Takaichi Rejects Political Use of Planned Intelligence Council

Tokyo, April 17 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Friday ruled out the possibility of the government using a planned national intelligence council for political purposes. “We will never order (the council) to gather intelligence for the purpose of benefiting a particular political party or group,” Takaichi said during House of Representatives Cabinet Committee deliberations on a bill to establish the council, which is aimed at enhancing the government’s intelligence capabilities. The prime minister, who heads the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said that she did not receive from the cabinet intelligence director any reports or materials linked to the general election held in February. Takaichi also said that it is “hard to assume” that the council will investigate participants of rallies against government policies. Still, she added that the council “may take an interest from the perspective of whether demonstrations would become violent to create a situation causing injuries to citizens.” Akira Nagatsuma of the opposition Centrist Reform Alliance demanded that a term of office be set for the planned post of national intelligence bureau director, to prevent intelligence activities from being politicized. The post is planned to be established by upgrading the current position of cabinet intelligence director. Takaichi took a negative stance, saying, “It’s desirable for the national intelligence bureau director to remain in office for a certain period in order to build relationships of trust with the heads of foreign intelligence agencies.” Nagatsuma also called on the government to establish standards on the disclosure of intelligence to be gathered by the new council. In response, Takaichi said that people will be allowed to make disclosure requests based mainly on the public records management law. She also suggested that the government is open to information disclosure, excluding cases that could affect its own work, in response to a question from Yosuke Mori of the opposition Democratic Party for the People. The prime minister sought to quell worries about violations of privacy due to activities of the planned council, saying, “Rules on the handling of personal information are well-established through related laws and regulations.” Meanwhile, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara reiterated a negative stance on including in the bill a provision on the protection of personal data, when answering a question from the CRA’s Yuichi Goto. “If we hesitate (to gather such information) for fear of being judged that related organizations are collecting personal data illegally, that could have a serious impact on the safety of the public and on national interests,” the top government spokesman said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]