Defense Minister Admits Problem of Civilian Control

Concerning a series of scandals coming out from the Ministry of Defense (MOD), both Houses of the Diet held a recess discussion on the issue on July 30. To the questions of the opposition parties on why the Minister of Defense, Minoru Kihara, did not know about the scandal for months, Kihara admitted the problem was about civilian control. Kihara refused his stepping down as the minister, abiding by a request from the Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, to take leadership for rebuilding up the ministry.

The discussion was focused on fraudulent record of allowance for divers in Maritime Self-defense Force (MSDF). Although the criminal investigation unit of MSDF arrested four members over the fraudulence last November, Kihara insisted that he did not know about it until it was disclosed in July 12. An officer of MOD explained that the staffs did not report it to the minister, because the incident would not affect other organizations outside the Self-defense Force.

 

The opposition parties doubted that the ministry had concealed the scandal until the ordinary Diet session would be over. “I can’t help speculate that you tried to cover up the scandal not to affect discussions over other legislative bills,” asked a member of House of Representatives, Shu Watanabe (CDP). Kihara told without any evidence that his staffs had not tried to conceal the information with consideration of the legislative procedure in the Diet.

 

In the mass punishment in SDF earlier this month, in which 218 officers were reprimanded and MSDF Chief of Staff stepped down, Kihara did not punish himself. He just voluntarily returned a part of his salary. “It is just as same as what has been done in the slush fund scandal,” said Hiroyuki Konishi (CDP), an Upper House member, indicating Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s evasion from the scandal.

 

Kihara did not show any preventive measures on those kinds of scandal. On breach of the specially designated secrets, Kihara revealed his intention to introduce a system to detect unqualified person entering security zone, but did not explain the details. Although the ministry is conducting “special defense inspection” on the incident that some officers received money or gifts from a contractor, Kawasaki Heavy Industry, it is still unclear whether the internal inspection by the officers in the ministry would work.

 

Miscommunication was not only about the scandal in the MOD. An incident of sexual assault by a member of U.S. Force in Okinawa last December was not reported to the MOD until June. An agreement between the U.S. and Japan in 1997 demands U.S. government reporting an incident related to U.S. Force in Japan. The procedure of reporting incident requires U.S. Embassy to report it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and from U.S Force to the local bureau of MOD.

 

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Yoko Kamikawa, revealed in the Diet discussion that she did not know about the procedure until June and did not report it to MOD, even though she had that information in March. The opposition parties required Kihara and Kamikawa to resign as the ministers. But it is likely that Kishida will not accept the request to maintain his Cabinet which approval rate in the polls still remains low.

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