The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 19, 2013)
Govt must deal sternly with Islamic extremists' terrorism
邦人人質事件　イスラム過激派の許せぬテロ（1月18日付・読売社説）

In a despicable act of terrorism, a group of Islamist extremists seized a natural gas complex in Ain Amenas in eastern Algeria on Wednesday and took a large number of foreign hostages, including Japanese and U.S. nationals.
　卑劣なテロである。
　北アフリカのアルジェリアでイスラム武装勢力が東部イナメナスの天然ガス関連施設を襲撃し、日米など多数の外国人を人質にして立てこもった。

The Japanese taken hostage are apparently employees of or related to JGC Corp., a Yokohama-based plant manufacturer known as Nikki in Japanese. Details about their safety remain unknown.
　日本人は、プラントメーカー「日揮」の関係者が拘束されているようだが、安否の詳細は不明だ。

The Algerian military launched a military attack aimed at rescuing the hostages, but there are reports many of them may have been killed.
人質解放のためにアルジェリア軍が攻撃を開始し、多数の犠牲者が出たとも報じられている。

This is an extremely worrying situation.
　極めて憂慮される事態だ。

It is a matter of course for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, on a visit to Hanoi, to strongly condemn the hostage-taking incident, saying it "can never be tolerated."
　安倍首相が、滞在先のベトナム・ハノイで人質事件について「断じて許すことはできない」と厳しく非難したのは当然だ。

Japan and other countries involved in the hostage crisis must work together and cooperate with the Algerian government to rescue the hostages.
　日本など関係国は連携し、アルジェリア政府に協力して人質の救出に全力を挙げねばならない。

The identity of the hostage-takers has not been fully confirmed. However, they claim their action is in retaliation for the French military's intervention in neighboring Mali and they are demanding French troops cease military operations.
　武装勢力の正体に不明な点もあるが、犯行声明は、仏軍による隣国マリへの介入に対する「報復」だと主張し、仏軍の軍事行動の停止を求めている。

===

Influx of insurgents into Mali

The Mali government has been undermined since a coup d'etat last year by rebels in the country's military. Taking advantage of this situation, armed Islamist extremists streamed into Mali from Algeria and seized control of Mali's northern region. Foreigners have been frequently abducted in Mali, making the country's security situation even more precarious.
　マリ政府は、昨年の軍反乱部隊のクーデターで弱体化した。その隙をついて、アルジェリアからイスラム武装勢力が流入し、北部を支配している。外国人誘拐が相次ぎ、治安が悪化している。

In December, the U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution in response to requests from the Malian government, authorizing military intervention by the country's neighbors.
　国連の安全保障理事会は昨年１２月、マリ政府の要請を受けて、周辺国による軍事介入を認める決議を採択した。

It was perhaps inevitable that France, Mali's former colonial power, found it necessary to launch military operations in that country to defeat the armed Islamist forces. Should the stability of North Africa become even more convulsive because of the rampant militancy of the armed extremists, the region's already serious situation could deteriorate.
　旧宗主国フランスが武装勢力を掃討するとして１１日から介入に踏み切ったのは、やむを得なかったと言える。武装勢力の跳梁(ちょうりょう)で北アフリカ地域の安定が揺らげば、事態は一層深刻になりかねない。

The hostage crisis is a major challenge for Abe's administration. The capability of the Abe government, which has defined the task of crisis management as one of its three policy pillars alongside resuscitation of the economy and reconstruction from the Great East Japan Earthquake, is now being tested.
　こうした背景下で起きた今回の事件は、安倍政権にとって大きな試練だ。「危機管理」を、「経済再生」「復興」と並ぶ柱に位置づけた政権の能力が問われる。

The initial government response to the hostage crisis was swift.
　事件直後の初期対応は迅速だった。

===

Beef up intl cooperation

In a telephone call to his Algerian counterpart after the crisis began, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida urged that every possible effort should be made to ensure the safety of the hostages. The government lost no time in deciding to send Parliamentary Vice Foreign Minister Minoru Kiuchi, who was on a tour of European nations, to Algeria.
岸田外相がアルジェリアの外相との電話会談で人質の安全確保を要請し、欧州訪問中の城内実外務政務官をアルジェリアに派遣することを決めた。

The government also set up a countermeasures task force comprising ministers concerned to deal with the crisis. In the task force's first session, it confirmed a policy of "making people's lives the top priority."
　政府は、関係閣僚による対策本部を設置し、初会合で「人命第一」の方針で対処することを確認した。

In another conversation over the phone, Abe and British Prime Minister David Cameron agreed on the need for the two countries to cooperate closely in resolving the crisis.
安倍首相はキャメロン英首相と電話会談し、事件解決に向け緊密に協力することで一致した。

Eradicating terrorism cannot be achieved without strengthening the cooperation of the international community to resolutely deal with terrorist acts.
　テロ根絶には、国際社会が連帯を強化して毅然(きぜん)として対応していかねばならない。

Not only in Algeria but also in other countries in the Middle East and Africa, terrorists frequently target foreign nationals.
　アルジェリアに限らず、中東アフリカ各地で外国人を狙うテロが頻発している。

The Foreign Ministry should exert every effort to ensure the safety of Japanese in these areas by remaining in close contact with the United States and other countries so they can exchange pertinent information.
外務省は、米国はじめ各国と情報交換を密にしながら、現地の邦人の安全確保に万全を期してもらいたい。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 18, 2013)
（2013年1月18日02時01分  読売新聞）

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 17, 2013)
Spread of renewable energy faces many hurdles
ドイツ「脱原発」　再生エネ普及に高いハードル（1月16日付・読売社説）

Many obstacles must be surmounted before the nation can introduce renewable energy, such as wind and solar power, on a full scale. Japan should learn from Germany's trial-and-error approach.
　風力や太陽光など再生可能エネルギーの本格的普及へハードルは高い。日本はドイツの試行錯誤に学ばねばならない。

Germany has adopted a policy of ending nuclear power by abolishing all nuclear plants by 2022. Berlin pins its hopes on renewable energy as alternative power sources.
　ドイツは、２０２２年までの原子力発電所全廃を決め、「脱原発」を打ち出した。代替電力として再生エネに期待をかけている。

The main pillar of this policy to promote renewable energy in Germany is a fixed-price purchase system that was established in 2000. Under this system, power companies are obliged to purchase electricity generated from renewable energy sources at high fixed prices for a specific number of years.
　普及策の柱は、２０００年に制定した再生エネの「固定価格買い取り制度」だ。電力会社が、再生エネの電力を一定年数、高値の固定価格で買い取る制度だ。

This resulted in a surge of companies entering the solar power generation and other renewable energy markets. The percentage of electricity generated by renewable energy sources to total electricity increased from 7 percent in 2000 to 20 percent in 2011.
　これによって太陽光発電などへ参入が急増し、再生エネが発電総量に占める割合は、００年の７％から１１年の２０％まで伸びた。

However, this has resulted in a continuous increase in electricity rates because the cost of purchasing electricity from renewable energy sources is added to the rates.
　問題は、買い取り費用を上乗せするため、電気料金の引き上げに歯止めがかからない点にある。

Germans naturally complained after it was announced in October last year that in 2013 their average annual electricity bills were expected to rise by about 100 euros, or about 12,000 yen, per household.
　昨年１０月、１３年の年間電気代が１世帯あたり１００ユーロ（約１万２０００円）程度上昇する見通しが発表されるや、国民の不満が一気に高まったのも当然だろう。

===

Negative impact on business

Industrial circles also oppose the electricity rate hike because they are concerned about the negative impact the higher costs will have on their businesses.
　産業界も、料金引き上げに反発する。コスト高による経営への打撃を懸念するからだ。

Admitting shortcomings in the fixed-price purchase system, German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier announced in the same month that the government would drastically review its renewable energy policy. The system, therefore, is now at a major crossroad.
　アルトマイヤー独環境相は昨年１０月、固定価格買い取り制度の欠点を認め、再生エネ政策を抜本的に見直す方針を表明した。制度は大きな岐路に立たされている。

The spread of renewable energy has not necessarily led to the promotion of related industries or employment in Germany. It is symbolic that German solar panel makers collapsed one after another when they lost out to cheap Chinese-made solar panels.
　再生エネ普及は、必ずしも関連産業の振興や雇用につながっていない。安い中国製の太陽光パネルに押され、ドイツのメーカーの破綻が相次いだことは象徴的だ。

Wind power generation, a major renewable energy source, also has problems. Wind power plants have been set up mainly in the northern part of Germany, but areas that consume large amounts of electricity are industrial zones in the south. New power lines from north to south are needed, but their construction faces difficulty due to opposition from environmental groups.
　主力の風力発電にも問題がある。発電所が設置されているのは主に北部で、電力の大量消費地は南部の工業地帯だ。北から南へ送電線の新設が必要なのに、環境保護団体の反対で難航している。

In Japan, a fixed-price purchase system was launched last July under the Democratic Party of Japan-led administration of then Prime Minister Naoto Kan. It was modeled on Germany's system.
　日本では民主党の菅政権が、ドイツを参考に再生エネの固定価格買い取り制度導入に踏み切り、昨年７月、制度はスタートした。

===

Learn from Germany

However, there are a number of problems with a system in which power companies purchase electricity from renewable energy sources at prices higher than normal for a maximum of 20 years. If the system is only advantageous to companies able to purchase a large quantity of solar panels, technological innovation will suffer. Revision of Japan's system, based on Germany's situation, is an urgent task.
　しかし、最長２０年間も通常より高い固定価格で買い取る仕組みには問題が多い。安価な太陽光パネルを大量に購入する企業が有利になるだけでは、技術革新も進みようがない。ドイツの現状を踏まえ、制度修正が急務である。

The German government allows nine nuclear reactors to continue operating after confirming their safety, even though public opinion supports the abolition of nuclear power plants in the wake of the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. Germany's stable power supply is supported by electricity imported from neighboring countries and by ensuring that nuclear reactors will operate for nearly 10 more years.
　独政府は、福島第一原発の事故で世論が「脱原発」に傾いた中でも、安全性を確認した上で、原発９基の稼働を続けている。近隣諸国から電力は輸入できるし、あと１０年近く原発を動かすことで、電力の安定供給を支えている。

In Japan, only two nuclear reactors are operating. Stable power supplies may suffer a blow unless the government quickly reactivates safe reactors.
　日本では、稼働中の原発は２基だけだ。政府が安全な原発の再稼働を急がなければ、電力の安定供給体制が揺らぐ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 16, 2013)
（2013年1月16日00時15分  読売新聞）

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 16, 2013)
Ailing chipmaker Renesas must reform, achieve self-reliance
ルネサス再建　政府主導で甘え断つ改革を（1月15日付・読売社説）

Even if a company is indispensable to Japan's manufacturing industry, it will face difficulty reconstructuring itself under the government's initiative. Such a company needs to reform its management in a way that does not depend on government support.
　日本の製造業に不可欠な企業だとしても、政府主導で再建する道は険しい。甘えを断ち切る経営改革が求められよう。

The Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ), a state-backed investment fund, has decided to buy about 70 percent of shares in Renesas Electronics Corp., a major but financially troubled chipmaker, and put the company under its umbrella. Eight companies including Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. will hold a combined 6 percent of shares in the chipmaker.
　官民投資ファンドの産業革新機構が、経営不振に陥った半導体大手ルネサスエレクトロニクスの株式の約７割を買収し、傘下に収める方針を決めた。トヨタ自動車、日産自動車など８社も計６％の株主となる。

With total public and private investment amounting up to 200 billion yen, a rare "hinomaru coalition" support system has been established.
　官民合わせた出資額が最大２０００億円という「日の丸連合」による異例の支援体制である。

Renesas was founded by Mitsubishi Electric Corp., Hitachi Ltd. and NEC Corp., and is the world's largest maker of microcontroller chips, with a share of about 30 percent in the global market. The product controls the functions of motors in automobiles and home appliances.
　ルネサスの母体は三菱電機、日立製作所、ＮＥＣの電機３社だ。自動車や家電のモーターを制御するマイコンの首位メーカーで、世界シェア約３割を占める。

The Great East Japan Earthquake caused major damage to Renesas' main factory. Many domestic companies were forced to halt production because they were unable to procure microcontrollers.
　東日本大震災では、ルネサスの主力工場が被災したため、日本各社がマイコンを調達できずに生産停止に追い込まれた。

===

Inefficient management

This shows manufacturers are largely dependent on Renesas. However, Renesas has chalked up losses for seven consecutive years--including a period under one of its predecessors--and the company is expected to register a massive deficit this fiscal year.
　ルネサス頼みの実態を示すが、それでもルネサスは前身企業時代から７年連続で最終赤字となり、今期も巨額赤字の見込みだ。

The poor business performances seem to be caused by inefficient management under a motley collection of different companies and discount sales of a variety of products, kept in small volumes, to cater to the requests of clients.
　寄り合い所帯で非効率な経営が続いた上、納入先からの要求に合わせて少量多品種の安値販売を続けてきたことが要因だろう。

A U.S. investment fund once offered to provide financial assistance. But if Renesas were placed under the umbrella of a foreign firm, it may result in an outflow of technology abroad or disruptions in the procurement of parts by domestic companies.
　一時、米系投資ファンドによる支援の動きも出たが、ルネサスが外資傘下に入れば、技術が海外流出したり、日本各社の部品調達に支障が出たりしかねない。

The public and private sectors share a sense of crisis over Renesas because it is a key company in the manufacturing field. Therefore, they took action to counter the foreign fund's buyout offensive.
　官民が「ルネサスは日本のものづくりを支える重要企業」として危機感を共有し、外資の買収攻勢を巻き返したと言えよう。

The INCJ, which has taken over the management of Renesas, said it would help the company "build up a strong constitution capable of competing globally."
　経営権を握る革新機構は、「グローバルで競争できる筋肉質の体質を作る」と表明している。

But even if the company boasts of high-level technology, optimism on its future outlook may not be warranted.
　ただ、高い技術力を持っていても、先行きは楽観できない。

The government bears a grave responsibility in extending assistance to a private company by injecting a huge amount of public funds. The government must accelerate its efforts to make the company profitable.
　巨額の公的資金を投入して民間企業を支援する政府の責任は重大だ。黒字体質に転換する戦略を加速しなければならない。

===

Don't sell products cheaply

If client companies that have become major shareholders continue to ask Renesas to develop and produce microcontrollers cheaply, it will be difficult for the company to operate in the black. We believe it is necessary for the company to expand its sales channels overseas.
　主要株主になった顧客企業がルネサスに安価なマイコン開発や生産を求め続けるなら、ルネサスの収益向上は難しい。海外にも販路を拡大する工夫が要る。

While additional restructuring measures, including job cuts, should proceed, efforts should be made for the company to invest vigorously in growing fields.
　人員削減など追加リストラを進めるとともに、成長分野への積極的な投資で活路を開くべきだ。

Elpida Memory Inc., another major chipmaker in which the government injected public funds, went bankrupt about three years after the assistance was extended. A repetition of this failure is unacceptable.
　政府が公的支援した別の半導体大手、エルピーダメモリは約３年で経営破綻した。失敗を繰り返すことは許されない。

The administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attaches importance to strengthening the nation's industrial competitiveness and has proposed the INCJ be used for this purpose. It also has called for the creation of a new fund to support companies so they can expand their overseas businesses. However, the point is not to launch a number of funds, but to ensure immediate tangible achievements.
　安倍政権は産業競争力強化を重視し、革新機構の活用のほか、企業の海外進出を支援する新たなファンド創設も打ち出した。ファンドの乱立に終わらせず、速やかに成果を上げる必要がある。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 15, 2013)
（2013年1月15日00時16分  読売新聞）

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 15, 2013)
Let the power of youth snap Japan out of its funk
成人の日　若い力で停滞を打ち破ろう（1月14日付・読売社説）

Today, the second Monday of January, is Coming-of-Age Day. We congratulate about 1.22 million people who were born in 1992 and turned 20 years old this year to become new members of adult society.
　きょうは成人の日。
　１９９２年に生まれた１２２万人の新成人が、大人の仲間入りすることを祝いたい。

They are of the generation who has grown up during the "two lost decades" that followed the bursting of the bubble economy.
　新成人は、バブル経済崩壊後の「失われた２０年」が成育期に重なった世代だ。

During this period, Japan's economy has languished, and its gross domestic product has been overtaken by that of China. Japan has surrendered its position as the world's second-biggest economy.
　この間、日本は景気が低迷し、中国に国内総生産（ＧＤＰ）で抜かれ、世界第２位の座を明け渡した。

While the proportion of students going on to university remains above 50 percent, the employment situation is still grim. This is a period when young people are struggling to stay optimistic about their prospects.
大学進学率が５０％を超える一方で、就職難が続く。明るい展望を持ちにくい時代と言える。

But precisely because this is a tough situation, we have high expectations for the power of youth. We hope new adults who have already started their careers and those yet to join the workforce will work and study hard with pride that they are "vital" members of society.
　だが、厳しい状況だからこそ、若い力への期待は大きい。既に働いている新成人も、これから社会に出る人も、「社会から求められている」という自負心を持って仕事や勉学に取り組んでほしい。

===

Mostly satisfied with life

In a 2012 survey by the Cabinet Office, as many as 75 percent of people in their 20s-- those slightly older than the new batch of adults--said they were "satisfied" with their current lifestyle. This figure was the highest of all age brackets.
　内閣府の昨年の世論調査で、「今の生活に満足している」との回答が、どの年代よりも高い７５％に上ったのが、新成人の先輩にあたる２０歳代である。

Sociologist Noritoshi Furuichi, author of the book "Zetsubo no Kuni no Kofukuna Wakamono-tachi" (The Happy Youth of a Desperate Country), believes the survey results indicated that people of this age "have little expectation that things will get better tomorrow, so they focus on spending joyful times with their peers here and now."
　その背景について、「絶望の国の幸福な若者たち」の著者で社会学者の古市憲寿さんは「明日が良くなると期待できないから、今、ここで、仲間と過ごす幸せを大事にするしかない」と分析する。

Possibly reflecting their sense of despair over the future, an increasing number of young people are seeking jobs that offer employment stability. According to a survey in 2012 by Japan Productivity Center, a government-backed think tank, 60 percent of newly recruited employees--an all-time high--said they "want to work at my current company for life."
　将来への閉塞感を反映してか、就職には安定志向が強まっている。日本生産性本部の調査では、「今の会社に一生勤めようと思う」と答えた新入社員は昨年、過去最高の６０％に達した。

Nevertheless, large firms cannot necessarily guarantee employment for life. Symbolic of this is the fact that many major home appliance manufacturers are groaning under huge deficits. Their quandary has been caused by such factors as intense international competition and their failure to keep up with foreign rivals in developing business strategies well suited to fast-changing market conditions.
　とは言え、大企業なら安泰とは限らない。家電大手が巨額の赤字に苦しんでいるのは、その象徴である。激しい国際競争や、市場の変化に合わせたビジネス展開で後れをとったことなどが要因だ。

Many companies in the home appliance industry and other sectors have been doing their utmost to survive by exercising their ingenuity in boosting their technological capabilities and improving their services.
　家電業界に限らず、各企業が技術革新やサービス向上を工夫し、生き残りを目指している。

===

Harnessing the Internet

The day will come when today's new adults take up the role of reinvigorating their companies and society.
　新成人たちが、いずれ日本企業や社会を元気にする役割を担う日も来るはずだ。

One promising sign is that a number of young people have been actively starting businesses on their own. Many have designed new products on their websites, sent orders to production service firms to make them, and marketed the products on the Internet. This way of doing business, which originated in the United States, is spreading in Japan.
　希望を持てる動きの一つが、若者による起業が活発になっていることだ。ウェブサイト上で新商品をデザインし、製造サービス会社に製作を発注し、販売もインターネットで行う。米国発のこのビジネスが日本にも広がり始めた。

Since their childhood, new adults have been accustomed to using cell phones and personal computers. We hope they come up with flexible ideas unbound by conventional thinking.
　新成人たちは、子供の頃から携帯電話やパソコンに親しんできた。従来にはない柔軟なアイデアを発揮してもらいたい。

All the residents of Katsurao, Fukushima Prefecture, have had to evacuate due to the crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant. On Jan. 2, the village government hosted a Coming-of-Age Day celebration in the district where the residents have moved.
　東京電力福島第一原発事故で全村避難が続く福島県葛尾村は今月２日、移転先で成人式を開いた。

At the ceremony, a new male adult spoke of his determination to work hard in the future. "I'll do my best to give other victims of the disaster hope for the future, and never forget the earthquake and tsunami catastrophe and the preciousness of my hometown."
新成人の男性は「震災や故郷を忘れず、被災者の希望になれるよう頑張りたい」と決意を述べた。

We sincerely hope each new adult, while cherishing their own dreams and hopes, has the courage to carve out a new era.
　それぞれの思いを胸に、時代を切り開いてほしい。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 14, 2013)
（2013年1月14日01時27分  読売新聞）

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 14, 2013)
China should relax government control of media
中国紙記者スト　言論は統制強化で抑え込めぬ（1月13日付・読売社説）

It has become clear that China's new leadership headed by Xi Jinping intends to tighten government control over Chinese media.
　中国メディアに対する統制を強化する習近平政権の姿勢が鮮明になったといえよう。

The New Year's editorial of the Southern Weekend, a weekly newspaper in Guangdong Province that is highly popular for its aggressive investigative reporting of corruption and other irregularities, was replaced at the order of the propaganda department of the Communist Party Committee of the province. The editorial writers of the Southern Weekend, also known as the Southern Weekly, went on strike to protest the action.
　腐敗追及などの調査報道で人気のある中国広東省の週刊紙「南方週末」の新年社説が、お目付け役である省共産党委員会宣伝部の指示で書き換えられ、これに抗議する記者たちがストを起こした。

Management of the Southern Weekend and the editorial writers subsequently held negotiations over the matter, with the province's Communist Party Committee acting as arbitrator.
The issue was settled with the editorial writers agreeing to stop the walkout and the weekly's management agreeing not to punish them. It could be inferred that the way the problem was settled represented a concession on the part of the Xi administration, which is wary about expansion of democracy movements.
　南方週末の経営陣と記者側が省党委員会の調停で事態収拾へ協議した結果、記者たちはストを中止し、経営陣は記者の責任を問わないことで決着した。民主化運動の拡大を警戒する習政権がひとまず譲歩したとみてよい。

However, on the heels of the incident, the Communist Party's Central Propaganda Department instructed media across the country to republish an editorial of the party's mouthpiece People's Daily that warned that any media that publicly criticized the government would be "certainly defeated."
　だが事件後、党中央宣伝部は、メディアが政府に公然と対抗すれば「必ず敗れる」と警告する党機関紙・人民日報系紙の社説を転載するよう各新聞社に指示した。

===

Action counters Constitution

The Chinese government probably considered it essential to toughen its control over the freedom of speech in order to maintain the Communist Party's dictatorial rule.
　一党独裁を維持していく上で、むしろ言論統制は強める必要があると考えているからだろう。

The weekly's editorial that instigated the latest incident was titled "China's Dream, the Dream of Constitutionalism" and published on Jan. 3.
　今回、当局が検閲で問題視したのは、「中国の夢、憲政の夢」と題する３日付の南方週末の社説だ。

The editorial urged Chinese leaders to uphold the importance of steering the government democratically based on China's Constitution. The party must have regarded the editorial as tantamount to rejecting the Communist Party's dictatorship, and the weekly was ordered to replace it with another.
憲法に基づく民主的な政治の重要性を訴えた内容が、共産党独裁を否定するものと受け止めて、差し替えさせた。

China's Constitution guarantees freedom of speech. The reality, however, is that the party's propaganda department has the power to reassign media personnel, a power it wields extrajudicially.
　中国憲法は「言論の自由」を保障している。しかし、メディアの人事権を握る党宣伝部が超法規的な存在としてにらみを利かせているのが実態である。

Interference in the content of articles has become an everyday event, but open challenges to the authority of the propaganda department are extremely rare.
　記事への介入は日常茶飯事だが、今回のように記者が統制に反発し、宣伝部と激しく対立したのは極めて異例だ。

In this case, maybe the editorial writers were testing the attitude of the newly inaugurated Xi administration toward the media.
記者の行動には、発足直後の習政権の出方をうかがう意図もあったのだろう。

When the incident was reported on the Internet, more than 150 former media employees posted protest letters online, and human rights activists and scholars released protest statements one after another.
　事件がインターネットで伝わると、元記者ら１５０人以上が連名で抗議書簡をネットに公開したほか、人権活動家や学者らも抗議声明を出す事態に発展した。

===

Accept changes in society

An influential newspaper in Beijing also resisted the propaganda department, temporarily refusing to republish the editorial of the People's Daily.
北京の有力紙も宣伝部に抵抗し、警告社説の転載を一時拒否した。

Given that the number of people using the Internet in China has surpassed 500 million, it must already be very hard for Beijing to suppress voices calling for the freedom of speech by means of conventional iron-fisted oppression.
　ネット人口が５億人を超えた中国で、言論の自由拡大を求める声を従来の強権的手法で抑え込むのはもはや難しいのではないか。

Meanwhile, income disparities in China have become increasingly egregious, and dissatisfaction among ordinary people has neared a breaking point.
　中国の所得格差は深刻で、民衆の不満は極限まで膨らんでいる。

Apart from this problem, easing media control is indispensable to clamping down on corruption by high-ranking party officials.
幹部の汚職摘発を進めるためにも報道統制の緩和は欠かせない。

The United States has expressed its concern over the Chinese authorities' censorship of the Southern Weekend.
　南方週末に対する中国当局の検閲には、米政府が懸念を示した。

The Xi administration should be aware that the suppression of freedom of speech has marred China's image as the world's second-largest economic powerhouse.
習政権は、言論弾圧が世界第２位の経済大国のイメージを損なっていることを自覚すべきである。

If the Chinese authorities want social stability, they must respond sincerely to the rapid diversification in society that comes with the globalization of the economy.
　中国当局が安定を求めるなら、経済のグローバル化に伴い価値観が多様化してきた社会の変化を、真摯(しんし)に受け止めねばならない。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 13, 2013)
（2013年1月13日01時41分  読売新聞）

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 13, 2013)
Stimulus package expected to be 1st step in restoring Japan
緊急経済対策　「強い日本」取り戻す第一歩に（1月12日付・読売社説）

The emergency stimulus package approved by the Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Friday is the first step in "Abenomics," which aims to spur growth and pull the nation's economy out of its period of prolonged deflation. The government must boost recovery efforts by implementing the planned measures swiftly.
　成長を重視してデフレ脱却を目指す「アベノミクス」の第１弾である。迅速に実行し、日本経済の再生に弾みを付けなければならない。

The Abe administration has endorsed the urgent economic package of projects worth more than 20 trillion yen, which will be undertaken by central and local governments.
　安倍政権が、国・地方合わせた事業規模が２０兆円超にのぼる緊急経済対策を決定した。

The administration will draw about 10 trillion yen from state coffers for the stimulus, which takes a three-pronged approach consisting of reconstruction and disaster management, creation of wealth through economic growth, and ensuring the happy livelihood of the public and the revitalization of regional areas. The package is intended to boost the nation's gross domestic product by 2 percent in real terms and create 600,000 jobs.
　復興・防災対策、成長による富の創出、暮らしの安心・地域活性化の３本柱に約１０兆円の国費を投入する。対策は、実質国内総生産（ＧＤＰ）を２％押し上げ、６０万人の雇用を創出するという。

A draft supplementary budget for fiscal 2012, which will finance the economic measures, totals about 13 trillion yen, coming close to the size of the first extra budget for fiscal 2009 formulated by the Cabinet of then Prime Minister Taro Aso to counter a recession following the "Lehman shock."
　対策の裏付けとなる２０１２年度補正予算案の総額は約１３兆円に達し、リーマン・ショック後の不況対策で麻生政権が策定した０９年度第１次補正予算に迫る。

At a press conference Friday, Abe said the government would shift from a policy of redistributing wealth amid economic contraction to a favorable cycle of growth and wealth.
　首相は記者会見で「縮小均衡の再配分から、成長による富の創出へ転換を図る」と語った。

We urge the government to take quick action to pass the extra budget early and bring about a robust economy.
政府は補正予算案を早期に成立させ、「強い経済」の実現を目指すスピードが問われよう。

===

Excessive focus on public works

We highly regard the Abe administration's stance, shown in the stimulus package, to push for companies' growth through such measures as promoting investment in the private sector.
　対策が、民間投資の活性化など企業の成長力を強化する姿勢を打ち出したのは評価できる。

However, the package as a whole appears to rely on public works projects seeking to immediately buoy the economy. The state spending on public works projects that the government plans to include in the fiscal 2012 supplementary budget amounts to about 5 trillion yen, exceeding that for the year's initial budget.
　ただ、総じて、景気浮揚への即効性を重視するあまり、公共事業頼みとなった感は否めない。補正予算案に盛り込む５兆円強の公共事業費は、１２年度当初予算の公共事業費を上回る規模だ。

Only a one-time effect can be expected from a stimulus package centering on public works projects. In light of this, concerns linger over the extent to which Abe's stimulus will shore up the economy and boost employment.
　公共事業主体の景気刺激策は一過性の効果しか期待できない。成長の底上げや雇用拡大にどこまで結びつくか、懸念される。

The government also needs to speed up working out a comprehensive strategy to achieve sustainable growth. It is also essential for the government and the Bank of Japan to join hands to carry out bold monetary easing.
　持続的成長につなげる総合的な戦略の策定を急ぐ必要がある。政府と日本銀行の連携による大胆な金融緩和の実現も欠かせない。

Striking a balance between driving growth and rehabilitating public finances must be a key aspect of such efforts.
　忘れてならないのは、成長と財政再建をどう両立させるかだ。

As a result of high government spending, the issuance of government bonds for fiscal 2012, including both the initial and extra budgets, is expected to be about 50 trillion yen. This figure is significantly higher than the annual cap of 44 trillion yen set under the Democratic Party of Japan-led government to maintain fiscal discipline.
　大規模な財政出動に踏み切る結果、１２年度の新規国債発行額は当初予算と補正予算を合わせて約５０兆円に膨らむ。民主党政権下で財政規律維持の目安としてきた年４４兆円を大きく上回る。

===

Fiscal health must be improved

To raise the consumption tax rate in April 2014 as scheduled, steady economic recovery is needed. It is thus inevitable for the government to focus on stimulus efforts with aggressive spending for the time being.
　１４年４月に消費税率引き上げを予定通り実施するには、着実な景気回復が必要になる。当面は積極財政で景気のテコ入れを重視するとの判断はやむを得まい。

Nevertheless, it is important to prevent lavish spending and reduce expenditures, given that the nation' fiscal health is the worst among major industrial countries. Questions have also been raised over the Abe administration's apparent move to revive public works projects that were cut drastically by the DPJ-led government.
　そうであっても、先進国で最悪の財政事情を考えれば、ばらまき型予算を排除し、歳出を絞り込むことが重要だ。民主党政権で大幅カットされた公共事業の復活を目指す動きも問題である。

The Abe administration must not allow a fiscal 2013 budget to finance public works projects with low investment efficiency in the name of disaster-management measures.
　１３年度予算編成では、投資効率の低い公共事業を防災名目で潜り込ませてはならない。

The government should set specific goals to improve its fiscal health and quickly work on medium- and long-term measures to achieve sound public finances.
　政府は、具体的な財政再建目標を設定し、中長期的な財政健全化への取り組みを急ぐべきだ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 12, 2013)
（2013年1月12日01時32分  読売新聞）

--The Asahi Shimbun, Jan. 11
EDITORIAL: LDP remains unchanged in its return to power
大型補正予算―昔の自民のままですか

We cannot help thinking that the Liberal Democratic Party has not changed.
　自民党は変わっていない。そう思わざるをえない。

The administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has decided the outline of a supplementary budget for fiscal 2012, which ends in March 2013.
　安倍政権が、今年度の補正予算の概要を固めた。

The total government expenditure in the budget is slightly more than 13 trillion yen ($146 billion), which is close to the record high of 14.7 trillion yen set by the supplementary budget compiled in spring 2009 by the administration of then-Prime Minister Taro Aso.
　国の支出総額は１３兆円強と、０９年春に麻生政権がまとめた過去最大の補正予算に迫る。

Excluding planned government expenditures for the basic pension programs from the 13 trillion yen, the remaining 10 trillion yen will be used for "emergency economic measures." Of that amount, half will be spent on public works projects. The funds for those public works will be covered with the issuance of government bonds. As a result, the total amount of government bonds issued in fiscal 2012, including that of the initial budget for that year, is expected to come close to 50 trillion yen.
　基礎年金の国庫負担分を除いた１０兆円余の「緊急経済対策」のうち、公共事業が半分を占める。財源は国債の発行だ。当初予算と合わせた今年度の国債発行額は、５０兆円に近づく見通しだ。

At present, the government’s total debts stand at around 1,000 trillion yen. In such a situation, the Abe administration is emphasizing that its fiscal policies will first realize economic growth to increase tax revenues. “We will deal with the (serious fiscal) situation flexibly in the short term and with discipline in the mid- to long term,” he says.
　国の借金残高が１千兆円に達するなか、安倍政権は財政運営について、「まず経済成長を実現し、税収を増やす」「短期は柔軟に、中・長期は規律をもって」と強調する。

We are not going to deny such thinking completely. However, we get the impression that the Liberal Democratic Party is going on a spending spree out of elation that it was able to take back the reins of the government.
　そうした考えを頭から否定するつもりはない。しかし、政権復帰に浮かれたかのような大盤振る舞いがすぎないか。

Under names such as “reconstruction and disaster prevention” and “establishment of safe living conditions and revitalization of local communities,” the amount of public works projects in the supplementary budget was increased to a level comparable to that of an annual budget. Since there is no way the entire amount can be spent within fiscal 2012, the budget is virtually reserved for fiscal 2013 and beyond.
　公共事業は「復興・防災」や「暮らしの安心・地域活性化」を名目に、年間予算に匹敵する額に積み上げられた。今年度中に使い切れるはずはなく、先々への予約の様相だ。

In the area of defense, the cost for purchasing missiles from abroad is positioned as part of the economic measures on grounds that Japanese companies are involved in their production process.
　防衛分野でも、生産に日本企業がかかわるとして、ミサイル購入費などが経済対策に位置づけられるという。

Those “unreasonable” expenditures were approved because the LDP had first decided that the amount for the economic measures should be as large as 10 trillion yen.
　「まず金額ありき」で、与党が早々に「１０兆円規模」を打ち出したことの弊害である。

The decision reminds us of the supplementary budgets compiled in the autumn of 2011 in response to the Great East Japan Earthquake and in the spring of 2009 to stimulate the economy.
　思い出すのは、東日本大震災を受けた１１年秋、そして０９年春の補正予算だ。

The LDP and New Komeito, both of which were opposition parties at the time, had much to do with the compilation of the post-quake supplementary budget. But far-fetched “piggyback” expenditures not directly related to the recovery of stricken areas became prevalent.
　震災復興の補正には、野党だった自民、公明両党も深くかかわったが、被災地再建とは直接関係のない便乗・こじつけ型の支出が横行した。

The supplementary budget of spring 2009, decided under the Aso administration in response to a sudden economic slowdown caused by the collapse of U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers in September 2008, also put priority on the total budget amount. In fact, it was so lavish that it eventually led the Board of Audit to point out various wasteful expenditures.
　麻生政権の０９年春の補正も、リーマン・ショックによる急激な経済の落ち込みを受け、規模が優先された。その後、会計検査院からさまざまな無駄が指摘される始末だった。

In the Dec. 16 Lower House election, the LDP advocated “the strengthening of the national land” as a mainstay of its election pledges. Now, the LDP headquarters is busy dealing with officials of industry associations who are flocking there with petitions. Is this large-scale supplementary budget a gift of gratitude to them for supporting the LDP in the Lower House election and also a means to obtain their support in the Upper House election slated for summer 2013?
　先の衆院選で自民党は「国土強靱（きょうじん）化」を公約の柱に掲げた。いま、党本部は陳情に訪れる業界団体の関係者らで大にぎわいだ。大型の補正予算は、衆院選での支持のお礼と夏の参院選に向けた期待料なのか。

The big supplementary budget was also compiled to boost the economy in the first half of fiscal 2013 as economic growth in that period is believed to be necessary to make the final decision in the autumn of this year on the consumption tax hike scheduled for spring 2014.
　大型補正には、１３年度前半の景気を押し上げる思惑もある。来春の消費増税の実施をこの秋に最終判断する際、その数値がカギを握るからだ。

If even the Finance Ministry--which is supposed to play a leading role in reducing the government's debts--is falling into step with plans to increase spending in order to be able to raise the consumption tax, the situation is truly deplorable.
　財政再建の旗振り役であるべき財務省までが増税実現のための歳出増で歩調を合わせたのなら何をかいわんや、である。

In the beginning of this year, an income tax increase started for the advancement of post-quake reconstruction activities. Going forward, consumers will be required to shoulder heavier financial burdens one after another, including a consumption tax hike.
　年明けから所得税で震災復興増税が始まった。今後も消費増税など負担増は目白押しだ。

In such a situation, taxpayers are sure to raise objections if the government keeps compiling such generous budgets.
　こんな予算編成を続けていては、納税者が黙っていまい。

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 11, 2013)
Provide more govt support for practical use of iPS cells
ｉＰＳ研究　再生医療実用化へ支援充実を（1月10日付・読売社説）

The ultimate goal of medicine is to completely heal disease and injuries. Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, which can be grown into different body cells, could become a pivotal technology that helps achieve this goal.
　医学の究極目標は、病気やケガを根本から治療することである。
　その要の技術となり得るのが、様々な細胞に変化できるｉＰＳ細胞（人工多能性幹細胞）だ。

The functions of organs needing treatment could be restored if iPS cells made from the patient's skin cells are grown into those of the organs and then implanted in the patient's own body. Patients would have no risk of rejecting the organ because the injected cells are from their body. We hope such treatment--which once seemed like the stuff of dreams--will be put into practical use.
　患者の皮膚細胞から作り出したｉＰＳ細胞を治療対象の臓器の細胞に育てて移植すれば、臓器の機能は再生できる。元は患者の細胞なので拒絶反応はない。夢のような治療の実現を期待したい。

Kyoto University Prof. Shinya Yamanaka, the creator of iPS cells, won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine last year. Japan is among the leading nations in the basic research of regenerative medicine.
　ｉＰＳ細胞を生み出した京都大学の山中伸弥教授が昨年、ノーベル生理学・医学賞を受賞した。日本は、再生医療の基礎研究で世界の先頭集団にいる。

The government's recent announcement that it will help beef up iPS research must be music to the ears of many patients. The Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry has revised its road map on iPS cell research and development, moving up the previous schedule and now aiming to establish treatment methods for patients with nerve damage within five years, among other targets.
　政府がｉＰＳ細胞の研究を加速する方針を打ち出したことは、多くの患者に朗報だろう。
　文部科学省は、研究開発のロードマップを改定した。従来の計画を前倒しして、神経損傷患者の治療を５年以内に実現するなどの目標を掲げた。

===

Fierce competition

A supplementary budget for the current fiscal year ending in March, which the government will endorse next week, is expected to feature measures for improving research facilities and supporting studies by universities and companies. The Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry has reportedly been examining how it can help develop related industries.
　政府が来週決める今年度補正予算案にも、研究施設の整備や、企業や大学への支援策を盛り込む方針だ。経済産業省は、関連産業の育成策などを検討中という。

International competition to put iPS technology into practical use is fierce. The United States, which regards iPS cells as a priority field in bioscience research, allocates a huge budget for research and development in this area. In European nations, the business and academic sectors have been rapidly accelerating their joint projects. Japan must not be left behind in this race. It should revitalize its medical industry by putting innovative medical technology into practical use.
　実用化を目指す国際競争は激烈だ。米国は、ｉＰＳ細胞を生命科学研究の重点に位置づけ、巨額の研究開発予算を投じている。欧州でも、産学による研究開発が急速に拡大している。
　日本も遅れてはならない。革新的な医療技術の実用化により、医療産業の活性化につなげることが求められる。

Massive investments are needed for research and development of medical science and treatments. It is vital for the government to provide continuing support to these fields as researchers inevitably go through failures before achieving success and putting their studies to practical use. A framework also should be established promptly to encourage companies and universities to take on bold challenges in these fields.
　医学、医療の研究開発には巨額の投資が必要だ。実用化までには試行錯誤は避けられず、政府の継続的な支援が欠かせない。
　企業や大学が果敢に挑めるような体制の構築も急ぎたい。

===

Cancer fears

Some observers have voiced fears about the safety of iPS cells, saying they might turn cancerous when used for treatment. However, there are signs this concern could be resolved, as Yamanaka and other researchers have developed technology to eliminate factors that could turn iPS cells cancerous.
　ｉＰＳ細胞については、実際に治療に使うと、がん化する恐れがあるとして、安全面での課題を指摘する声もある。この点については、がん化する要因をなくす技術を山中教授らが開発し、解決への道筋は見えてきた。

The Riken national research institute will start clinical research on retinal treatment using iPS cells by the end of this year, which will be the nation's first clinical application involving such cells. Kyoto University, meanwhile, plans to create a bank to stock frozen iPS cells made from cells from a number of people. We hope these institutions will speed up their research.
　理化学研究所は年内にも、ｉＰＳ細胞による網膜治療の臨床研究に乗り出す。国内の臨床応用は初めてだ。京大は、多数の人のｉＰＳ細胞を作って凍結保存する「ストック計画」も予定している。研究を加速してもらいたい。

The biggest issue is surely how clinical research--which is conducted to ensure a treatment under development is safe and effective--can be streamlined. Japan's clinical research system has been criticized for taking far longer to approve research results than those of other countries.
　最大の問題は、安全性、有効性を確かめる臨床試験をどう効率化するかだろう。日本の臨床試験は海外に比べ、承認に年月がかかると批判されている。

The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry should knuckle down to the task of improving the clinical research system.
　厚生労働省は、臨床試験制度の改善に本腰を入れるべきだ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 10, 2013)
（2013年1月10日01時21分  読売新聞）

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 10, 2013)
Govt should introduce reduced consumption tax rate system
税制改正論議　自公で軽減税率を実現せよ（1月9日付・読売社説）

To achieve the economic revival trumpeted by the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, tax system reforms that bring in sufficient tax revenue and are conducive to the nation's economic growth are now needed.
　安倍政権が掲げる「経済再生」へ、税収を確保し、成長に資する税制改革が問われている。

The Liberal Democratic Party's Tax System Research Commission and New Komeito's Tax Research Council have begun full-fledged discussions on tax system revisions for fiscal 2013.
　自民、公明両党の税制調査会が、２０１３年度税制改正に向けて本格的な議論をスタートさせた。

Discussions on tax system revisions for the next fiscal year have been delayed by more than one month compared with regular years due to last month's House of Representatives election. The LDP and Komeito aim to draw up an outline for the revisions later this month, but little time is left.
　来年度の税制改正論議は、衆院選の影響で例年より１か月以上遅れている。自公両党は１月下旬の税制改正大綱の策定を目指すが、残された時間は少ない。

The government will make a plan approved by the ruling parties' tax panels its final tax system revision plan. It is of great significance that panel members will tap their expertise to discuss how to craft an ideal tax system, which should be fair, neutral and simple.
　政府は与党税調の決定を最終的な税制改正案とする。税調メンバーの専門知識を生かし、公平・中立・簡素という税制のあるべき姿を議論する意義は大きい。

Priority should be placed on creating an environment that will enable the consumption tax rate to be increased from 5 percent to 8 percent in April 2014.
　優先すべき課題は、１４年４月の５％から８％への消費税率引き上げをにらんだ環境整備である。

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2-stage plan has merits

Measures to support low-income earners when the tax increase is implemented have been left unaddressed since the Democratic Party of Japan was in power. The planned tax system revisions for fiscal 2013 should clearly spell out the introduction of a reduced tax rate system under which the consumption tax rate on daily necessities and some other goods is kept low.
　民主党政権時代から低所得者対策が積み残しのままだ。税制改正では、生活必需品などの消費税率を低く抑える軽減税率の導入を明確に打ち出す必要がある。

A similar system has been implemented in European countries. It has the advantage of being easy for consumers to feel its benefits, such as a limited tax burden on daily shopping.
　軽減税率は欧州各国が実施している。日常の買い物での負担が限定的になるなど、消費者に恩恵が分かりやすいことが利点だ。

Komeito has presented a plan to introduce the reduced tax rate system in two phases. We think this is worthy of consideration.
　公明党が提示している２段階の導入論は、検討に値する。

Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Minister Akihiro Ota, a former Komeito leader, proposed reduced tax rates be applied only on such items as rice, miso, soy sauce and newspapers when the consumption tax rate is raised to 8 percent, and then the range of items subject to the lower rates be expanded when the consumption tax is increased later to 10 percent.
　公明党前代表の太田国土交通相は、「消費税率を８％に引き上げる段階で軽減税率の対象をコメ、みそ、しょうゆ、新聞などに限定し、１０％への引き上げ時に対象を拡大する」との案を示した。

Wariness about the reduced rate system persists in the LDP, but we urge the party to coordinate its members' opinions quickly. The LDP then must talk with Komeito and the DPJ, and steadily carry out integrated reform of the social security and tax systems, which the three parties have agreed on.
　自民党には慎重論が根強いものの、調整を急いでほしい。そのうえで自公民の協議に入り、３党で合意した社会保障・税一体改革を着実に進めなければならない。

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Alleviate other burdens

It is also necessary to consider areas in which people will have to shoulder an increased burden due to the consumption tax hike. We urge the government to discuss the extension of housing loan tax breaks, which will expire at the end of this year, as part of its support for home purchases.
　消費増税で負担が増える分野への目配りも必要だ。住宅購入支援としては、今年末で期限切れとなる住宅ローン減税の延長を検討してもらいたい。

The automobile industry wants the vehicle acquisition and weight taxes abolished, claiming that vehicle owners would have to shoulder a heavier burden imposed by the double taxation with the increased consumption tax. However, canning these taxes would generate huge tax revenue shortfalls, so a decision should not be rushed on this matter.
　自動車業界は、消費税との二重課税でユーザーの負担が重くなるなどとして、自動車取得税と自動車重量税の廃止を求めている。だが、巨額の財源不足をもたらすため、慎重に対応すべきである。

A review of income and inheritance taxes is also a focus of attention in the fiscal 2013 tax system revisions. Ideas floated so far include raising the top income tax rate from 40 percent to 45 percent and to reduce various tax deductions in inheritance tax, which are subtracted from taxable assets, and to raise inheritance tax rates.
　１３年度改正では、所得税と相続税の見直しも焦点だ。所得税では最高税率を４０％から４５％に引き上げ、相続税については課税対象から差し引く控除の縮小や税率引き上げなどが浮上している。

These proposals are apparently intended, by squarely aiming at the wealthy, to alleviate the discontent of low-income earners, who will have to bear a relatively large increased burden when the consumption tax is hiked.
　富裕層を狙い撃ちにすることで、消費増税に伴って負担が重くなる低所得者の不満を和らげようとする思惑があるのだろう。

However, only an extremely small number of people will be subject to the higher taxes, and therefore the government cannot expect any boost in tax revenues from them. Ideas that simply pander to the public should be avoided.
　しかし、こうした課税強化は対象者が極めて少なく、税収を増やす効果は期待できない。大衆迎合的な発想は避けるべきだ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 9, 2013)
（2013年1月9日01時03分  読売新聞）

January 07, 2013(Mainichi Japan)
Editorial: Japan should brush up its diplomatic instincts
社説:２０１３年を展望する　「外交の勘」を磨きたい

Japan's diplomatic policy for the New Year is set to begin. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is responsible for the new agenda, is the grandson of former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi, while Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Taro Aso, who supports Abe, is the grandson of former Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida.
　新しい年の外交が始動する。それを担う首相・安倍晋三氏は岸信介元首相の孫、安倍氏を支える麻生太郎副総理兼財務相兼金融担当相は吉田茂元首相の孫だ。

Yoshida signed the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty with the United States, which has served as the foundation for Japan's postwar development and stability, and Kishi revised it into its current form.
戦後日本の発展と安定の基盤をなしてきた日米安保条約は吉田元首相が結び、岸元首相が改定して現在の形にした。

The grandsons of these two former prime ministers are set to work closely in breaking the diplomatic impasse amid growing concern about what is widely perceived as a diplomatic crisis.
外交危機が叫ばれる今、２人の血を受け継ぐ孫がコンビを組んで難局打開にあたることになったわけである。

Kishi based his governing of Japan on the country's security policy.
　岸元首相は国家を運営する基礎を安全保障に置いた。

In his book, "Oiso Zuiso" ("Essay from Oiso"), Yoshida quoted Colonel Edward House, a foreign policy adviser to former U.S. President Thomas Woodrow Wilson, as saying that countries that have no diplomatic instincts would fail.
吉田元首相は自著「大磯随想」で「外交の『勘』のない国民は亡（ほろ）びる」とのウィルソン元米大統領側近エドワード・ハウス大佐の言葉を紹介している。

　◇対症療法外交は限界だ

Prudent diplomatic policy is indispensable for not only the survival of countries but also to allow governments to put their utmost efforts into domestic policy issues, including economic revitalization, social security and education. Moreover, intensifying friction with other countries could fuel the public's anxiety and eventually give rise to exclusive nationalism. To prevent such a situation, it is necessary for the Japanese government to reconfirm that diplomatic policy is the basis for ensuring the country's stability.
　賢明な外交は単に国家の生存にとどまらず、経済再生や社会保障、教育などの内政課題に政権が全力を注ぐためにも不可欠な条件であろう。また、外国との摩擦が激しくなれば国民の不安感が強まり排他的なナショナリズムが勢いを増しかねない。そうした状況を作り出さないためにも、外交が国の安定を支える根幹であることをまず確認したい。

A diplomatic crisis, which should be dubbed a "national crisis," has continued in Japan in recent years as tensions between Japan and its neighbors heightened over territorial issues. The year 2013 must be the year when the wisdom of the whole nation will be fully utilized to break the deadlock.
　そのうえでここ数年を振り返るなら、領土で係争を抱えた近隣諸国すべてと緊張が高まり、国難とも言うべき外交危機が続いてきた。今年はその局面転換に国の知恵を総結集する年にしなければならない。

Prime Minister Abe took over the reins of government after bitterly criticizing as a "diplomatic defeat" Japan's friction with China, South Korea and Russia over the Senkaku Islands, the Takeshima Islands and the Northern Territories, respectively, as well as the meandering over the relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture under the previous administration. There is no denying that the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ)-led previous administration that lacked diplomatic instincts brought about the mess. However, no one can tell for sure that Japan would not have suffered the same diplomatic defeat if the LDP had been in power.
　尖閣諸島や竹島、北方四島の領土摩擦や普天間飛行場移設をめぐる日米同盟の迷走などを安倍首相は「外交敗北」と厳しく批判し、政権を奪還した。確かに「外交の勘」のない民主党政権の不手際がこうした混乱を招いた面は否定できない。
　だが、自民党なら外交敗北はなかったと言い切れるだろうか。

The current diplomatic crisis is attributable to the ambiguous diplomatic policy carried out by the longstanding LDP-led administration. It was when the LDP was in power that China enacted a law on its territorial waters in 1992 to recognize the Senkaku Islands as part of its territory, which was an overture to its provocative acts around the area. The dispute over the relocation of the Futenma base is the result of the past LDP-led administration's longstanding appeasement policy in which it forced Okinawa to host an excessive number of U.S. bases in return for massive financial assistance.
　今日の外交危機は、長年の自民党政権のあいまいな外交がもたらしたものでもあろう。中国が９２年に領海法を制定して尖閣諸島を自国の領海に組み込み、今に至る挑発行為の先触れとしたのは自民党政権の時代だった。沖縄の問題も、経済支援を組み合わせて重い米軍基地負担を事実上固定化する懐柔策のツケがここにきて噴出しているのである。

The world is undergoing rapid changes. The current international situation is different from that when the LDP was in power until 2009 when the DPJ took over the reins of government. The United States' influence on the world has relatively declined while China, which has replaced Japan as the No. 2 economic power, is also showing military ambitions. South Korea now needs to rely less on Japan. Russia and India have also been increasing their presence as new regional players. Simply responding to changes in the situation in its neighboring countries and complying with U.S. wishes is no longer effective.
　世界の動きは速い。今の国際情勢は自民党が政権を担ってきた数年前までと同じではない。米国の国力が相対的に落ち、日本を抜いて世界第２の経済大国となった中国が軍事面でも野心を隠さず、韓国はかつてほど日本を必要としなくなっている。地域の新しいプレーヤーとしてロシア、インドの存在感も大きくなってきた。周囲の変化や米国の意向に合わせた対症療法的な外交では、もはや日本は立ち行かないのだ。

As such, Prime Minister Abe is required to work toward rearranging and stabilizing Japan's diplomatic policy that fits with the times instead of rehashing the LDP's previous diplomatic policy. He should begin efforts to strengthen the Japan-U.S. alliance by seriously considering the purpose of the agreement.
　よって安倍首相は自民党時代の焼き直しではなく、新しい時代に合わせた発想と行動で外交の立て直しと安定に取り組む必要がある。再三強調する日米同盟強化についても、何のための同盟かを常に自問自答することから始めるべきである。

Former Prime Minister Yoshida wrote in his book that both Japan and the United States should hold frank discussions on enforcing the Japan-U.S. security treaty, noting that both countries signed the accord from the standpoint of their respective national policies.
"I think the United States signed the bilateral security treaty out of the need for its Pacific strategy and from the standpoint of a broad U.S. national policy. Japan, for its part, also signed the treaty from the standpoint of its own defense and broad national policy," he wrote. "In enforcing this treaty, our two countries should frankly discuss a wide variety of matters."
　吉田元首相は日米安保を「アメリカがただ日本が可愛くて結んだものではないだろう。アメリカの太平洋の戦略的必要から、またアメリカの国策的な見地から結んだものであろうと思う」として、「日本も、日本自身の防衛と、国策的な考え方から結んだものである」「この条約を実施して行く上に、もっと率直にいろいろ話し合っていいのではないか」と書いた（「大磯随想」）。

　◇歴史問題でつまずくな

The Japan-U.S. alliance will remain solid as long as the two countries need each other. However, the pact will collapse if either side deems that such cooperative relations detrimentally affect their national interests. Japan should clearly show its policy of responding to the Senkaku Islands issue and the relocation of U.S. bases in Okinawa and pursue a solution that will contribute to both countries' national interests and to the stability in the whole region through frank dialogue. Japan and the United States are required to transform the bilateral alliance from one in which Japan unilaterally follows and relies on the United States.
　日米が互いに必要だと考える限り日米同盟は強力であり、どちらかが国益にプラスにならないと判断すればその命運は尽きる。尖閣諸島への対処も沖縄の基地移設も、まずは日本側の方針を明確に示し、率直な話し合いを通じて日米双方の国益と地域全体の平和と安定にプラスとなるような道を探るべきだ。米国の言いなりでも、日本が一方的に頼るのでもない同盟のあり方を、改めて作り上げることが求められよう。

At the same time, Japan should strengthen its solidarity with the entire international community. Media outlets throughout the world have expressed grave concern and criticism of China's provocative acts over the sovereignty of the Senkaku Islands. Japan's position over the issue has been supported by the international community. Behind such support is the world's understanding that Japan is a country that peacefully settles its disputes with other countries through negotiations and that Japan attaches importance to broad-minded nationalism, in which it seeks to peacefully coexist with other countries, rather than narrow-minded nationalism.
　同時に、国際社会との連帯をいっそう深めたい。尖閣諸島の問題では中国の乱暴な振る舞いに世界のメディアが「中国が差し控えるべきことは武力で現状を変えることだ」（米紙）、「日本は外交解決を追求し続けているが中国は軍事力の行使を好む」（イタリアの通信社）などとして懸念と批判を強めている。
　日本の立場と主張は国際社会に支持されている。その背景にあるのは日本が外国との係争を平和的に話し合いで処理する国であり、偏狭なナショナリズムより、相手と共存を図るナショナリズムを大事にする国だという世界の理解であろう。

Japan must respect such international opinion. The advantage of Japan, which does not measure national strength by military capability, is its close bonds with the international community. Whether the Abe administration can manage relations with countries that are difficult to get along with by increasing its supporters and decreasing its enemies is being called into question.
　こうした国際世論を大事にしなければならない。軍事力を国力のバロメーターにしない日本の強みは国際社会との絆の深さである。敵を減らし、味方を増やしながら、付き合いの難しい国家との関係をいかにうまく管理するかが肝心である。

The image a leader of a country portrays to the international community is a crucial matter that can largely affect national interests. It has been largely pointed out in the international community that Japan has been leaning toward the right following the House of Representatives election in December last year. Under the circumstances, the Abe administration must be cautious about the interpretation of Japan's history of wartime atrocities by its Asian neighbors. In the LDP's previous administrations, gaffes by Cabinet members over the matter often ended up damaging Japan's national interests. The new administration must not repeat these mistakes. The Abe administration should exercise prudence, brush up its diplomatic instincts and break the diplomatic impasse in 2013.
　一国の政治指導者がどのような国際イメージを浸透させるかは、その国の国益を左右するほど重要だ。衆院選を受け日本の右傾化を指摘する声もあるだけに、歴史認識問題では慎重さが大切である。閣僚の軽率な言動が結果として国益を損なってきた歴代自民党政権の失敗は繰り返してはならない。注意深く賢い振る舞いで「外交の勘」を働かせ、局面を打開する一年にしてほしい。

毎日新聞　2013年01月07日　02時30分