Press Conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary (Excerpt)

JAPANESE

Q&As

(Abridged)

REPORTER: You have mentioned that in roundtable ministerial discussions today the Prime Minister talked about advancing preparations for the third supplementary budget. Are we to understand therefore that the Government has started specific compilation work for the third supplementary budget?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I do not believe that there are no defined processes for compilation work for the third supplementary budget. . Based on the recommendations submitted by the Reconstruction Design Council, work to compile the Basic Policy on Reconstruction is already in an advanced stage of detailed preparation, and it can be assumed that the Basic Policy will incorporate items that will require specific budgetary allocation. Given that work has started towards determining the scale of such budget requirements, it can be expected that this will naturally and inevitably lead to preparations for the compilation of the third supplementary budget. In that sense you could say that budget compilation work for all items covered under budget allocations is being implemented 365 days a year.

REPORTER: On a related note, the Prime Minister also stated in the same comments that it would not do to create political misunderstanding. Are we to understand from that statement that the passage of the third supplementary budget should be something for the next administration to deal with?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: This is not purely a political issue as politics also comprises legislative, budgetary and administrative activities, and for post-disaster reconstruction the budget will come together in some form. Therefore, the daily administrative work relating to reconstruction is something that must be continued in a robust manner regardless of political circumstances. In particular, as we are now at the stage of considering specific measures for the Basic Policy on Reconstruction, I believe that your question about when and how the budget will be specifically compiled is a different topic entirely.

REPORTER: So are we to understand that the three conditions set out by the Prime Minister for his resignation remain unchanged?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: These three conditions are an entirely different matter and I believe the Prime Minister's comments in the ministerial discussions were designed to avoid misunderstanding on this point.

(Abridged)

REPORTER: I believe a similar question was asked in the morning's press conference, but it is widely held that the Prime Minister will provide an explanation concerning the issue of the restarting of operations at nuclear power stations at his next press conference. In that press conference is the Prime Minister also likely to provide an outlook for stable supply of electrical power?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: These matters are two sides of the same coin. However, the National Policy Unit and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry are currently engaged in detailed examination of figures and statistics. I believe, therefore, that the Prime Minister would talk about a general stance or policy.

REPORTER: Today on the Prime Minister's Office website, in a section entitled "the essence of the problem behind the introduction of stress tests" the Prime Minister has written that "On reflection, I feel that I am not quite fully conveying my personal thoughts on account of my being overly conscious of my position as Prime Minister." Since the disaster struck, the doorstepping interviews that the Prime Minister used to give and which formed a type of daily message to the public have been suspended, so is it this that the Prime Minister is reflecting on, or by writing this comment does he intend to increase opportunities to convey messages to the public?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: My view is that he was not referring to specific platforms for conveying his thoughts, but rather the content of the messages themselves.

REPORTER: You have written on your own homepage and mail magazine that "irresponsible rumors are circulating on the internet." Various malicious rumors have been spread through the internet, such as the one about your family moving away to Singapore. You have written that these have been extremely malicious in nature and you are considering a response including legal measures. Could you give us your thoughts on this matter and what sort of legal measures you are considering?

CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY EDANO: I think I responded to a similar question some time ago in this press conference. Since the disaster struck, my wife and two children have been residing either in accommodation close to the Diet building in Tokyo, or at our home in Omiya. We have made absolutely no overseas trips whatsoever. Neither have we sought to escape to a different location due to the nuclear power station situation or radiation. However, I have been aware for some time that regrettably it has been the case that false information has spread to a wide extent over the internet. I hesitate to speak frankly, particularly in front of members of the press, but there are a number of times when I am angered by various printed or web-based reports that have absolutely no basis in fact. In most of these cases, I tend to feel that good reporting and good intentions will ultimately overpower the malicious rumors, and my usual policy is not to react or respond to individual cases of misinformation. However, the rumors that have been continuing on the internet are extremely malicious in nature and there appear to be some people who believe them to be fact. Rather than being concerned about my own reputation or honor, given the fact that I am the Government spokesperson on measures relating to the nuclear incident in particular, if there is a misconception that I am "saying one thing while doing another", it will also have an adverse impact on the trust placed in statements coming from the Government itself. It is for this reason that on this occasion I have used the methods you mentioned to clarify the facts, despite the fact that I usually do not respond to individual cases. With regard to legal measures, if I go ahead with such measures they will be criminal proceedings rather than civil proceedings.