Japan Press Weekly

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2014 February 5 - 11 [POLITICS]

Abe blames the media for increasing concern over secrecy law

Prime Minister Abe Shinzo blamed media reports for spreading public concern over the secrecy law, indicating that he sees no problem at all with the legislation.

He revealed his inclination to blame media on February 6 during a House of Councilors Budget Committee meeting in response to Japanese Communist Party member Nihi Sohei who told Abe that an increasing number of people are raising voices of opposition to the state secrets law.

More and more people are calling for the abolition of the law even after its passage through the Diet because they are deeply concerned that the law does not require the disclosure of what is considered secret and infringes on people’s rights to access to information and to freedom of speech, said Nihi.

Nevertheless Abe said, “The misleading reports and brochures you made are creating the concern.” The JCP representative replied, “The more you say that, the more people become anxious or angry. This is exactly what is happening now.”

The prime minister said he will set up a third-party organ with the participation of private intellectuals in order to put brakes on an arbitrary use of the secrecy law, but who makes up such the expert panel and what they talk about will be kept secret.

Nihi stated that that would not be an outside independent organ and again demanded that the law be repealed.