DEVELOPMENT-JAPAN: Aid Scandal Could Give NGOs More Clout

By Suvendrini Kakuchi Reprint | | Print |

Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO, Mar 5 2002 (IPS) - Non-governmental organisations in Japan are usually resigned to a role on the sidelines, but this could yet change amid the scandal now swirling around a senior politician and his alleged interference in the use of aid funds.

“The latest political upheaval has turned the spotlight on Japanese NGOs that are struggling to stay afloat in Japanese society,” explains Kiyokazu Koshida of the Pacific Asia Resources Centre, a non-governmental organisation involved in development issues.

NGOs here do not have the same clout they have in other industrialised countries. Some of them examine the use and quality of development assistance – Japan is the world’s top donor — but many government officials and bureaucrats look at them as a nuisance.

But ironically, the catalyst for the latest controversy that NGOs hope would spark a debate about their role is a politician who has a reputation for being hostile to activists — Muneo Suzuki, one of Japan’s most influential politicians in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

Suzuki is scheduled to testify on Monday as a sworn witness in the Japanese Diet or Parliament on charges of meddling in Japan’s aid budget, which totals some 7 billion U.S. dollars a year, and barring selected NGOs from an international conference on Afghanistan that Tokyo hosted in January. Suzuki has denied the charges.

On Monday evening, Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi, who replaced the outspoken Makiko Tanaka after she was fired by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, told the press that her ministry has found that Suzuki was indeed “deeply involved” in the bidding process for two government-funded projects on the Russian-held island of Kunashiro, which is claimed by Japan.

Kensuke Onishi, head of Peace Winds Japan, one of the NGOs banned by the Foreign Ministry from attending the conference on Afghanistan, also said Monday that Suzuki was involved in the decision.

Speaking as an unsworn witness, Onishi told the Japanese Diet that a “top diplomat” had told him that Suzuki was angry with Onishi for telling local press he did not trust the government.

The Foreign Ministry bureaucrat asked Onishi to apologise to Suzuki, which the activist did not do. Onishi also said he believes Suzuki pressured the ministry to stop him from attending the Afghanistan conference.

Suzuki is also accused of using his influence over the ministry to restrict bidders of certain infrastructure projects in Kunashiro to companies based in his constituency in Nemuro, Hokkaido, according to an investigation report compiled by the Foreign Ministry. Two contractors from Nemuro were warded lucrative construction contracts on the island.

Activists say that this practice is actually a common one. While foreign pressure has somewhat reduced the number of Japanese companies getting contracts for projects financed by yen loans, when it comes to grants the situation is the opposite, says Koshida.

The fiasco has become top news in Japan and helped reveal what analysts explain as deep-rooted animosity that older conservative politicians harbour against activists in Japan.

“The latest scandal is a fine example of the shallow position of Egos in Japanese society. The older and more powerful politicians, particularly in the LDP, and top bureaucrats do not take civil society seriously,” says Professor Masaki Ohashi, who teaches development sociology at Keisen Jogakuin University in Tokyo.

This attitude is also behind the lack of financial support for Japanese NGOs, activists say.

They are likewise bitterly critical of what they call government officials’ two-faced policy toward their work.

“While the Foreign Ministry has outlined new policies that call for working with NGOs, the fact that only allocates around one percent of the overseas aid budget to Japanese NGOs working in this field, is a clear enough to show how badly we are treated,” says Koshida.

Of Suzuki’s attempt to rap Onishi’s knuckles for the young activist’s criticism of the government, Koshida shrugs that it is “typical” and reflects the arrogance that grassroots organisations operating in Japan face.

“Politicians and diplomats think NGos must listen to them. We are not treated as partners towards closer cooperation as in other countries,” he explains.

There are currently around 800 NGOs in Japan, almost 90 percent of which are medium-sized to small groups that are struggling to cope amid financial pressure while vying for public attention.

Experts say that the root of the lack of support for civil society in Japan lies in the relatively short history of volunteer work in the country. Japanese society has developed on the basis of trust between the government and the public, which is why activism is viewed as not compatible with national interests.

Despite the current controversy, some NGOs say the initial spotlight on their weak role is now fading because the scandal is rapidly expanding into a political slinging match between politicians.

“The local press is increasingly reporting on Suzuki as a tussle between the government and the opposition. NGOs are losing the opportunity to put forward to the public other important issues that bog their progress in Japanese society,” says Mari Kushiguchi, representative of Peace Boat, Japan that works on Asian development.