 Activists of Democratic Merchants and Manufacturers Association meet in Sendai The National Federation of Traders and Producers Organizations (Zenshoren), the national umbrella group of regional Democratic Merchants and Manufacturers Association (Minsho) devoted to assisting small democratic traders and producers, held its 7th national meeting of activists from April 23 through 25 in Sendai City. . In the concluding statement summing up the three-day discussions, Zenshoren General Secretary Okazaki Tamito called for preventing the war-renouncing Constitution from being adversely revised as a precondition for maintaining small traders' business. He stressed that Minsho and Zenshoren are now tasked with foiling constitutional revision and opposing a consumption tax rate increase. A delegate from Nagasaki-Sasebo Minsho, where the U.S. Sasebo naval base is located, reported that the prefectural Chamber of Commerce and Industry is using its influence to attract the U.S. aircraft carrier task force and other military facilities to their locality. The delegate expressed the determination that Minsho will do its utmost in the city dominated by the U.S. base. To meet the needs of specific traders and producers in their areas, regional Minshos work as business consultants to members and give lessons on using personal computers. Some Minsho groups issue newspapers. A representative from Miyagi prefecture where the national meeting was held reported that a member who was heavily indebted to a number of non-bank money lenders successfully ended his dependency on the loans with the help of Minsho. (Akahata April 26, 2005) |