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2013/01/04
Kaieda visits Ise Jingu, prays for peoples’ happiness
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On the morning of January 4, President Banri Kaieda and Secretary General Goshi Hosono of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) jointly visited Ise City, Mie Prefecture. They paid their respects at Ise Jingu Shrine and held a press conference.
At the New Year’s press conference, Kaieda greeted reporters, saying, “Blessed with beautiful weather, I prayed for the happiness of the Japanese people with due solemnity.” He also stated that at the start of this new year, “A variety of thoughts have gone through my mind on how the DPJ can take even small steps forward.” He expressed his resolve “to make every effort in the lead up to the House of Councillors election in July of this year” and “to make this year a year in which the DPJ rebounds from the major defeat suffered in the general election of the House of Representatives.” He said that with an eye on the House of Councillors election in July, he would advocate the views of the DPJ at the ordinary session of the Diet as well as travel across Japan in an effort to rebuild the DPJ organization.
A reporter asked how the DPJ would be cooperating with other parties for the House of Councillors election. Kaieda commented, “I believe the DPJ, the largest opposition party, must serve as a linchpin for opposition party cooperation and opposition party coalition.” “Although the saying, ‘ignoring minor differences in order to accomplish a common goal’ is used to describe opposition party coalition, each political party is different and I believe we need to adopt the concept of ‘retaining minor differences in order to accomplish a common goal.’ It is impossible for all political parties to agree on every policy. Each party has its own assertions as well as certain issues they cannot compromise on. As I believe, through mutual talks, the opposition parties have a shared objective of not letting the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP) take a resounding victory – the common goal – I hope to achieve this common goal while retaining minor differences,” He also stated. Affirming once again that the DPJ is a party which works for social fairness and reforms, He expressed the view that through forming an opposition party coalition, the parties would reach a mutual understanding on specific policy themes, including political reform, various regulatory reforms, and local sovereignty.
Asked about his thoughts on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s expression of support for the construction of new nuclear power plants, Kaieda made clear that, “This has been reported by the media. Once the Diet session starts, I will be thoroughly questioning the LDP on these points. Based only on what has been reported, I understand that the view of the Prime Minister differs from ours. We will stand by our policy of aiming to achieve a zero nuclear society in the 2030s.”
Hosono stated, “We too received a severe judgment from the public, and I believe we need to cooperate with the LDP on areas on which we can cooperate, including the approaches for steering the Diet. Where our arguments differ, however, we will have to debate squarely at the Diet and we will fully assert our views. I expect this issue to be one of the critical themes.”
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