personnel, four general measures were approved. From the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, we heard a report about the Annual Report on Trends in Forest and Forestry in Japan FY2010. I reported on the visit of Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress to Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima Prefectures.

At the informal Cabinet meeting that followed, I explained about the organization of the Reconstruction Action Campaign.

I would like to explain here about the visit of Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress to disaster-affected regions. I gave the following report during the Cabinet meeting, which I shall read to you now: "Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress have already visited Tokyo, Saitama Prefecture, Chiba Prefecture, and Ibaraki Prefecture to console those affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake. On Wednesday, April 27, they will also visit Miyagi Prefecture. On Monday, May 2, they will visit Iwate Prefecture, and on Wednesday, May 11, they will visit Fukushima Prefecture." I have heard that Their Majesties have been deeply troubled since the earthquake, and have expressed the wish to console those in the affected areas as soon as possible, and to thank those working for rescue and reconstruction operations. Each day's visit is the result of discussions among many concerned organizations, especially local ones. I have heard that Their Majesties hope to meet with as many evacuees on each day as possible.

Next, I will explain the Reconstruction Action Campaign. In today's informal Cabinet meeting, I explained that we shall be launching the Reconstruction Action Campaign on April 28 as a response to damage caused by malicious rumors following the Great East Japan Earthquake, the shortages of certain goods due to hoarding and concerns regarding the slowing of the economy due to the prevailing mood of self-restraint. This campaign will encourage consumers across the country to take a variety of "Reconstruction Actions" with the goal of supporting the three prefectures in the disaster-affected region. These actions will be organized primarily by private groups and enterprises and supported by the Government. I asked each ministry and agency for their cooperation on this, as it will require coordinated initiatives. For further details about this campaign, please direct your inquiries to the Cabinet Public Relations Office.

Q&As

REPORTER: I would like to ask a question about the demand for electricity. Last week you said that you would like heavy users to reduce the amount of electricity consumed by 25%. Please tell us if there have been any changes on this matter at this early stage. What is the state of discussion on this? Have discussions up until now included such ideas as excluding hospitals, which affect the lives of the people, or businesses that use cooling?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I received a report from Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) last week about further increases to their capacity to generate power. I would like to rearrange the supply and demand schedules based on this. However, we are actually right now thoroughly and carefully investigating how realistic it is to increase generation capacity. Although I was hoping to make an announcement on this early this week, I think we need to carefully investigate this a bit, and that the process may take a little more time. As I have said many times before, the supply and demand schedules are primarily based on the idea that we will receive the voluntary cooperation of the public, including businesses. I think that there are many example cases we could discuss in relation to this, such as the hospitals or businesses related to cooling, which you pointed out. Depending on the industry or nature of work, the most realistic method for power conservation will change. When it comes to hospitals, this issue involves the lives of patients. Those actually in each industry know best about how they can save power. And since they know best, we want to move forward by letting such people decide what they will do on their own. I believe that your question may be asking about something like the establishment of usage regulations based on the law. We are currently discussing this, focusing first on the topic of whether to implement it before thinking about discussing whether to allow exceptions. Whether or not we implement this kind of compulsory measure will depend on the progress of the kind of voluntary cooperative action I just spoke of. This is the current state of discussion.

REPORTER: To raise an example of an initiative being implemented by a local government, I have heard that Arakawa City is now running a "Conservation Mileage" program. It works something like the Eco-point program, in that those who conserve will somehow earn points. How do you evaluate these kinds of efforts on the part of local governments? Also, is the Government considering any programs like this, which essentially create incentives for users rather than merely calling for conservation?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I have indeed received reports that local governments and enterprises are also receiving a lot of voluntary cooperation from the people. We are very grateful for such efforts. We received a proposal the other day from Governor of Saitama Prefecture Ueda Kiyoshi suggesting that the national government as well create this kind of point system for power conservation. We are trying to formulate the supply and demand plans as quickly as possible and will consider how we should gain the support of individuals for this. Since this is a rather complicated issue, I hope to consider this topic separately, as its own discussion.

REPORTER: With regard to the issue of electricity supply, recently a number of large companies, such as the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Sony and Unicharm, have announced measures to conserve power during the summer months, including the introduction of summer-time working hours. How does the Government view these measures?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: The measures that you have just mentioned, including shifts in operating and working hours by individual companies will help in efforts to coordinate peak demand for power and as such these measures are very welcome. I think that by shifting working and operating hours, the impact on business activities will also be relatively small. In this sense these measures that have been announced are extremely welcome. I think that such changes may have a slight impact on the working environment for employees, but it is to be hoped that such measures can be introduced with the understanding of and due regard for the workforces involved.

REPORTER: However, there are also concerns that while there may be a power saving effect through such measures, unless they are thoroughly implemented, they could result in lengthened working hours for employees, due to differences in operating and working times between business partners. One month ago in this press conference you stated that with regard to the introduction of summer-time "no prejudgments can be made." At the current point, what are your views now concerning the introduction of a summer-time system across the entire country?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: This is something that requires consideration. If everyone shifts their operating and business hours, one potential result is that the peak demand time itself will merely shift to a different timeframe. Another factor is that the introduction of summer-time and imposing a change to Japan Standard Time as a whole would undoubtedly incur considerable costs. This is something else that needs to be considered. If shifts in operating and working times are implemented by individual companies or across certain industries, this issue would be resolved, but as you point out, it could raise other issues, including how companies would do business with their partners under different operating times and schedules. The impact of such measures will be discussed from now with various companies, industries and industrial sectors and a method that would be most realistic, effective and have minimal impact on businesses should be decided, including the option of shifting the starting time of business operations, as you just mentioned.

REPORTER: In ministerial discussions today, the Prime Minister indicated that in the run-up to the G8 Summit he is seeking to clarify a future vision for Japan's energy and nuclear policies. Is the Government giving specific consideration to such policies now?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: As I have said on a number of previous occasions, rigorous investigation of the causes of the accident at the nuclear power station will have to be implemented, but unfortunately the situation at the power station is still one that is ongoing and it is currently difficult to say at what point an investigation can be launched. At the same time the international community, including the G8 nations, are watching Japan's response to the accident and naturally we have been responding to the international community with the provision of information on the status of the accident and other measures. We have now reached the stage where it has been pointed out that it is necessary to clarify the views of the Japanese Government to the international community, based on the circumstances to date. Given the ongoing full-fledged efforts to respond to the accident, the challenge will be to ascertain the degree to which the Government can respond at the current point.

REPORTER: Today marks the 25th anniversary of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power station. Do you think that the lessons learned from the Chernobyl disaster have been thoroughly applied? Also, the Japanese Government has consistently indicated its recognition that the current accident in Fukushima is not as serious as the accident at Chernobyl. Is there any change to this recognition on the part of the Government? Do you think there is a possibility that the accident at Fukushima could worsen to a point where it becomes as serious as Chernobyl?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I have always tried to take care when making statements comparing the accident at Fukushima to that at Chernobyl. Rather than focusing on which is of the greater seriousness, I believe it is very clear that the two accidents were fundamentally different in their characteristics. At Chernobyl it was the case that the power station exploded during operation and high concentrations of nuclear materials were spread over an extremely wide area in a short period of time. Also, a number of personnel at Chernobyl power station lost their lives due to radiation exposure and there were residents in the vicinity of the power station who were also exposed to high concentrations of radiation. In the case of Fukushima, while it is regrettable that any radioactive materials were released at all, the total volume of radiation released is one-tenth of the volumes emitted at Chernobyl. What is also very different is the fact that at the very least it was possible to halt an explosion of the reactors at Fukushima and the dispersion of radioactive materials is also on a much smaller scale than was the case at Chernobyl. Also, unlike Chernobyl, where personnel at the power station and residents in the vicinity lost their lives due to radiation exposure, in the case of Fukushima we were able to avoid this by asking the residents within a 20km of the power station to evacuate at an early stage. While this undoubtedly caused great trouble and inconvenience for the residents, the result was that no-one in the vicinity of the power station was contaminated by large volumes of radioactive materials. Although the accident at Fukushima resulted in large volumes of radioactive materials being released, based on a resolve to contain the situation and ensure that in particular there would be no impact to the health of residents in the vicinity, we made the difficult request to them to evacuate. With regard to your question about whether the lessons learned from Chernobyl 25 years ago have been applied in the case of Fukushima, I think that this is a question that should be judged by experts. However, in my non-expert opinion, I believe that knowledge about the impact on people's health of a nuclear power station disaster is one that has been considered and shared in the form of various surveys and research on the Chernobyl disaster, and this knowledge was at the very least a direct factor behind the decision to issue evacuation orders around the Fukushima power station.

REPORTER: Prior to the Cabinet meeting, you met with the Minister of Defense and the Minister for Foreign Affairs. I imagine that you were discussing the visit of the Prime Minister to the United States. What is the current status of considerations concerning the U.S.-Japan Security Consultative Committee, the so-called "Two-Plus-Two" meeting that is speculated to take place prior to the Prime Minister's visit to the U.S.?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: As I have said before, there is absolutely no change to the plan that the Prime Minister will visit the United States during the first half of the year. At the current stage there is nothing to be announced in specific terms. Due to the response to the recent disaster, I had not been able to hold discussions fully with the Minister of Defense and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and today I met with them to discuss a number of issues that we had not covered for more than a month, including the issue of U.S. military bases in Okinawa. Work to promote such issues, including ones that are under my purview as Chief Cabinet Secretary, has of course been continued at the working level over the past month. Today, although we did not talk about specific promotion measures, we met to share opinions and information.

REPORTER: There have been reports that on the day of the Great East Japan Earthquake, the president of TEPCO boarded an aircraft of the Self-Defense Forces and had just started to head back to Tokyo from a business meeting in another area of the country, when a decision was made to turn the aircraft around. What are the facts of this report, and, given the concerns about the initial delay in responding to the disaster, how do you view the decision made by the Minister of Defense to stop the flight?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I have received a report that on March 11, the day of the disaster, the Ministry of Defense received a request to transport the president of TEPCO from Nagoya Airport to Tokyo. However, in view of the situation in the disaster-affected regions, the Minister of Defense made a decision to prioritize transportation for the rescue and relief mission for those affected by the disaster. As a result of this decision, the president of TEPCO was not transported to Tokyo. As you are aware, during the night of March 11, in particular, the Self-Defense Forces, Japan Coast Guard and police service were engaged in a full-fledged air rescue and relief mission in the disaster-affected regions, and therefore I consider that the instruction issued by the Minister of Defense to prioritize transportation for disaster rescue and relief was an appropriate one.

REPORTER: You said that the president was not transported, but was it actually the case that the aircraft took off and then turned around?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I am aware that preparations for the flight had been swiftly made at the working level and in the period between the Minister of Defense receiving a report about this situation and giving the order for rescue operations to be prioritized, the aircraft had actually just taken off from Nagoya Airport, which resulted in it being called back to Nagoya and the flight being aborted.

REPORTER: The aircraft was heading to Tokyo, to Kanto, from Nagoya; it was not as though it had to fly from the disaster area to Nagoya and then on to Tokyo. Therefore, it seems there was no need to send the aircraft back to Nagoya. I believe a different decision could have been made if the commander or whoever in charge on-site inquired senior and parliamentary vice-ministers or if there was clear communication. Was there communication among each party?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: According to the reports I have received, the aircraft had just taken off.

REPORTER: If I may confirm, was the Prime Minister's Office not informed about this at that time?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: It's difficult to comment about "the Prime Minister's Office" per se.

REPORTER: Then what about the Prime Minister or yourself? Were you two informed?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: We were informed that the President of TEPCO was not in Tokyo and that he was trying to make his way back to Tokyo, and that afterwards there were these series of exchanges I just discussed.

REPORTER: When were you informed?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: After the aircraft had returned to Nagoya. I remember discussing how the highways were also open. Although the aircraft had taken off, because the Minister of Defense had instructed that priority be given to the rescue of the disaster victims, the aircraft returned to Nagoya. I do not remember exactly how many minutes after this that we were informed, but at the very least the Crisis Management Center was informed about these exchanges.

REPORTER: In the end, the President of TEPCO could not return to Tokyo by the end of that day. You and the Prime Minister have noted numerous times that the Government was unable to establish communication with TEPCO. Isn't it possible that the fact that the Government did not see the President of TEPCO back to Tokyo was one of the reasons for this?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: The President of TEPCO was not in the disaster area; he was in Nagoya. Therefore, to put it the other way around, at that point at least transport infrastructure, such as the Tomei Expressway and the Tokaido train lines, were not closed. It was after the fact that I was informed of these series of exchanges. Given that there was also the nuclear power station accident, it is not beyond comprehension that TEPCO requested SDF aircraft if the President of TEPCO could not move and was indeed cut off from Tokyo due to transportation difficulties. However, Nagoya-Tokyo is a distance that can be travelled by car. Therefore, I thought it was strange that TEPCO would ask this of the SDF and that the SDF would comply without getting permission from the Minister.

REPORTER: On the other hand, at that time, couldn't you have instructed the President of TEPCO to quickly return to Tokyo by car?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: Wouldn't one do this naturally? The President of TEPCO, a private company, is in Nagoya and needs to return to Tokyo as soon as possible. Since he wants to return to Tokyo as soon as possible, and since he must surely know about the circumstances of the earthquake disaster, and since the circumstances are such that he requests that the SDF aircraft fly him while many people in the Tohoku region wait for the arrival of relief and rescue by air, I assumed that he would have considered travelling by car if the SDF aircraft would not have flown him out. Should not this be common sense?

REPORTER: I heard that this afternoon, Diet members close to former Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) President Ichiro Ozawa and former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, among others, plan to hold a meeting to come up with a document mainly on how clear it is that the Kan administration is losing the support of the people. How do you view these moves being made within the party under these circumstances?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I have not confirmed whether or not that is true. I believe this is not the kind of matter that I should make a comment based on only speculation.

REPORTER: At today's informal Cabinet meeting, I heard that the Prime Minister talked about the results of the last election. Can you tell us about that?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I have generally been in a position of being involved with our legal requirements for information disclosure with regard to Cabinet meetings and informal Cabinet meetings, but to disclose all the exchanges of talks which have taken place at these meetings would, I believe, hinder these meetings - given their nature - and prevent us from fully exercising our roles. Therefore, I would like to just say that there were talks of the nature that you just mentioned, and keep it at that.

REPORTER: About the diplomatic calendar, some are saying that arrangements are being made for Japan and the EU to hold a summit meeting at the end of May. At what stage are you, currently, regarding the organization of this meeting?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: Due to the disaster which we have suffered, I believe it important to maintain diplomatic relations, as much as possible, with countries that have extended their cooperation to Japan. However, I have not received any information from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) that anything specific has been decided or is about to be decided with regard to what you just mentioned. If necessarily, I recommend that you inquire MOFA for more information.

REPORTER: In relation to temporary entry into the no-entry zones in Fukushima, you said yesterday it would benefit the public for those whose work is related to the local governments offices to be allowed to enter "within a few days." Please tell us if there has been any progress made on this matter, such as, for example, whether entry will actually take place today.

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: This matter is handled at the response headquarters in the disaster areas as a matter concerning actual hands-on operations. I have not received any detailed reports on it. Conversely, however - as it was pointed out yesterday - some have expressed that because many of the local government offices in the area have lost their ability to function or are overburdened with other work, they are not fully able to handle all the details involving the issue of temporary entry. As such - as I mentioned yesterday - even though there is the question of whether this matter involving the circumstances of local geography and residents can be handled by those who do not know the area first hand, I gave instructions once again to make arrangements for the residents to be able to temporarily enter the zone so as to cause as little burden as possible on local governments.

REPORTER: Sorry, this is on a different subject. TEPCO yesterday announced that it was cutting executives pay and salaries for union members by 20%, which I believe is a pretty steep cut. At the same time, some say that TEPCO should also consider downsizing operations by laying off some employees. How do you evaluate this announcement made by TEPCO yesterday?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I believe TEPCO needs to exert its corporate efforts to its fullest in order to compensate for the losses caused by the latest incident, and that this is to be expected of them. At the same time, the Government has been significantly involved, or has been doing what is very similar to collaborative work, with TEPCO, in order to conclude the nuclear incident and provide compensation. However, I cannot say at this point, without careful consideration, to what extent the Government should get directly involved in such financial efforts. As such, I would like to say that we recognize TEPCO's efforts and offer a certain level of approval at present, and leave it at that.

REPORTER: Concerning the meeting within the Party that was mentioned earlier, although it has not yet been confirmed that this meeting will actually take place, I think we are seeing definite movement to try and bring Prime Minister Kan down. How do you think those in the disaster-affected areas would consider this kind of political activities in Nagatacho? And, this was touched upon yesterday as well, where do you believe the DPJ should be placing its priorities?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: As I said yesterday and completely independent of the meeting you mentioned, I am first and foremost a member of the Government, and the Government is at a place where we must every day, every hour, every second, with absolutely no interruption, carry out administrative work to respond to the needs of evacuees at the disaster areas and others who have been affected by the disaster, to bring the nuclear incident to a conclusion, and to help those who have been affected by it. I am, of course, a politician, and cannot say that I do not have even the slightest interest in the politics that you speak of, but I have absolutely no room to allocate any energy to such matters. As such, if I were to say anything about that, all I could say is that I am in no position or condition to comment. I would hope that this is the case to a certain extent for everyone in the party, regardless of whether or not that person is a member of the Government.