Hatoyama and the Japanese media courtship of officials sources

Communication is the "Achiless' heel" of Japanese

interaction with the outside world.

Interesting event we held at my press club the other

day, about the Kisha Club system and what it means for

foreign media.

Not so many people attended, sign that there are less

and less foreign journalists in Japan, but I was much

curious to listen to the debates since I share the co -

chairmanship of the Foreign Correspondents' Club of

Japan Freedom of the Press Committee.

The end of the Kisha Club system in Japan? Not really

I say. The censorship continues and it remains a

challenge to exercise the job of journalist in Japan.

Why? For decades, institutions here in Japan,

government, ministries, agencies, corporations

entertained a cosy system of relations between the

speakers and the press.

Half a dozen of national dailies and same amount of

TVs, including the national state channels, maintained

a biased influence to control the knowledge of the

public, through the vernacular and the foreign media.

Kisha clubs were the only ones allowed to say what

Japanese and foreigners have to know about Japan.

Sometimes, it went very far as the DPJ recently

clarified. Japanese Foreign Minister Okada

demonstrated how authorities could disguise truth and

cheated their own fellow countrymen for years as we saw

with the Japan US nuclear secret pact story.

Needless to say that it is still extremely difficult

for the foreign media to find their way into this

labyrinth and it would be necessary to implement new

measures for setting or reinforcing such organizations

whose mission is to help the foreign media. Reporting

in Japan is tough : language and customs barrier, lack

of communication, lack of rational explanation,

hardship in getting an interview with facts rather than

emotional statements, hardship to build a journey in

Japan to get appointments (people refuse if you are a

foreigner) etc. In a world where a journalist office

consist into 1 person nowadays, what is needed is an

interface. I have one here, very efficient :

The interesting professional structure is the Foreign

Press Center of Japan which I know well and used for a

decade to work daily on common issues and to access to

interviews or to the highest level of power in the

archipelago. Located in the press center building in

Kasumigaseki. Foreign Press Center : http://fpcj.jp/

Access to information is the main issue in Japan

In 2009, the Democratic Party of Japan came to power

after half a century of conservatives rules. The prime

minister Hatoyama and his close allies, Okada and Kan,

pledged to remove any barrier to access to information

for all journalists. In fact, it failed as an overall

reform yet. Here is a description by the New York

Times reporter in Japan :

"Japan’s new government is challenging one of the

nation’s most powerful interest groups, the press

clubs, a century-old, cartel-like arrangement in which

reporters from major news media outlets are stationed

inside government offices and enjoy close, constant

access to officials.

The system has long been criticized as antidemocratic

by both foreign and Japanese analysts, who charge that

it has produced a relatively spineless press that feels

more accountable to its official sources than to the

public. In their apparent reluctance to criticize the

government, the critics say, the news media fail to

serve as an effective check on authority.

The assault on the exclusive access the press clubs’

members have long enjoyed is part of the new

government’s drive to end the news media’s cozy ties

with authorities, and particularly with Tokyo’s

powerful central ministries."

Still, private firms do not show any strong commitment

to transparency and adhere to new policies, and keep

the curtain closed on free media access or even worst

as it was said at FCCJ press panel on the Kisha Club by

Tetsuo Jimbo, Editor in Chief of Videonews.com : "firms

choose who they will inform and select to release the

information."

" Tetsuo Jimbo, the founder of an online media company,

Video News Network, praised the new government’s

efforts. But he said most news conferences remained

closed to outside journalists like himself. He noted

that the Democrats had opened the proceedings at only

four ministries and major agencies, and had failed to

fulfill a campaign promise to open the prime minister’s

news conferences."

Who are you?

An other trick to avoid the access to all media to

events is to set rules that are not fairly played. At

Obama recent press conference at the prime minister

office in Tokyo (Kantei), the Japanese media and the

foreign media were offered 2 questions each to the VIPs

Obama and Hatoyama.

But the Japanese press "Kisha Club Captain" (Japanese

press club front man) who works with Fuji TV asked 6

questions in allocated time. Irritating for all media

present.

When players forget to play by the book, there is

something unhealthy and the betrayed are not only the

foreign media and the companies that are not present

"in the first circle", the main victims are readers,

listeners, viewers, deprived from a variety of free

access to information. Japan has still a long way to

go to resolve problems related to freedom of the press.

It requires increased assistance to foreign media and

expertise in handling international communication with

genuine experienced people.

Also new technologies will explode the blockade set by

punchers to freedom of the press, in power since "the

postwar Japan’s “iron triangle” of Liberal Democrats,

bureaucrats and big corporations."

21st Century & "Japan communication?

We can broadcast, twitt, blog live nowadays... Still,

Japan, claiming it is a genuine democracy and often

makes this distinction with other Asian nations, does

not see that the main issue remains about freeing

access to news sources and end the "Iron-Curtain"

practices.

Japanese politicians and stubborn bureaucrats &

officials should do their homework, they should

understand how world media work. They should

understand what ethics mean, they should offer the

information in a professional formula that guarantees

equality of distribution, accountability, fairness and

honesty. Especially because the information (not the

'infotainment' or the ads pledged to the PR industry)

is spreading fast, reaching quasi instantly your

hand-phone, palm, whatever screen.

Beyond the "communication boom", it is primordial to

strengthen the role of qualified and 'public interest

orientated people' who know how to design, dispatch and

distribute verified and balanced news for the foreign

media. In this regard Japanese authorities have yet to

analyze their media strategies and offer more

incentives and funding. Otherwise? Foreign media will

look at China to open their office, Hong Kong,

Shanghai, Beijing, Seoul. Japan will remain an

isolated aging invisible archipelago lost on the

Pacific.

But it takes experience, knowledge and strategies to

attract foreign media journalists and writers. Knowing

or discovering Japan arcane reality is not just a

journey to Kyoto or Hokkaido, it takes much more, it

takes content and information, more than a snap-shot to

be lost on a hard disk of a computer. To achieve this,

some people, as I said before, have recipes. It is not

just a matter of subsidies, or being cheap on budgets,

it is a matter of talent in organizing and operating

press communication for most 'informative' and precise

reports.

Maybe the Japanese Kisha Clubs lost some of their

censoring power, but it is up to the Japanese political

authorities to show where Tokyo stands from now on.

Especially in a nation, Japan, where communication is

not necessarily verbal, clear sign that communication

is the "Achiless heel" of Japanese interaction with the

outside world.

This is my experience after 2 decades in EU and the Far

East media world, anchoring and moderating events and

news-shows.

The NYT paper http://tinyurl.com/yjl5sw2

Foreign Press Center : http://fpcj.jp/

Illustrations from Ebina Mitsuru and Kang Kong (CCLPM)

U.N. condemns "widespread human rights violations" in North Korea and Burma

[pba]

A special committee of the U.N. General Assembly

condemned North Korea and Burma on Thursday for

what it said were widespread human rights violations in the

two Asian countries. The 192-nation General Assembly's

Third Committee, which focuses on human rights issues,

approved a resolution on North Korea 97-19 with 65

abstentions. A similar resolution on Burma (Myanmar)

passed 92-26 with 65 abstentions. The North Korea

resolution voiced "very serious concern" at what it said

were persistent reports of "systematic, widespread and

grave violations of civil, political, economic, social and

cultural rights."

Among Pyongyang's violations, the resolution said, are

torture, inhuman conditions of detention, public

executions, collective punishment and "the existence of a

large number of prison camps and the extensive use of

forced labor." North Korea's deputy U.N. ambassador, Pak

Tok Hun, dismissed the resolution as a political attack by

its enemies. "The draft resolution is nothing more than a

document of political conspiracy of the hostile forces to

... deny and obliterate the state and social system of

the Democratic People's Republic of Korea," he told the

committee. Among the sponsors of the North Korea

resolution were the European Union, the United States,

Japan and South Korea.

Envoys from developing nations that rights groups have

also accused of having poor human rights records,

including China, Russia, Libya, Sudan, Syria, Egypt,

Zimbabwe, told the committee that they generally reject

such resolutions because they oppose singling out specific

countries. Burma's U.N. envoy Than Swe rejected the

resolution on his country, which said the assembly

"strongly condemns the ongoing systematic violations of

human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of

Myanmar." It also voiced "grave concern" at the recent

trial and sentencing to further house arrest of Burma's

opposition leader, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu

Kyi, and urged the military junta to release her and all

other political prisoners. Than Swe said the resolution

is "glaringly deficient" and little more than "another

means to maintain pressure on Myanmar (Burma) in

tandem with sanctions."

When dictators talk about human rights :

[agencies]

Kenji Nagai was a Japanese photojournalist shot dead in

Burma during the 2007 Burmese anti-dictature protests by

Burmese Buddhist monks. As we can see on this picture,

Kenji Nagai continued to take photos as he lay shot on the

ground, later dying from gunshot injuries to the chest.

He was the only foreign national killed in the protests.

Michelin: Tokyo world's top gastronomy city

Tokyo has secured more three-star restaurant ratings

than Paris, with Michelin awarding the top rating to 11

restaurants in the Japanese capital, a summary of

Michelin's latest guide showed Tuesday. In the 2010

version of the Michelin guide for Tokyo, the Japanese

capital has also secured 42 two-star restaurant ratings

and 144 one- star ratings. Paris has 10 three-star

restaurants, according to Michelin.

Tokyo is much bigger than Paris, is there any rational

here? It is not a matter of size of a City it is a

matter of quality of the place and gastronomy.

Michelin Guide Director Jean-Luc Naret told a press

conference in Tokyo that the number of stars shows the

high quality of food in the Japanese capital.

The guides currently cover major cities in 23

countries, including Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles,

New York and San Francisco as well as Kyoto and Osaka.

A total of seven restaurants in Kyoto and Osaka

received three-star ratings in October.

International cuisine "Tokyo remains by far the world

capital of gastronomy and also has the most three-star

restaurants," said Michelin guide director Jean-Luc

Naret. Tokyo's sheer size helps explain why it has so

many Michelin stars.

Tokyo is much bigger than Paris and has 160,000

restaurants compared with about 40,000 in Paris.

Two-thirds of the Michelin-starred restaurants in Tokyo

serve Japanese cuisine, while the others serve a

variety of foods including French, Spanish, Chinese and

Italian. But the French need not feel their cuisine

has plunged completely into disrepute.

France still has more three-star restaurants than

anywhere else, with 25 compared with Japan's 18. The

next Michelin guide to Paris will be published in March

2010. The latest Michelin guide for Tokyo hit the

stands on Friday priced at 2,415 yen.

Picture (FCCJ Bibendum, Delmas, Naret, Moderator Jlk)

So of course the day before the release of the third

edition for Tokyo, I invited Michelin Guide books

president Jean-Luc Naret at our professional press

luncheon at The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan.

And he gave us as a secret : Michelin is to place local

food inspectors on the ground in each of the 23

countries it covers!

Here is the best news coverage I found on the data base.

“When we come to a new country, we must work with

people who understand how to rate restaurants,”

explained Naret, who used three Europeans and two

Japanese to evaluate Tokyo for 2008. “But it usually

takes five years to move to a staff of entirely local

people.”

This time, the team was comprised of only Japanese

inspectors and a French editor-in-chief. The group

selected 11 restaurants in Tokyo for its top three-star

rating, pushing it past Paris by one for the top spot,

an achievement that the company believes makes the

metropolis the world’s gastronomic champ.

In comparison to last year, the 2010 Tokyo edition,

available in English and Japanese from Friday for 2,415

yen, bumped the restaurants Esaki, Sushi Saito and

Yukimura up to three-star status, and dropped one,

Hamadaya, down a notch. Tokyo upped its total count to

261 stars, 34 more than last year, and three times that

of France’s capital. Naret maintains, however, that it

is difficult to easily compare the two cities given

that Tokyo has a much larger population and four times

as many restaurants. It comes down to numbers, he

said. “Tokyo as a city has more restaurants than

Italy, Germany or Spain,” the director said. “So

statistically there should be more stars here.”

The company, whose guide was first published in France

in 1900, explains that the star rankings apply only to

what appears on the customer’s plate and are dictated

by the food’s quality, flavor, value for the money and

consistency across the menu. Three stars represent

“exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey,” two

stars merit “a detour” and one constitutes a “very good

restaurant.”

About two-thirds of the selected restaurants in Tokyo

offer Japanese cuisine, such as soba (noodles),

sukiyaki (hot pot), fugu (blowfish), sushi and tempura,

while the remainder are mainly French and Italian. The

area of research was expanded for 2010 to include

izakaya outlets and shops specializing in yakitori

(grilled chicken), kushiage (deep-fried meat and

vegetables) and shojin ryori (vegetarian cooking).

At the start of the Tokyo project, Naret had ventured

to other Asian cities, such as Hong Kong, Bangkok and

Singapore. He found the selection of high-quality

restaurants in Japan’s capital to be overwhelming — an

attribute that was soon shared with the rest of world

following its award of 191 stars to 150 restaurants,

the most of any city. “Tokyo was put on the map as one

of the top gastronomic cities in the world,” he said of

the release of the first book. “And it was quite a

shock for people on the other side of the world because

they did not know what Tokyo was all about.” (TR)

Ozawa and faiths

After Ozawa met with Japan Buddhist Federation President

Yukei Matsunaga and praised Buddhism. He said then that

‘‘European and U.S. societies with a (historical)

background of Christianity are bogged down,’’ and that

Islam is ‘‘better than Christianity but it is also

exclusive.’’

Ozawa specified about Christianity described as

‘‘exclusive and self-righteous’’, prompting the Japan

Confederation of Christian Churches to lodge a protest and

demand that the No. 2 leader of the ruling party withdraw

the remarks.

Controversy indeed for the believers.

Backpedaling, Ozawa tried to explain that he was merely

saying that the East and the West have different views,

and did not retract them.

‘‘I stated that the basic philosophy of religion and the

view of life are different (between East and West),’’

Ozawa said at a press conference Monday afternoon,

explaining that in his view the East considers humans as

part of the nature while the West believes that nature

exists for humans.

Okinawa divide and myths: What stands behind Japan-Usa divergence?

Lt. Col Kenneth A. Walsh and F4U-4, Okinawa collection

Auteur en reportage avec les forces armées japonaises JMSDF 2009 © jlk

"Okinawan myths" (traduit en français)

Souvent en reportage sur la situation d'Okinawa, ces îles

Ryukyu en mer de Chine, mon premier reportage date de

1993, le plus récent était il y a quelques semaines, j'ai

rencontré tout ce que les îles comptaient comme voix

autorisées et informées pour présenter la situation sur

ces îles ballottées par les flots et les désagréments

politiques et économiques. Reportages possible grâce au

Foreign Press Center (FPC), au Club des Correspondants,

aux autorités japonaises et américaines.

Okinawa autrefois n'était pas une partie du Japon, mais un

pays indépendant, le royaume de Ryukyu. Les îles Ryukyu

étaient un carrefour important pour le trafic maritime en

Asie de l'Est, et ce royaume était riche.

J'ai écrit aussi dans la presse japonaise des articles,

Doshin, Nikkan, comme "Umi-no-Kuni" (Le Pays des mers)

pour présenter la réalité historique car l'Unesco

s'intéressait aux "sites Gusuku" (forteresses) et biens

associés du royaume des Ryukyu.

Le commerce d'Okinawa avec les Empereurs chinois a enrichi

le royaume Ryukyu, surtout au XVe siècle. Des émissaires

des Ryukyu se rendaient régulièrement prêter allégeance a

la Chine. Les îles ont depuis bien longtemps payé leur

tribut aux Empires et elles aspirent a davantage de

tranquillité. Un changement politique est d'ores et déjà

en cours au Japon. L'objectif final est-il militaire ou

économique?

Okinawa a été l'outil qui a permis au Japon de coloniser

Taiwan en mai 1873, suite aux manoeuvres ingénieuses de

diplomates américains et japonais après l'affaire du

massacre de 57 marins échoués sur la cote sud suite a une

terrible tempête. Aujourd'hui Okinawa est un dispositif

important des forces de l'Alliance nippo - américaine en

Asie.

Quel sera son destin? Au-moment même ou Barack Obama et

Yukio Hatoyama diffèrent sur les grands axes de l'Alliance

et comment elle devra évoluer, de façon plus équitable

dit-on, les marines japonaises et américaines conduisaient

des manoeuvres militaires.

Elles démontrent qu'en dépit du litige politique, l'agenda

sécuritaire demeure bien qu'assez flou entre l'Amérique et

un Japon qui après avoir opté pour un "rejet de l'Asie"

comme l' avait écrit Yukichi Fukuzawa au XIXe siècle

penche pour une nouvelle communauté asiatique du XXIe

siècle, chère aux 3 grands, Japon Chine Corée.

Une nouvelle "main forte" née de l'enrichissement des

dragons et des petits tigres asiatiques depuis les années

80 qu'un désir d'indépendance a fait mûrir, inscrivant

leur nouvelle destinée face aux puissance occidentales,

avec davantage d'indépendance et de dirigisme dans les

affaires mondiales. Economie, population et technologies

obligent.

Peut-être plus facile a dire qu'a démontrer.

J'ai rencontré dans les années 90 a Tokyo et Londres des

journalistes du Monde Diplomatique qui s'intéressaient a

la situation d'Okinawa, dont Bernard Cassen. Voici ce que

j'ai écrit en 2000. La situation est elle vraiment

différente? Quelques éléments ici pour mieux apprécier la

réalité des enjeux.

"Okinawan myths" (traduit en français)

"En rapport avec l'article sur le G8 en 2000 du Courriel

156, je voudrais vous apporter cet éclairage. D'abord,

pour comprendre la vision japonaise concernant la question

de la dette et du G8 de Okinawa, je viens d'écrire un

"Op-Ed" dans le quotidien japonais "Hokkaido Shimbun"

publié lundi 31 Juillet, page 3, haut de page. Il

pourrait intéresser les associations notamment japonaises

y compris d'Okinawa qui se plaignent, à juste titre

d'ailleurs, de ne pas être lues ou citées par la presse.

Autre observation, en général, si votre article est

critique, il me semble néanmoins que vous "occidentalisez"

la perception et les sentiments réellement ressentis par

les Okinawais à l'égard de la présence américaine, de la

sécurité et du développement économique. Le décryptage «

Ecosoc » que vous faites n'est pas ressenti exactement

comme tel par une majorité des Okinawais et des Japonais

majoritairement. Trop idéologique a mon sens. Pas assez

factuel.

Certes, il existe des objectifs réels d'indépendance et de

développement de Okinawa, abandonnée aux 3,5 millions

annuels de touristes japonais et taïwanais, qui rapportent

davantage que les bases qui sont gérées en autonome, que

ce soit les installations militaires américaines ou les

bases japonaises de l'île.

Perte de souveraineté

Le constat sur la perte de souveraineté des habitants de

Okinawa est récurent, et apparaît notamment au 20eme

siècle avant 1972 à l'égard des Etats Unis, mais Okinawa

vit sous la botte étrangère depuis bien avant la "guerre

froide", puisque dépossédé de son pouvoir de royaume

vivant du commerce transitaire, il s'est également incliné

après la conquête japonaise du clan Shimazu de la province

de Satsuma (Ouest de Kagoshima), qui suivit la conquête de

la Chine et des Seigneurs du Fujian, vassaux des Sui de

l'Empire de Chine, qui avaient placé Okinawa sous leur

suzeraineté installant des dynastie "Sho" copié collé

conforme à l'idée du pouvoir selon les canons des Fils du

Ciel...

Batailles d'intérêts

Aujourd'hui la conquête de Okinawa se joue moins en termes

politiques, sauf pour les USA, bien que Tokyo joue avec

les USA sur l'effet levier de la pression "insupportable"

ressentie par les Okinawais. Avantageux stratagème

lorsque le représentant américain au commerce ou lorsque

le directeur du FBI se montrent trop entreprenants sur les

îles japonaises.

Le vrai jeu est économique: La contestation est en effet

motivée par des "purs" dont vous semblez tenir vos

commentaires, mais est manipulée en profondeur par des

facteurs économiques, hérités du système Tanaka et

Takeshita selon lesquels le développement régional doit

s'accompagner, aide de l'Etat inclue, d'une politique des

grands travaux avec primes et dessous de tables offerts

aux autorités locales, entreprises du BTP et regroupement

villageois. Or, à ce carrefour là, les habitants ne sont

plus à l'écoute des syndicats timides et des associations

d'enseignants. Aucun syndicat d'enseignants n'a appelé à

manifester en groupe à Kadena, ni dans l'administration

locale. La manifestation autour de Kadena est une

manipulation. Cela ne vient absolument pas de la

conscientisation des troupes locales. Le phénomène est

plus complexe, plus imbriqué dans les rouages des pouvoirs

japonais. La perception identitaire est faible, il ne

reste que des batailles d'intérêts.

Pour faire court, rappelons que l'exigence sur le départ

des bases américaines reviendrait à donner au roi du BTP

local d'Okinawa, la firme "Kokuba" et aux autres grands du

BTP national, un droit de regard gigantesque sur la

politique des travaux publics et d'aménagement. Droit de

regard partagé avec les autorités et potentats locaux qui

ont décidé de faire d’Okinawa un "village resort" ou

culture et gastronomie locale se marieront avec les

cocotiers importés des Philippines. L'hôtellerie est en

pleine expansion, Busena, le site du Sommet

n'appartient-il pas aussi a "Kokuba"? Il y a donc une

main mise et une alliance des "parrains" du local

(Gouvernements locaux, BTP, Transport et Tourisme) sur le

développement économique de l'île aidés par de véritables

gangs criminels omniprésents au Japon, greffe sur toute

nouvelle initiative susceptible de rapporter. Demandez

donc à Carlos Ghosn de vous parler de ses réunions

d'actionnaires de chez Nissan.

Préfectures sous contrôle

Tout comme c'est le cas dans la préfecture de Miyazaki où

s'est tenu le sommet des ministres des affaires étrangères

du G8. Peu de ces ministres devaient savoir qu'ils ont

dormi dans un « Resort » protégé par la mafia (le Seagaia

Conference Hall et l'Hôtel Ocean 45) qui est en effet

couvert de dettes. Dettes héritées des grands travaux

entrepris par la mafia financière de la période de la

"Bulle" que le G8 a permis opportunément de renflouer en

nouant des alliances sulfureuses entre politiques et

entreprises louches afin de "gonfler" le « Resort » en

comptant sur l'effet post-touristique du G8.

Pour lui sortir la tête de l'eau, il a bénéficié des

allocations gouvernementales et taxes des contribuables.

Les estimations les plus fantaisistes ont couru sur les

dépenses occasionnées pour le G8 de ce « Resort » de

Miyazaki (il a été cité en conférence de presse le chiffre

amusant d'environ 1,5 milliard de Yens en investissements

de Miyazaki, bien plus en réalité)

Il serait en particulier très intéressant de sonder les

relations entre le gouverneur de Miyazaki, Monsieur

Suketaka MATSUKATA, entre le maire de Miyazaki, Monsieur

Shigemitsu TSUMURA et le roi local des BTP Tourisme,

Sylviculture et Transports d'autocars et Agences de

tourisme... Miyazaki n'aime pas les enquêtes en eaux

profondes qui bousculent les habitudes, la province se

vante d'être le berceau mythique du culte impérial

Shintoïste, or qui dit impérial au Japon dit tabou vénéré

par l'extrême droite et la mafia Yakuza*."

Publié le 11 août 2000 in: "Le Courriel d’information"

Autres références:

*A lire aussi sur ce sujet, le livre "Tokyo Vice: An American

Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan "par Jake Adelstein.

http://tinyurl.com/yg4z9pr

Autres regards sur Okinawa avec le spécialiste Mitsugu

Sakihara.

Okinawa, site historique sur Internet

http://mickmc.tripod.com/books2.html

Plus touristique: Un exemple des fonds sous-marins de Okinawa,

les pyramides de Yonaguni avec cette vdo. Découverte faite en 1985

par Kihachiro Aratake.