Adversely revised pension system goes against respect for aged -- Akahata editorial, September 15September 15 is Respect-for-the-Aged Day. The average span of life for a Japanese is 85.23 years for women and 78.32 years for men. The number of people 100 years old and over has exceeded 20,000 throughout Japan.
In this country of long life, the government is responsible for removing people's worries in old age. However, the government plans to adversely revise the pension system, in which benefits will be cut and premiums increased, discouraging people from looking forward to longevity.
Forced to pay more and receive less
In a phased program proposed by Health, Labor, and Welfare Minister Sakaguchi Chikara, the premium for the welfare annuity will be increased from the present 13.58 percent of income, paid equally by labor and management to 20 percent; and the premium for the National Pension will be increased from the present 13,300 yen (114 dollars) a month to over 18,000 yen (154 dollars). The benefit, which is presently standardized at 59 percent of income, will be lowered to 50 percent.
The Ministry of Finance policy is that the amount of benefit should be in accordance with what the increased premium and tax increase can afford. The ministry states that the amount of benefit needs not be standardized to guarantee a certain percentage of one's income, alleging that a minimal annuity would suffice. The statement is a complete denial of the role which pensions have played as part of social services guaranteeing livelihood and income in one's old age.
The Finance Ministry policy goes further to propose cuts in benefits for both present and future pensioners, alleging the need to get the understanding of the working generations who are paying premiums.
Hasn't young people's distrust of the pension system been caused by the government serial adverse revision of the pension system? The phased deferring of the age of eligibility to receive pension from the present 60 to 65 is a typical example of such adverse revision. We must pay attention to Prime Minister Koizumi's proposal made in the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election campaign to further defer the age of eligibility.
The government has gone too far in making a fool of people by inviting young people's distrust in the pension system by the consecutive changes and then uses their distrust as a pretext to cut pensions for elderly people.
The best way to get the understanding of people of all generations is to stop the plan of cutting benefits and increasing premiums.
The Japanese Communist Party, in opposition to the planned adverse revision of the pension system, has made these proposals: "increase immediately the government share of burden for the basic pension to 50 percent (from the present 1/3), revise the present system of saving pension funds, which is without a parallel in the world, and not to take the low-birthrate as a fixed premise."
Noteworthy is that even those in favor of the revision insist on a systematic withdrawal of the pension funds amounting to pension payments for several years in order to alleviate the burdens arising from increasing premiums and cutbacks in payments.
The welfare minister's tentative plan states, "The government will reserve funds for one year instead of five or six years in 2100." The Japan Business Federation insists, "The funds should be saved as much as possible to meet the need to pay benefits for one year in the face of a possible peak in the low birthrate, and by doing so, the rise of the premiums could be restrained."
It stands to reason that the JCP proposes systematically using funds for benefit payments and reducing premiums.
Social security services increased
It is an urgent matter that the state burden for the basic pension premiums should be increased from the present one-third to one-half. As its resource to cover the expenditure, to raise the consumption tax rate will only result in increasing the burden upon the people and further aggravating the economy.
The JCP in its revised draft program says, "It will strive to stop wasteful large public works projects in the national budget and change the present policies of giving top priority on defense and appropriation for large corporations or big banks. It will aim to manage finances and the economy emphasizing better people's livelihoods and social security services." The JCP, from this point of view, opposes the planned adverse revision of the pension systems in order to remove people's insecurity about life in old age. (end)