I’m Norio Okada, editor of the Japan Press Service (JPS), Japan’s only progressive news for abroad. We are taking news to Asia-Pacific region and the rest of the world, and our reports cover the wide-ranging aspects of the Japanese Communist Party, Japan’s working class and other democratic forces, their struggle for establishing non-alignment, neutrality for Japan, and achieving peace and a democratic change in Japan.

We have a daily news service, Japan Press Weekly, and the monthly newsletter called Dateline Tokyo. It is our hope that what the JPS is doing will serve to improve mutual understanding among the peoples of the countries of Oceania, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific. Correct mutual understanding is essential for strengthening solidarity and advancing their common struggles.

I have many things to talk about — Japan’s politics, economy and the people’s struggles — but let me just concentrate on a couple of most important aspects, which will help you understand what’s going on in Japan.

The first problem I would like to relate is that Japan is structured on US military bases.

The Japanese Constitution, which came into effect barely two years after the end of World War II, clearly states that the Japanese people forever renounce war as means of settling international disputes''. It was based on the profound reflection on the aggression abroad and oppression at home by Japanese militarism that the Japanese people in the Constitutionresolved that never again shall we be visited with the horrors of war through the action of government, do proclaim that sovereign power resides with the people’’. And indeed, Japan has become one of the biggest economic powers in the capitalist world!

Today, more than 50 years since Japan’s defeat in the War, there are more than 100 US military bases and other installations throughout Japan, and a total of 47,000 US troops are stationed in these bases. The Japanese capital of Tokyo embraces a huge US air force base at Yokota. There are US bases also in areas surrounding Tokyo, such as Yokosuka Naval base which is used by the 7^th Fleet, and Atsugi Marine Corps Air Station. The legal basis for the US presence in Japan is the Japan-US Security Treaty.

In a recent Diet (Japan’s parliament) session, a Japanese Communist Party Diet member pointed to two instances of the authoritarian behaviour by US forces. One is the low-altitude flying training, which has been conducted in many parts of Japan. The Japanese people have never been informed in advance of their training routes and schedules. Such training adversely affects not only people’s daily life and dairy farmers, but also the cattle and even classrooms. Japan’s government has never lodged a protest against the US government on this matter.

And the other is night landing practiced by US forces. One of the bases used for such exercises is Atsugi Naval Air Station which is located next to the densely populated city. Aircraft flying in from aircraft-carriers repeatedly carry out touch-and-go'' training at the Atsugi base, causing a great of damage, such as noise and destroying citizens' peaceful lives. I gather that you have heard about the struggle of Okinawa's people to get the US bases dismantled. Okinawa is Japan's southernmost prefecture with a population of about 1,300,000: its size is less than 1% of Japan, but 75% of the US military bases in Japan are concentrated in Okinawa. About 20% of Okinawa's mainland is occupied by US military bases and other installations. The huge US air base at Kadena occupies 83% of the whole city area. About 29,000 out of 47,000 US military personnel are stationed in Okinawa. One of the three US Marine Corps divisions is in Okinawa. By the way, Japan is the only country which accepts US Marines on its soil. As you may know, one of the major roles of the U.S. Marines isexpedition’’; the U.S. Marines are the expeditionary force, which is the strike force used for carrying out military intervention abroad. In the Korean War, in the war of aggression against Vietnam, and most recently in the 1991 Persian Gulf War, Okinawa was used as a major stepping stone.

And today, Okinawa is being made effective as the base for the strike force; one such example is the plan there is for using new transport aircraft which is supposed to be instrumental for military intervention not only in Southeast Asia but also in the Middle East and the rest of the world. It is also known that US Marines stationed in Okinawa have been implicated in the military training program in Indonesia, called JCET, which has been much criticised in and outside the United States.

The people of Okinawa prefecture for the past half century have been forced to accept enormous suffering, such as the danger in connection with live-fire exercises, noise caused by aircraft and even crimes committed by US soldiers. Economic development has been denied virtually by US military presence. But the people of Okinawa have strong desire for a peaceful Okinawa without US military bases.

In September 1995, a really shocking incident occurred in Okinawa; three US soldiers kidnapped and raped a 12-year schoolgirl, which prompted Okinawa’s people to renew their strong demand for US forces to be withdrawn and the US bases removed from Okinawa. Last December in the northern city of Nago in Okinawa Prefecture, a referendum was held over the plan to construct an offshore air base near the city. A majority of the voters said no'' to the plan. But both the US and Japanese governments have no intention to respect and accept the citizen's rejection, and they are continuing putting pressure on the Okinawa prefectural government and people. In this context contradictions are getting sharper than ever in Okinawa: Okinawa's people are struggling for peaceful Okinawa without US military bases, but the US is attempting to keep its forces in Okinawa indefinitely and even to strengthen their roles, and the Japanese government is cooperating with the United States in reinforcing the US bases in Okinawa. It is ironic that the US forces whose aim is ostensibly to maintain peace and stability in Asia are actually threatening and undermining the Japanese people's right to live in peace and safety. That is why Japan is referred to as anation structured on US military bases’’, and a US colony''. I hope you now understand how Japan's sovereignty and independence is compromised by US military bases and forces. Of course this is a result of the Liberal Democratic Party government policy of being subordinate to the United States, which has been unchanged. No matter how seriously Japanese people are disturbed by the US military presence, no matter how strong the Japanese people are opposed to US military presence, the Japanese government would not stop exclusively serving the United States. At least while the Soviet Union existed, the United States and Japanese governments were able to insist that the US forces are in Japan to defend Japan fromSoviet threats’’. But the United States is still strengthening the functions of its forces in Japan. But we now know that defence of Japan'' is something that the US forces are not going to do; the real aim of US forces being kept abroad, including in Japan, is to protect thenational interests’’ of the United States.

And now, the military alliance between Japan and the United States is upgraded to a new more dangerous phase. I am talking about the new Guidelines for Japan-US Defence Cooperation''. The United States and japan agreed on these newGuidelines’’ in September last year. In a word, these Guidelines'' are arrangements for getting Japan to be involved automatically in US war and military intervention around the world. The Japanese government has tried to justify these arrangements by insisting on the need to deal withsituations in areas surrounding Japan’’. To put it in another way, Japan would support US military action abroad although there is no attack being made on Japan. There is no clear definition of areas surrounding Japan'', but clearly it means that such action would be applicable in areas which are not part of the United States or Japan. It is also clear that such subservience to the United States by Japan will amount to interference in internal affairs of another country. Japan has provided US forces with base sites and resources, including money, and given them freedom of action. Now under the newGuidelines’’, Japan will be forced to become more active in cooperating with US war; Japan will mobilise its Self-Defence Forces; it will make civilian ports, airports and other facilities available to US forces in action, mobilise central government agencies, local governments and even private sector assets.

All these clearly go contrary to the desires of the peoples in the Asia Pacific region and even to the direction set out by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party government which has refused to be serious enough to reflect on the past war of aggression by Japanese militarism against the countries in Asia and Oceania, is now lending a hand to the United States to carry out aggression and military intervention. It is quite natural that governments and media in China and the Southeast Asian countries are guarded; they are increasingly critical of what japan is doing with the United States under the new Guidelines''. We are now struggling against the newGuidelines’’ which means Japan’s automatic participation in US war and against concrete measures being contemplated to implement the new Guidelines''; we are fighting to end Japan's status as a nation structured on US military bases; we are calling for abrogation of the Japan-US Security Treaty; we are fighting to preserve the peace clauses of Japan's Constitution. It is important to note that these are necessary tasks for establishing japan's sovereignty and making japan non-aligned and neutral. We regard this direction as essential when Japan develops dialogue and peaceful cooperation, including economic cooperation, with all countries in the Asia-Pacific region and the rest of the world. Next, let me talk about domestic problems facing the majority of the Japanese people, including workers and small and medium-sized businesses. Many of the questions we have in Japan have something in common with Australia and other capitalist countries. Japan has a population of 120 million, which is seven times the Australian population, and about 70% of Indonesian population. Economically, Japan ranks second in Gross Domestic Product. Japan is an economic power which exports electrical products, automobiles, computers and others to all over the world. Japan's monopoly capital, as you all know, take on the form of transnationals and have moved their production to countries in Southeast and others, hollowed out Japan's industrial base; they are now seeking to obtain even larger profits through so-called restructuring,rationalisation’’ and other means for squeezing the workers. Meanwhile, the workers and their families, who account for some 75%, are under fierce attack, and their uncertainty toward the future is increasing.

Liberal Democratic Party government, which for half century has been subordinate to the United States and consistent defender of the interests of Japan’s monopoly capital, has neither capability nor willingness to resolve the problems facing the people in the midst of deep economic recession. It continues with the policy of cutting budget relevant to the people’s living conditions, including health care, welfare and education, while using huge amounts of taxpayers’ money to help the banks and serving the general contractor construction companies by offering them big-scale public works projects.

Last year the Liberal Democratic Party government, which is the political agent of monopoly capital, increased the consumption tax rate from 3% to 5%; as a result of the adverse revision of the health insurance system having imposed increased burden on the people for medical services, low income people, aged people, and handicapped people are getting reluctant to visit their doctors. All these adverse changes made it possible for the government to save 9 trillion yen.

The pension system has been changed for the worse already, but the government is proposing measure that will increase social security contributions from the people and reduce benefits. Although we are in an aging society, the government has adversely revised the care system for the aged by increasing people’s burdens and reducing services.

In Japan, personal consumption has declined dramatically, and the banks are increasingly reluctant to provide loans for businesses. The small- and medium-sized businesses, which are the mainstay of the Japanese economy, are going bankrupt one after another, and a number of operators of such businesses have been driven to a corner and even committed suicide.

The big corporations have strengthened international competitiveness by imposing low wages and long working hours, and the so-called globalisation of the economy, more open markets and intensified competition driving them to push wages down, and increase their restructuring and rationalisation''. And this has brought about record high profits for them. Monopoly capital is also pushing ahead with the deregulation drive in many aspects, the aim being to increase exploitation of workers and earn bigger profits. Deregulation ranges from the complete opening of financial markets, the substantial relaxation of regulation on big retail stores to adverse revision of labour laws. Their attacks on workers even include virtual abolition of the eight-hour day which is a major achievement of the trade union movement. I have talked about assaults now being made on the people. And the people's campaign is increasing for replacing such politics with democratic politics. First, on the labour front, we have the National Confederation of Trade Unions (Zenroren) which is a national trade union organisation leading japan's class-based democratic trade union movement. Zenroren was established in 1989 as a national trade union centre which the Japanese trade union movement badly needed to safeguard the living conditions and rights of the workers and other sections of the Japanese people and to achieve peace and democracy in Japan. The founding of Zenroren was a result of the long struggle for establishing the principles of the class-based democratic trade union movement, which are independence from capital; independence from political parties, and common action based on the demands agreed upon by workers. Zenroren is made up of 28 industrial trade union organisations and 46 regional trade union centres, with a total membership of about 1,500,000. Zenroren and its member unions are organising their struggle in the business establishments and workplaces, for wage increase and other demands, and at the same time campaigning at regional and national levels to press the government for a major policy change to break through the present economic recession and of course in opposition to the adverse revision of labor laws. There have been important victories in the struggle against discrimination and unjustifiable dismissals based on thought of workers as Japanese Communist Party member. There have also been some victories in making the death from overwork calledkaroshi’’ recognised as a death at work.

In the course of these developments, some changes are taking place in the trade unions and their members affiliated with the Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo). They have been dominated by the right-wing ideology of labor-capital collaboration, but they are also participating in the fight against the adverse revision of labor laws.

In Japan we have a very powerful movement developing among the small-and medium-sized traders and producers. In japan there are about 6.5 million business establishments, and 83% of which are small businesses with less than 10 employees. By contrast, the business establishments with more than 300 employees only account for 0.2%. And these corporations are tyrannical not only against workers but also against small-and medium-sized companies which are often subcontractors with the big corporations.

It is for this reason that the movement has been organised nationally to resolve the difficulties small and medium-sized business operators are facing in the manufacturing, construction and retailing sectors. The regional organisation for the movement is called the Democratic Producers and Traders Association, and the national organisation is the National Federation of Merchants and Industrialists which has a membership of 360,000.

The student movement in Japan is based on the student unions organised in each college and university, with the All Japan Federation of Student Unions (Zengakuren) as the only national organisation. It is engaged in the struggle against tuition increases, for improving studying conditions and other demands.

The youth movement has the Democratic Youth League of Japan (DYLJ), the national organisation embracing members whose ages range from 16 to 25. Guided by the Japanese Communist Party the DYLJ members study the theories of scientific socialism and the JCP’s program and policies, and they are also participating in various mass organisations in defence of the various demands of young people.

There are several women’s organisations which are engaged in wide ranging activities for defending women’s rights and living conditions in many parts of Japan. The biggest national organisation based on individual membership is the New Japan Women’s Associations (Shinfujin) which is greatly contributing to the development of women’s progressive movement. It has a membership of about 200,000, who are engaged in activities in neighbourhoods and districts for women’s demands.

There is one more important movement involving women. It is called the mother's movement''. The movement holds the National Mother's Congress every year. The first Congress was held in 1955 in Tokyo, following the outburst of protest against the hydrogen bomb test explosion at Bikini Atoll. Under the slogan,Mothers who bear new lives want to protect and raise lives’’, the Mothers’ Congress participants discuss women’s rights, children’s education and the question of peace, including the elimination of nuclear weapons. It is also a place for exchange and mutual encouragement.

In advancing democracy based on the defence of human rights, freedom of though freedom of speech and other basic rights established in the Constitution, the role of legal activity by progressive lawyers and other activists is essential. Progressive attorneys at law and others take part in the Japan Lawyers Association for Freedom and other organisations which are engaged in the struggle to remove US military bases, the struggle to defend the workers’ rights and lives, such as against illegal dismissals and adverse revision of labour laws, and in the movement to protect environment.

As regards the peace movement, I want to touch upon the movement against nuclear weapons in particular, which is developing powerfully along with the struggle against the Japan-US military alliance.

As you all know, We are the only people in the world that have suffered direct attacks with American nuclear weapons in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. And in 1954, nine years after the tragedies in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a Japanese tuna fishing boat called The Fifth Lucky Dragon'' was showered with fallout from the US hydrogen bomb test explosion. These three tragedies involving nuclear weapons are the basis on which the Movement against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs has been developing under the slogan,No more Hiroshimas, No More Nagasakis, and No more Hibakusha’’.

Standing firm for the complete prohibition and elimination of nuclear weapons, the Movement has held the World Conference against A and H Bombs every August. Many peace activists from the Pacific, including the Marshall Islands, Australia, New Zealand, along with people from the rest of the world, have attended the World Conference. In the centre of the Movement is the Japan Council against A and H Bombs (Gensuikyo).

As part of this whole effort for a nuclear-free world, there is a movement for a non-nuclear government. The ``Association for a Non-Nuclear Government’’ was established in 1986, which plays an important role in raising the level of awareness of the need to eliminate nuclear weapons. In addition to the Association at central level, local associations have been set up in all 47 prefectures, with broad sections of people participating regardless of the differences of thought and creed.

I have talked about major mass movements and their organisations various fields. Every mass organisation is increasing its own strength, and at the same time we are having wider dialogues and common actions with all possible organisations based on the agreed demands, as the way to mobilise a majority in each field in the direction of forming a broad united front for a democratic change.

In that effort we are trying to develop common action with non-party forces in various fields. As part of this effort we attach great importance to the Progressive Forum Movement. The movement began in 1981 when the JCP took the initiative in mobilising a majority in response to the new situation created by the Socialist Party switching to the right. It is characteristic that many former Socialist Party members are taking part in this Movement, and in addition to the Progressive Forum, the Prefectural Forum has been organised in all of the 47 prefectures, and there are 380 regional Forums and about 100 workplace Forums. This is the way for organising the wide-range of non-party people in our effort for a democratic change of politics.

Currently in preparation for the House of Councillors election in July, we have decided to field a former Socialist Party member of the House of Councillors as our non-party progressive candidate standing in Kochi Prefecture constituency. We hope this type of cooperation with non-party forces in national elections will be developed further in future.