| The government convened a Citizen Protection Bill development
head office meeting to approve enforcement of the bill which is
designed to be invoked on the occasion of an emergency such as a big
terrorist attack. Also approved was a list of 160 additional
“designated public institutions” that are under an obligation to
comply with the law. A cabinet order that set up specific procedure
to execute the law was also approved. This was all decided by the
cabinet on Sep. 10. and the laws are going into operation on Sep.
17.
The government also chose some industry sectors in charge of the public interest and designated seven companies of JR and eight companies of JR Bus as “Designated Public Institutions” on the basis of three laws that deal with Japan’s response to foreign attacks legislated in June 2003. After the laws come into effect, those companies must “carry out their duty of taking necessary measures to protect the public” when there is an armed attack, or when the danger of attack is imminent. Each company is required to draw up its “operational plan” in accordance with the “basic guidelines” of the government. The government-speak expressions such as “protecting the public” or “securing transport capacity of carrying people on evacuation and aid supplies” or “a smooth information service to the public” are merely nominal. At a time of national emergency it is clear that the U.S. troops and the SDF would assign the highest priority to carrying troops and weapons for the conduct of the war, leaving security of the citizens as a much lower priority. There is no promise to protect citizens, railway or bus passengers and workers who work at the Designated Public Institutions. We believe that the government intends to fully convert Japan into a country capable of waging war by the set of war-contingency laws. We have also showed these laws are a return to the National Mobilization Law placing the public on a war footing. From our standpoint of “Against both war and terrorism”, we have raised an alert over the series of dangerous war policies of the Koizumi administration that blindly follows the U.S. and has already dispatched the SDF to a country which is effectively at war, by a special law on aid to Iraq. Koizumi is stepping up crackdowns on unions, citizen groups and individuals fighting against wars, just like the attack on seven workers of JR Urawa electric train depot. However, we are fighting aggressively for protecting Article 9 of the Constitution and building a stronger peace movement. We pledge to work toward a further strengthening of the struggle against war policies to protect the peace of Japan and the rest of the world, and our children’s future. Japan Confederation of Railway Workers’ Unions (JRU) |