Tough Diet Debate Seen for Japan National Intelligence Council Bill

Tokyo, March 15 (Jiji Press)–Parliamentary deliberations on a bill to establish a national intelligence council in Japan may be tough as the opposition side is worried that activities of the new entity could lead to human rights violations. Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara brushed aside concerns at a press conference Friday, saying that the envisaged council is not intended to enhance surveillance activities. “We will provide careful explanations so as not to cause concerns,” the top government spokesman said. The government submitted a bill to establish the national intelligence council to the Diet, Japan’s parliament, on Friday. The council would be for strengthening Japan’s intelligence capability, which is said to be insufficient, as the government believes that the current security environment surrounding the country is the most severe and complex since the end of World War II. The planned launch of the national intelligence council is based on the coalition agreement between the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, headed by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, and its partner, the Japan Innovation Party. The LDP-JIP agreement calls for the promotion of “intelligence reform.” The new council, to be chaired by the prime minister and with an enhanced control tower function, will be created by upgrading the current Cabinet Intelligence Committee, which is headed by the chief cabinet secretary. The current Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office will be revamped into the national intelligence bureau, and the current post of cabinet intelligence director will be upgraded to national intelligence bureau director. The Japanese government’s intelligence functions have been dispersed among the Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office, the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry, the National Police Agency and the National Public Safety Commission, and collected information therefore has not been effectively utilized. In light of the lessons learned from the current situation, the bill includes provisions requiring government agencies and ministries to submit data and information they collect to the planned new national intelligence council and giving the envisaged national intelligence bureau the role of making comprehensive coordination. Concerns about the legislation are rising among opposition parties, however. The bill stipulates that the head of the planned national intelligence bureau would be on par with the secretary-general of the National Security Secretariat to ensure that information is not taken lightly. But some pointed out that policy could be distorted by biased information. At a meeting of the House of Representatives Budget Committee on Feb. 27, Shinichi Isa of the opposition Centrist Reform Alliance said that in 2003, the administration of then U.S. President George W. Bush launched the Iraq War based on false information from the Central Intelligence Agency. “There is a risk that policy could be influenced by the intentions of an intelligence agency,” Isa warned. Once the legislation is enacted, the government plans to launch the national intelligence council as early as in July. Also, it plans to set up an external intelligence agency and an organization to train intelligence personnel, and establish an antiespionage law by around the end of fiscal 2027. The LDP submitted an antispy bill to the Diet in 1985, during the administration of then Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone. The party later gave up on enacting the legislation in the face of strong opposition. Centrist Reform Alliance leader Junya Ogawa said the opposition party will take a very cautious stance in parliamentary debates on the Takaichi government-proposed legislation to establish the national intelligence council, expressing strong concern over the risk of the measures planned by the administration leading to human rights violations such as mutual surveillance of citizens. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]