LDP OKs Plan to Boost Settlement on 6 More Border Islands

Tokyo, Feb. 27 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Friday broadly approved a draft bill to add six islands to the country’s list of inhabited border islands eligible for state aid to promote settlement. Under the proposal, Teuri and Yagishiri islands in the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, Tobishima in the northeastern prefecture of Yamagata, Awashima in the central prefecture of Niigata, and the Tokyo islands of Niijima and Shikinejima will be designated as specified inhabited border island areas of the country. Such areas are remote border islands that form the basis for Japan’s maritime claims, including its territorial waters and exclusive economic zones, and receive concentrated assistance to support resident settlement and prevent depopulation. A total of 71 islands in eight of the country’s 47 prefectures have been included in the list so far. The draft bill to revise the special measures law for the preservation of inhabited border islands calls for a program to promote stay-based tourism and a new provision requiring prefectural governments to make efforts to maintain local communities. The draft bill is set to be submitted to the current parliamentary session after consultations between the ruling and opposition parties. The special measures law expires at the end of March next year. The bill proposes a 10-year extension until the end of March 2037, along with a provision calling for a review five years after the revised law takes effect. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]