Japan finance bureaucrat, anti-nuke governor resign amid sex scandals
Latest blow for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
TOKYO: Japan’s top finance bureaucrat resigned yesterday after a weekly magazine said he had sexually harassed several female reporters, the latest blow for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe whose ratings have been hit by a series of scandals. Finance Minister Taro Aso told reporters that he had accepted Administrative Vice Finance Minister Junichi Fukuda’s resignation. It is the latest in a number of headaches for Aso and Abe. A steady trickle of allegations about suspected cronyism and cover-ups has raised doubts about how long Abe can stay in power.
Fukuda denies the allegations against him but told reporters he resigned because he could not further disrupt work at the ministry. He said he still intended to sue the magazine, Shincho. “I am to blame for causing the media report about myself while the finance ministry faces a severe situation,” he said. “Given that the situation after the report has made it difficult for me to fulfill my duty as administrative vice minister, I tendered my resignation to finance minister Aso just now.” He added that he did not recall having the “terrible conversation” reported in the magazine.
Japan has had few reported “#MeToo” cases about sexual harassment involving public figures. Victims are often reluctant to speak out for fear of being blamed. The identity of the female reporters in Fukuda’s case has not been disclosed. The Finance Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that it would continue to investigate the allegations surrounding Fukuda through an external law firm, given that the initial internal factfinding had been conducted by Fukuda’s subordinate. It called on female reporters to come forward and contact the law firm if they were willing to cooperate with the investigation, drawing fire from several cabinet ministers including Seiko Noda, one of only two women in the cabinet.
While Abe has made his “Womenomics” programs to mobilize women in the workforce part of his policies to boost growth, big gender gaps persist at companies and in politics. Abe is currently in the United States for talks with US President Donald Trump, and Aso is set to leave on Thursday for an international meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors in Washington DC.
Governor accused of paying university students for sex
Governor resigns Meanwhile, an anti-nuclear Japanese governor stepped down yesterday after a magazine alleged he paid university students for sex, a resignation that could boost the government’s plan to restart the country’s mothballed reactors. Ryuichi Yoneyama was elected governor of Niigata prefecture in 2016 on a pledge to prevent the restarting of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa power station, the world’s biggest nuclear plant, about 200 kilometers northwest of Tokyo. His unexpected victory, in which he narrowly beat a government-supported candidate, posed a challenge for the pro-nuclear policy of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Yoneyama, a 50-year-old unmarried doctor and lawyer, paid women in their 20s to have sex, according to the Shukan Bunshun weekly magazine. “I decided to step down to avoid further turmoil and to take responsibility for my actions,” he told reporters, bowing deeply in front of the cameras. “It was hard to find someone to date... I did give gifts and money to get attention” from the women, he said. “I wasn’t able to tackle the nuclear issue, which I thought was a historic mission.” A 22-year-old student told the magazine he was “a good client.” Prostitution is illegal in Japan but prosecution is rare. There are seven reactors across the 4.2-million-square meter Kashiwazaki-Kariwa site.
The central government can overrule a governor’s opposition to restarting nuclear reactors. But Abe has promised to win approval from local communities before approving restarts under stricter postFukushima safety rules. Dozens of reactors across Japan were switched off in the aftermath of the March 2011 Fukushima accident, the worst nuclear disaster in a generation, and there are seven currently operating. The catastrophe forced resource-poor Japan to turn to expensive fossil fuels to plug its energy gap. But fears about the safety of nuclear power and radiation exposure linger, challenging a push by Abe and utility companies to switch back on the country’s stable of reactors.