The Japanese Trade Union Confederation (Rengo) has decided to demand bigger wage hikes for part-time, temporary and other nonregular workers than the pay raises for full-time employees during next year's spring wage offensive. We welcome the decision. パートや派遣社員などの非正社員について、正社員を上回る賃上げを求める。そんな春闘方針を連合が決めたことを、評価したい。
The nation's largest labor organization says it will try to narrow the income gap by demanding larger increases in terms of hourly wages for nonregular workers than those for regular employees. Officials at labor unions belonging to Rengo will start discussions Nov. 1 on how to achieve the goal. 時給ベースで正社員を上回る引き上げ額を要求して、格差を縮めていくという。傘下の組織の責任者らが１１月１日から具体策を話し合う。
This is a groundbreaking policy shift for Rengo, which has traditionally focused on the interests of full-time employees who make up 90 percent of its members. 組合員の９割が正社員である連合としては画期的な方針転換だ。
The move was prompted by a decline in the average wage level of Japan's work force due to a sharp rise in nonregular workers. 背中を押したのは、非正社員の急増による働き手全体の賃金低下だった。
Over 15 years since 1995, the number of permanent employees has decreased by about 4 million, while the ranks of nonregular workers have grown by about 7 million to account for more than a third of the overall work force. As a result, the rate of unionized workers has fallen below 20 percent, eroding labor unions' bargaining power. １９９５年からの１５年に正社員は約４００万人減った。非正社員は約７００万人増え、３人に１人を超えた。労組の組織率は２割を切り、企業との交渉力は低下。
Despite the longest postwar economic expansion between 2002 and 2007, the average gross pay for Japanese workers has sunk 12 percent from its peak in 1997. ２００２年から０７年まで「戦後最長の景気拡大」があっても、働き手の１人あたり現金給与総額は９７年のピークから１２％落ち込んだ。
Shrinking paychecks have choked growth in consumer spending. それが消費の停滞も招いた。
In addition, companies shed a huge number of nonpermanent workers during the economic crisis that began in fall 2008. Union members on the regular payroll realized that their positions are being saved at the expense of the jobs of their nonpermanent colleagues, according to union leaders. 加えて、０８年秋の経済危機で大量の非正社員が契約を打ち切られ、「非正社員を犠牲にして正社員が生き残る構図」を目の当たりにしたことも、正社員の組合員たちに衝撃を与えた、と執行部はいう。
In a bid to stem the trend, Rengo has pledged to place greater importance on the interests of nonregular workers, showing its commitment to redressing the disparities between the two groups over the long term. この状況に歯止めをかけるため、非正社員重視を掲げ、中長期的な格差是正への決意を示した。
But it remains unclear how Rengo's new goal can be achieved. だが、実現の道筋は見えていない。
The yen's sharp rise has aroused strong anxiety about the outlook for corporate earnings, and concerns remain about the trend among companies toward shifting operations overseas. 円高ショックの中で企業業績の先行き不安は強く、グローバル化による企業の海外脱出への懸念もなお続く。
What Rengo has decided to demand is a higher share of nonregular workers in the pay increase for next year that doesn't involve a cut in the salaries of full-time employees. Still, it could spark howls of discontent among regular employees. 今回の要求方針は、賃上げ分の中の非正社員への配分増で、正社員分を減らすわけではないが、正社員から不満が噴き出さないとも限らない。
What is needed is a serious joint effort by the unions and the management of individual companies to share income in a fair manner. Such efforts should be based on a clear understanding of the effects of economic inequality on society and businesses. そんな中で必要なことは、格差が社会や企業に及ぼす影響を洗い出し、各企業の労使が正面から向き合って、公正な分配へ向けた成功例や工夫を積み上げていくことではないか。
Last year, Hiroshima Electric Railway Co., in response to a demand by its labor union, gave full-time positions to all contract workers by increasing its funds to pay wages. 日本では昨年、労組の求めに応じて広島電鉄が賃金の原資を増やして全契約社員の正社員化に踏み切った。
In the United States in the late 1990s, a transport industry union staged a prolonged strike at United Parcel Service Inc., a major package delivery company, demanding better working conditions for part-time workers who were paid only about half the hourly wages of full-time employees. The company eventually agreed to a 3-percent pay raise for full-time employees and a 7-percent wage hike for part-timers to narrow the gap. 米国では９０年代後半、運輸業界の労組が大手貨物会社ＵＰＳに対し長期のストを展開。フルタイム労働者の半分程度の時給だったパート労働者の格差是正のため、フルタイム３％、パート７％の賃上げを認めさせた。
In both cases, the union succeeded in getting its demands granted by preventing a division among members. It provided detailed information to members about the issue while enlightening management on the serious effects of income disparities, such as weakened morale and declining quality of services. いずれも、きめ細かい情報提供で労組員の分裂を防ぎ、働き手の連帯感の減退やサービスの質の低下など、格差がもたらす弊害の深刻さについて企業に理解を深めさせた成果だった。
It is also important to support such efforts by establishing a system to ensure fair work conditions based on the principle of equal pay for work of equal value. こうした動きを制度から後押しするため、同一価値労働同一賃金など公正な労働条件づくりを急ぐことも重要だ。
Another key step is to increase the responsibility of companies that use temporary workers placed by staffing agencies. This is crucial for supporting such workers' labor talks with businesses that use them. Unfortunately, this measure has been dropped from the revision to the worker dispatch law. 労働者派遣法改正案からは外れたが、派遣社員の労使交渉を進めるための派遣先の責任強化も課題である。
Bolstering the foundation for economic growth requires ensuring that hard work, either by regular or nonregular workers, is rewarded accordingly. 正規でも非正規でも、まじめに働けば報われる仕組みで、経済の足腰を強くすることが求められている。
A Kansai regional federation to cover the affairs of seven prefectures, including Osaka and Hyogo, is expected to be established before the end of the year. Shiga, Kyoto, Wakayama, Tokushima and Tottori prefectures will also take part in the federation, which will be set up as a special organization under the local autonomy law. 大阪、兵庫など７府県が広い地域の仕事を一緒にしようという「関西広域連合」が年内にも設立される見通しになった。 滋賀、京都、和歌山、徳島、鳥取も参加する。この広域連合は、地方自治法にもとづく特別な組織となる。
Most administrative affairs, such as education and road maintenance, will continue to be under the jurisdiction of each prefecture. However, the seven prefectures will fund joint work in seven areas that they feel are better dealt with collectively, including disaster prevention, promotion of tourism and culture, industrial development, medical provision and environmental conservation. The federation will be run by an assembly of 20 members chosen from prefectural assembly members and a committee of the seven governors. もちろん、教育や道路の維持などほとんどの仕事はこれまでどおり府や県に残るが、７府県はこれからお金を出し合って、互いの地域にまたがる防災や観光・文化振興、産業振興、医療、環境保全など七つの分野で共同の仕事を始める。それぞれの府県議会議員から選ばれる定数２０の議会と、７人の知事からなる委員会を置く。
This is Japan's first attempt to establish a regional federation that transcends prefectural borders. There are pressing needs that the new body can help address, such as getting seriously ill patients to hospitals in neighboring prefectures when no hospitals in the local community will accept them. 府県を超えた広域連合は全国で初めての試みだ。重病の人を受け入れる病院が地元にないときに、今より手早く隣県の病院に運べるような工夫は、幅広く進める必要がある。
As a next step, the organization will consider expanding its remit to improving infrastructure for transportation and goods distribution, and plans to eventually take over functions from central government. 次の段階では交通や物流の基盤整備にも仕事を広げることを検討し、将来は政府の出先機関から権限の移管をめざすという。
Long-held discontent in the local business community is behind the move. Business people question why the Kansai area is lagging behind Tokyo despite its advanced technology and economic strength. There is also an expectation that the new structure will allow the streamlining of administration and some local business leaders, including members of the Kansai Economic Federation, hope the move will advance decentralization. 背景には「関西には技術や経済力がある。なぜ東京に遅れるのか」という地元財界の長い不満と、行政の効率化を浮上のきっかけにしたいという期待がある。「地方分権改革の突破口に」という声も、関西経済連合会をはじめ地元から上がっている。
However, Nara, Fukui and Mie prefectures, which took part in advance consultations about the new federation, decided not to join. Skeptics say that the federation is redundant within the existing structure of government, which is made up of municipalities, prefectures and the central government, and that cooperation is enough in the seven areas the federation will deal with. Another criticism is that the new body will complicate government and obscure where responsibility for lies. だが、事前の協議に加わっていた奈良、福井、三重の３県は参加しない。「市町村―都道府県―政府という現在の制度に屋上屋を架す」「この７分野なら連合ではなく連携で十分」といった反対論からだ。手間がかかる、責任が不明確になるという批判も多い。
The federation agreement asserts that it will not directly lead to a doshusei regional system of government and the abolition of prefectures. While the Kansai Economic Federation and Osaka Governor Toru Hashimoto are positive about the doshusei concept, quite a few other governors are either opposed or cautious about the idea. The federation will start with different views as such. 都道府県をなくす道州制構想との関係について、広域連合は「そのまま道州に転化するものではない」と取り決めに明記した。関経連や大阪府の橋下徹知事は道州制に積極的だが、ほかの知事には反対や慎重論が少なくない。考えが違ったままの船出になる。
Some people have voiced concerns that once the federation is established, funding will be concentrated on densely populated areas, causing surrounding areas to decline. This has been seen to happen in some municipal mergers. Thought is needed to avoid concentration on central areas. 広域連合ができると人口の多い地域にお金が集中し、周辺部がさびれるのではないかと心配する声もある。市町村合併でそんな例があっただけに、中心部に偏らない配慮が欠かせない。
The Kansai region has many historic and cultural sites. It would be more effective for prefectures to work jointly to attract tourists. When natural disaster strikes, prefectures should help each other, not only during the initial emergency response but all the way down the path to full recovery. Will residents actually see results? This could decide whether the federation is successful. 関西は歴史的、文化的遺産が多い。１県で観光客の誘致に取り組むより、一緒にやって成果をあげる。災害がおきたとき、初動の応援だけでなく復旧にいたるまで協力しあう。そういう効果を住民が実感できるか。広域連合がどう育つかの分岐点だろう。
The new federation was forged on the initiative of business people and governors, not ordinary residents. The impetus has come from above, rather than the grass roots. It must ensure that it does more than just increasing the government payroll, and actually present residents with achievements. 広域連合は住民から盛り上がったというよりは、財界や知事の思いから始まった上からの構想だ。新たに職員や人件費だけが増える事態を避けて住民に実績を示さなくてはいけない。
While opinion is divided on this novel experiment, we believe it is worth giving a go and will carefully watch its progress. 様々な賛否があるが、この関西の試みを「まあ、やってみなはれ」と注視したい。
Nagai, with a camera still in his hands, after he was fatally shot by a Burmese soldier. Taken by Adrees Latif, this photo won Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography in 2008. Nagai had been in Burma covering the anti-government protests since Tuesday, September 25. On Thursday, September 27, Nagai was photographing the protests near the Traders Hotel, a few blocks away from the Sule Pagoda in downtown Yangon, when soldiers opened fire on demonstrators, killing Nagai and reportedly injuring another foreign journalist. 長井さん反政府デモを取材するために2007年9月25日にミャンマーに観光ビザで入国した。27日、ヤンゴンのトレーダースホテルから数ブロック離れたスーレ・パゴダ近くでデモを撮影していたが、軍の治安部隊がデモ隊に発砲した際に彼を射殺した。さらに、別の外国人ジャーナリストも負傷した。
Reports initially stated that Nagai was hit by stray bullets fired by soldiers or possibly shot from the front. The "stray bullet" explanation was proposed by the government of Burma as an explanation for Nagai's death. However, video footage obtained by Japanese television appears to show a Burmese soldier shoving Nagai to the ground and shooting him at point-blank range. 当初ミャンマー政府は治安部隊が発砲した際に前からの流れ弾に当たったと説明した。しかし日本のテレビでも放送された別の角度から映されたビデオは、背後から近づいた軍人が至近距離で彼を撃ったと思われる姿を捉えていた。
A still image photographed by Adrees Latif showed the soldier standing over Nagai, who was sprawled on the ground and still clutching his camera. ロイター通信カメラマンのアドリース・ラティーフが撮影した写真が残されている。道路の地面に横たわる長井さんを見下ろしているビルマ兵士の映像であり、長井さんの手にはまだカメラがしっかりと握りしめられていた。
This photograph appeared on the front page of The New York Times on September 28, 2007. この写真は２００７年９月２８日付けのニューヨークタイムズに掲載された。
A subsequent shot showed Nagai's body sprawled in the street as the soldier walked away. その直後の銃撃で長井さんは道路上に倒れ、兵士は去っていった。
Judging from the patch, the soldier responsible is believed to be from one of the Light Infantry Divisions (possibly LID 66) in charge of crowd control in Yangon at the time of protests. これらの状況から判断できることは、この兵士が長井さんを射殺したということ。デモ制圧のビルマ部隊LIDによる犯行だ。
At the Japanese embassy in Burma, a physician established the trajectory of the fatal bullet that killed Nagai, determining that the bullet entered Nagai's chest from the lower right side and pierced his heart before exiting from his back. 在ビルマ日本大使館によると、ドクターの所見では銃弾は背後から撃たれたもので右胸低部から心臓を突き抜けていた。（日本語版と齟齬がありますが、英語版の翻訳です by srachai)
On October 8, new footage showing how a Burmese soldier apparently confiscated fallen Nagai's video camera was revealed on a Japanese news show. 2008年１０月８日、日本のニュースショウで銃弾でたおれた長井さんよりビデオカメラを没収するビルマ軍兵士の様子が放映された。
Adrees Latif's photo, depicting Nagai sprawling on the pavement before his death, won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography in 2008. 2008年4月7日、ロイター通信カメラマンのアドリース・ラティーフが撮影した写真で健司が射殺されたシーンがピューリッツァー賞ニュース速報写真部門に選ばれた。
Response その後の動き
Reporters Without Borders condemned the killing of Nagai, noting that Nagai was carrying a camera in his hand when he was shot, identifying him as a journalist. The director of the RWB's Washington, D.C. branch, Lucie Morillon, said that Nagai was "left to die in the street." 国境なき記者団は健司の殺害を非難した。ワシントン支局長のルーシー・モリロンは「彼が撃たれた時、カメラを手にしていてジャーナリストと識別出来た筈だ」と語った。長井さんは通りで狙撃されて命を失った、と国境なき記者団のダイレクターは語った。
Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda bemoaned Nagai's death as "extremely unfortunate" and Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura offered his prayers and condolences. 福田康夫首相は「長井さんが亡くなられた事はまことに残念で、お悔やみを申し上げる」と述べた。
Machimura said: "We strongly protest the Myanmar government and demand an investigation (into the death). We demand (Myanmar) take appropriate steps to ensure the safety of the Japanese citizens in that country." 町村信孝官房長官は「日本政府は弾圧的な実力行使をしないように求めてきたが、邦人が巻き込まれて犠牲になった事は極めて遺憾だ。ミャンマー政府に強く抗議する」と述べると共に「事件の真相究明をミャンマー政府に求めていく」と発言。更に「在留邦人の安全確保のため、適切な対処を求める」と述べた。
Japan's Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura stated that Japan holds Burma accountable for the death of Kenji Nagai. 高村正彦外務大臣は長井さんの死亡につきビルマ政府に説明を求めると語った。
According to Komura, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told him that the "international community cannot allow peaceful protesters to be killed and injured". 高村正彦外務大臣によると、アメリカのコンドリーザ・ライス国務長官は高村外相と会談した際「国際社会は平和なデモ参加者が殺されて、傷つけられるのを許容する事は出来ない」と発言している。
On September 28, Masahiko Komura lodged a protest over the killing of Nagai when he met with Burma's Foreign Minister Nyan Win at the United Nations Headquarters. In the meeting, Nyan Win apologized for Nagai's death. ９月２８日、高村正彦外務大臣はニューヨークの国連本部でミャンマーのニャン・ウィン（Nyan Win）外相と会談。「平和的デモに強圧的な実力行使が行われ、日本人が死亡した。大変遺憾であり強く抗議する」と述べ、ウィン外相が謝罪した。また「報道の映像で見る限り、至近距離から射殺されており決して流れ弾のようなものではない。真相解明を強く求める」と発言した。
Yabunaka Mitoji, Deputy Minister for Japanese Foreign Affairs, left for Burma on September 30. 外務省は９月３０日に薮中三十二外務審議官をミャンマーに派遣。
Although Nyan Win officially apologized, an October 13 article locally published in the government-owned Mirror newspaper offered a different view of the events. It claimed that Nagai had entered the country using a tourist visa instead of proper journalist visa and faulted the cameraman for failing to get a permit to cover the news inside Burma. It emphasized that the event occurred at the time of martial law being imposed and the soldiers could not differentiate between a Burmese citizen and a Japanese because of the resemblance in Asian looks. ミャンマー国営紙・ミラーは2007年10月13日付の記事にて、「観光ビザで入国したために起きた悲劇。ジャーナリストとして活動するならば、適切な申請を行うべきであった」と批判した。 事件は戒厳令下に発生した。同じ東洋人でビルマ人と見分けがつかなかった。（嘘です、一目瞭然です by srachai)
Nagai's father, Hideo, told the media: "I don't want Myanmar authorities and the government to resort to such measures. I want them to prevent something like this from happening again." According to Japan's Foreign minister Masahiko Komura, Japan is considering curbing development aid for Burma. 長井さんの父親はメディアを通してビルマ政府にこのような乱暴な手段を使わないで将来同種の悲劇が発生しないように要求した。 高村正彦外務大臣はビルマ向けODA削減を制裁措置として考慮していると発表した。
"The Group Protesting the Murder of Mr. Nagai by the Army of Myanmar" was founded by Japanese journalists, intellectuals and celebrities in order to protest Nagai's killing and petition for the return of his camera and tape. By November 2007 the group collected 20,000 signatures, primarily in Japan. On November 26, 2007, the group posted an English version of the letter on their website and started collecting signatures internationally. 長井さんのビルマ取材活動中の死に抗議して日本で抗議活動グループが結成された。長井さんの遺品であるビデオカメラや記録テープの返還をビルマ政府に求める活動を行う。 ２００７年１１月までには二万人余りの賛同を得ている（日本）。 英語版のレターを発行して世界に向けて賛同者を募集中。
Count down begins - only 16 days to my release (hopefully) from my house arrest about 9 hours ago via Seesmic Desktop 多分（願わくば）あと１６日で私（スーチー女子）は自宅軟禁から解放される見込みです。秒読み段階です。
Plaid_Kimoon It is not too late for the polls in Myanmar to become more inclusive. All that is required is the release of political detainees. 12:48 PM Oct 26th via web バンキムーン国連事務総長、いまからでも遅くありません。拘留中の政治犯の釈放を求めます。ビルマ総選挙に参加させてやってください。
Philippines to break ASEAN poll silence about our elections: http://bit.ly/dif4L6 about 9 hours ago via Seesmic Desktop フィリピンのアキノ大統領ASEANで異例のビルマ選挙批判。
The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 28, 2010) Kan must take initiative to join TPP negotiations 太平洋経済連携 首相は交渉参加に指導力を（10月27日付・読売社説）
Members of the government and the Democratic Party of Japan are split over whether Japan should join an economic partnership framework to liberalize trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region. アジア太平洋で貿易や投資を自由化する経済連携に加わるかどうか。政府や民主党内などで意見が対立している。
It is extremely important for Japan's economic growth that this nation harnesses the economic vitality of nations in Asia and elsewhere. アジアなどの経済活力を取り込み、成長を実現していくことは、日本にとって極めて重要な課題だ。
We urge Prime Minister Naoto Kan to exercise leadership to quickly form a consensus within his party on this matter, and make sure Japan is actively involved in the partnership framework. 菅首相は指導力を発揮して党内の意見集約を急ぎ、この連携に積極的に参加できるよう、決断すべきだ。
The framework is called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, whose original agreement came into force in 2006 with four members--Brunei, Chile, New Zealand and Singapore. Five more nations including the United States and Australia later started negotiations to join the partnership. The nine nations have been negotiating with the target of concluding a final agreement next autumn. 構想は、２００６年にシンガポール、チリなど４か国で発足した自由貿易圏が母体で、環太平洋戦略的経済連携協定（ＴＰＰ）と呼ばれる。米国や豪州なども後から参加し、来秋の合意を目指して９か国で交渉している。
Canada, China and South Korea are reportedly keen to join the TPP. It is highly likely that this grouping will eventually expand into a huge strategic economic partnership agreement. カナダ、中国、韓国も参加に前向きとされ、将来、大連携に発展する可能性が高いだろう。
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Chance to grow at stake
If Japan does not join the TPP, it would be excluded from a framework indispensable for the country's economic development. We think the government would be wise to join the negotiations as early as possible to boost trade and give economic growth a shot in the arm. 日本がＴＰＰに不参加なら、経済発展に欠かせない枠組みから締め出されてしまう。早期に交渉に加わり、貿易拡大や新たな成長を目指すのは当然の判断だ。
Discussions for and against participation in the TPP came to life after Kan told the Diet he would consider joining the negotiations. 賛否の論議が活発になったのは、首相が交渉参加を検討すると国会で述べたのが発端だ。
Japan's strategy on economic partnership agreements has fallen behind those of South Korea and other countries. The government will at long last formulate a basic policy on EPAs in early November. It seems Kan wants to include Japan's participation in the TPP in this basic policy. 経済連携協定（ＥＰＡ）の戦略で韓国などに出遅れた日本は、ようやく、１１月上旬にＥＰＡ基本方針を策定する。首相はＴＰＰ参加を盛り込みたいようだ。
The timing of these developments suggests Kan would like to lead discussions on promoting free trade at a series of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings to be held in Yokohama next month. Kan will be chairman of the APEC summit. 来月横浜で開くアジア太平洋経済協力会議（ＡＰＥＣ）で、首相は議長として自由貿易推進の議論を主導する狙いもうかがえる。
Japan urgently needs to regain lost ground in its trade policy. We welcome Kan's zeal for joining the TPP. 通商政策の巻き返しは急務であり、首相の意欲は評価したい。
However, difficulties lie ahead. The TPP defines rules to abolish tariffs of commodities in principle. If Japan signed on to the agreement, it would be required to abolish tariffs on agricultural products such as rice, which have been protected by high customs duties. Therefore, the framework will pose some vexing problems for Japan. しかし、ＴＰＰは原則、物品の関税を撤廃するルールだ。高関税で保護されている日本のコメなどの農産物も関税撤廃を迫られかねず、高いハードルでもある。
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Conflicts of interest
Agricultural organizations and the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry fiercely oppose joining the TPP. Former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, former Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Masahiko Yamada and many other DPJ members participated in a recent study meeting for DPJ members who oppose the TPP. They are at odds with the Foreign Ministry, the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry and the business community, which are all for participation in the TPP. 農業団体と農水省は猛反発し、ＴＰＰ参加に反対する民主党の会合には鳩山前首相や山田前農相らが出席した。推進派の外務、経産両省や経済界と対立している。
We think Hatoyama and other TPP opponents are more concerned with trying to rattle the Kan administration than actually objecting to the trade partnership. 鳩山前首相らは、ＴＰＰ反対より、政権への揺さぶりを優先しているのではないか。
Admittedly, diametrically differing estimates of the effects of Japan's participation in the TPP have created confusion. METI and others say joining the TPP would help Japan's economy by about 7 trillion yen to 10 trillion yen in 2020. However, the farm ministry says participation would result in a loss of nearly 16 trillion yen, if the decline in agricultural production and effects on other industries are factored into the equation. ＴＰＰ参加の影響に関する正反対の試算が混乱を招いているのは事実だ。経産省などは、ＴＰＰの経済効果を約７兆～１０兆円と試算したが、農水省は生産縮小などの損失が１６兆円に達するとした。
The government needs to settle on one final figure and show it to the people. Failure to do so will leave the public unable to judge whether joining the TPP would be to Japan's advantage or not. 政府は効果の試算を一本化し、国民に示すべきだ。それがなければ、的確な判断はできまい。
The DPJ-led government has introduced income support for individual agricultural households, but it has done nothing to improve the international competitiveness of Japan's agricultural products. It should review this dole-out policy and quickly formulate measures to revamp the nation's agriculture sector to prepare for liberalization of the market. 民主党政権は、農家の戸別所得補償制度を導入したが、国際競争力向上の視点を欠く。ばらまき政策を見直し、自由化に備えた農業の強化策を急がねばならない。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 27, 2010) （2010年10月27日01時46分 読売新聞）
The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 27, 2010) Japan, India must deepen security, economic ties インド首相来日 経済・安保両面で連携深めよ（10月26日付・読売社説）
India, a major power in South Asia, is not only a promising market with a fast-developing economy but also a country that shares concerns with Japan over China's military expansion. 南アジアの大国インドは、経済発展が著しい有力な市場というだけでなく、中国の軍事的膨張への懸念を日本と共有する国である。
Tokyo should strategically enhance its partnership with India in both economic and security fields. 経済、安全保障の両面で、戦略的に連携を強化する必要があろう。
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Japan this week and agreed with Prime Minister Naoto Kan to establish a ministerial-level economic dialogue between the two countries. インドのシン首相が来日し、菅首相との首脳会談で、「日印閣僚級経済対話」を新設することで合意した。
Japan has been holding similar ministerial talks with China. But the aftermath of a Chinese fishing vessel's collision with Japan Coast Guard patrol boats off the Senkaku Islands in September has revealed that China, under the single-party regime of the Chinese Communist Party, does not hesitate to use high-handed diplomatic measures over economic and personnel exchanges to push its political demands. 日本は、同様の閣僚級協議を中国とも設けている。しかし、中国は、尖閣諸島沖の漁船衝突事件で露呈したように、共産党独裁体制の下、政治的要求を通すために経済や人的交流も絡めた圧力外交を平気で行う国である。
By contrast, India is a democratic country and shares similar values with Japan, such as the rule of law. It does not present the political risks that China does. Besides, India has a population of 1.2 billion, the second largest after China, and maintains a high economic growth rate of 9 percent annually. 一方、インドは民主主義国家であり、法の支配などの価値観も同じだ。中国のような政治的リスクはない。加えて、中国に次ぐ１２億人の人口を抱え、約９％の高成長を続けている。
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Economic enhancement
Enhancement of Japan's economic partnership with India will alleviate the nation's economic dependence on China. インドとの経済連携の強化は、中国への経済的依存の軽減に大いに役立つだろう。
In their summit talks, Kan and Singh also agreed that Japan will help India increase production of rare earths, which are indispensable in manufacturing many high-tech products. India's output of rare earths is far behind China's but is still the second largest in the world. 首脳会談では、ハイテク製品の製造に不可欠なレアアース（希土類）の生産拡大に日本が協力することでも一致した。インドのレアアースの生産量は、中国に大きく引き離されてはいるが、それでも世界２位だ。
We think Japan's cooperation agreement with India in this field is very timely because it is an urgent task for Japan to redress the current situation, in which the nation is totally dependent on China for its imports of rare earths. レアアースの輸入を中国に全面的に依存する現状を是正することは、日本にとって喫緊の課題であり、インドとの協力はまさに時宜を得たものと言える。
The two leaders also officially endorsed an economic partnership agreement and promised each other to put it into effect as soon as possible. 両首脳は、経済連携協定（ＥＰＡ）についても正式合意し、早期に発効させることを約束した。
With the agreement, India's tariffs on imports of Japanese auto parts and steel would be abolished within 10 years. This would enable Japanese companies manufacturing products in India to drastically reduce the costs of procuring parts from Japan. 自動車部品や鉄鋼などに課されているインドの関税は、１０年以内に撤廃される。現地生産する日本企業は、日本からの部品調達コストを大きく削減できよう。
The agreement also will simplify procedures for Japanese businesspeople to obtain visas for brief visits or longer stays in India. It will surely help expand business opportunities for Japan in the country. 短期出張や企業駐在員向けのビザ（査証）の手続きも簡素化される。インド市場でのビジネス拡大に役立つことは確実だろう。
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Security cooperation
Security cooperation between the two countries is significant, too. Japan faces a direct threat from China's maritime expansion in the East China Sea, while India is exposed to a similar threat in the Indian Ocean. 安全保障面の協力も重要だ。日本は東シナ海で、インドはインド洋で、中国の海洋進出による直接的な脅威にさらされている。
Japan and India should actively utilize vice-ministerial talks between their foreign and defense ministries, which were established at the end of last year, to discuss common strategy regarding China, such as measures to ensure the safety of sea lanes. 昨年末に新設した外務、防衛両省の次官級協議を積極的に活用して、シーレーン（海上交通路）の安全確保などに関する対中戦略を協議すべきだ。
The two countries also need to seek partnerships with the United States, and then with the Southeast Asian countries that stand at the forefront of friction with China. To realize this goal, Japan and India, regional powers in Asia, must further deepen bilateral relations. 米国に加え、南シナ海で対中摩擦の最前線に立つ東南アジア各国とも連携を図る必要がある。そのためにも、地域の大国である日本とインドは、２国間関係をいっそう深めなければならない。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 26, 2010) （2010年10月26日01時52分 読売新聞）
Former Political Prisoners Fear Repatriation 民主化運動の政治犯は（タイ政府による）ビルマ本国強制送還を恐れる
By ALEX ELGEE Wednesday, October 20, 2010
MAE SOT, Thailand—For six years, Thiha Yazar was isolated from the world in a prison cell in eastern Burma. The prison guards had been ordered not to communicate with him.
“The worst thing about that time was having no sense of the future or the past,” Thiha told The Irrawaddy. “I was completely alone and lost.”
The cell had one small window, and to keep himself from being too lonely, he would talk to birds. “I would ask them to go and say hello to my daughter for me.”
At night, he would talk to the moon and stars. “They kept me company; they were my only friends,” Thiha said.
Despite the isolation and depression he felt over the years, he doesn’t see that period of isolation as the worst part of the 18-years he spent in prison. The worst part was during the 25-day period when he was tortured following his role in a hunger strike over the lack of prison rights.
They stripped him and beat him till he couldn’t stand up any more. “The next day I woke up with bruises all over my body, but they propped me up and beat me again,” he said, still visibly shaken by the memory. “And the next day and the next, for 25 days—I thought I would die.”
Thiha’s story is one of thousands which have come out of Burmese prisons, where many political prisoners are tortured and denied basic prison rights. Their only crime, Thiha says, “is to fight for democracy, freedom and basic human rights in our country where the regime has denied the people everything.”
To raise awareness about the situation of political prisoners, Thiha has teamed up with Canadian journalist Paul Pickrem and written an account of his imprisonment. The book, “No Easy Road: A Burmese Political Prisoner’s Story,” chronicles his life growing up as the child of an army colonel, his sentence to death for high treason at the age of 25, and up until the time he fled to the Thai-Burma border.
“I want the international community to know about my life so people can better understand the situation for all political prisoners, and what our families go through,” he said.
When he went to prison, his daughter was three years old and on his release, she didn’t recognize him. “She said she knew I was her daddy but didn’t know who I was. Then she blamed me for her mother’s death.”
Her mother had a heart attack when his daughter was six years old. She had a bad heart, and Thiha believes the pressure of having her husband in prison was too much for her.
“It is not only my case, but all political prisoners. Our families are bullied and stigmatized by local pro-junta groups. It was too much for her.”
The book's release has coincided with the upcoming 2010 election, to be held on on Nov. 7. Like many political prisoners who have sought refuge on the Thai-Burma border, Thiha sees no hope for any real change after the election.
“If we get the rotten food in prison, and then they change the plate from a red plate to white plate, the food will still taste the same. It means, if the regime changes their clothes, it will still be a bad situation for our country,” he said.
“We can see that the generals are doing everything the way they want. How can we expect change when there are still 2,200 political prisoners inside prisons on Election Day?”
Bo Kyi, the joint secretary of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP), echoed the sentiment. “Now all the key political leaders are in prison, like Aung San Suu Kyi, Min Ko Naing and other ethnic leaders; as long as they are in prison there will be no national reconciliation process,” he said.
“People really trust those leaders. People really want them to lead the country so people will not want to vote. They will only vote because they are threatened by the USDP.
“If the regime really wanted a credible election, then they would release all political prisoners so they can be included in the national political process,” he said.
Bo Kyi said that he received messages from some of the student leaders inside prison, who have stated that they all reject the upcoming elections.
Although the regime offered them freedom if they publicly supported the election, they declared that they stood by the “Maubin Declaration,” an agreement between a group of student leaders that said they would not accept the elections unless all political prisoners are released.
There are currently nearly 2,200 political prisoners in Burmese prisons across the country. The AAPP says political prisoners are denied adequate medical treatment and placed in prisons far from their families as a form of psychological torture.
The AAPP has documented the torture of political prisoners in a report that was released on Tuesday titled “Torture, Political Prisoners and the Un-rule of Law: Challenges to Peace, Security and Human Rights in Burma.”
In the report, many political prisoners said the effects of torture remain with them for the rest of their life. Pa Htee Than Hla, a 63-year-old resident of Umpium refugee camp, said he still suffers from injuries sustained during torture.
An ethnic Karen, he worked with the Karen National Union and received a death sentence when he was captured, later changed to 23 years in prison.
Like many political prisoners who flee to Thailand, he said his life was at risk in Burma and he faced constant harassment by the authorities.
Recalling the days after his release, Thiha said members of the Union Solidarity Development Association would come to his house every day and try to force him to become an informer.
“I just wanted to live with my daughter, but it got worse and worse. Finally, they were physically attacking me in the street and shouting that I was a terrorist when I visited the market,” said Thiha.
Although many former political prisoners come to Thailand with high hopes of a better life and freedom in a new country, their dreams are often shattered. In this area, more than 120 former political prisoners are unrecognized by the United Nations as refugees, and they live in fear of arrest and repatriation by Thai authorities.
Aye Myin Soe, a spokesman for a campaign recently launched to try and bring attention to the plight of unrecognized political prisoners, said: “We asked the UN why we cannot be registered, and they said it is out of their hands, only Thailand decides that. So we are left in limbo, concerned about our future, and our families’ future.”
Many unrecognized political prisoners icing in Thailand say it sometime feels like prison here because they are always worried about being arrested.
With the election just weeks away and with little hope that it will change the political situation in Burma, many political former prisoners are concerned that Thai authorities will repatriate them, and they are preparing for the worst. Thiha said he has already made up his mind about what he will do, should that happen.
“I will commit suicide before being sent back,” he said. “It doesn’t matter. If we are sent back, the regime will take away our lives. We will have no future.”
Burma's highest court has agreed to hear my final appeal for release from house arrest. I want to be out before the election. 9:01 AM Oct 22nd via Seesmic Desktop （アウンサンスーチー女史） ビルマ最高裁判所は私（スーチー女史）の自宅軟禁を解除してくれるようにとの要望を受諾してくれました。できれば総選挙前に解放されたい。
@Plaid_Hu I'm tricky like that! Guess the Junta never noticed the satelite dish I had installed on the roof. 9:00 AM Oct 22nd via Seesmic Desktop in reply to Plaid_Hu （アウンサンスーチー女史） 胡錦濤国家主席、秘密をうちあけましょう。ジャンタ（軍事政権）が自宅の屋根の上に設置したサテライトパラボラアンテナに気がついていないだけなのです。 （これは軍事政権が容認しているものと考えられます。民主化の流れは中国でもそうですし、ビルマ軍事政権も考えているということです。ビルマ軍は国防上大切な役目を担っています。そのうちきっとわかってくれると確信します by srachai）
Great story. "How can we expect change when there are still 2,200 political prisoners on election day?” http://bit.ly/b3O0Ds 10:23 AM Oct 20th via Seesmic Desktop （アウンサンスーチー女史） 選挙が迫る中、いまだ２２００人の人々が政治犯として拘留されている。こんな状況では、なにができるのかわからない。（民主化への望みは達成されない）
I agree. "Election will be credible only if the junta allows opposition leaders & ethnic minorities to participate" -UN rights investigator 1:40 PM Oct 19th via Seesmic Desktop （アウンサンスーチー女史） 国連人権調査員の意見に賛成します→選挙は反対勢力のリーダー（スーチーさん）と少数民族を選挙に参加させることで初めて有効となるものだ。（信頼できるものだ）
For Japan to survive intense international competition, there is no alternative but to build a nation driven by science and technological development. But it seems to us that the government is making light of this premise. 日本が厳しい国際競争を生き抜くには、「科学技術立国」を目指す以外に道はない。 その前提が軽んじられていないだろうか。
Many science-related budgetary allocations, including subsidies to sustain a wide range of basic research, are subject to "policy contests" in which budgetary requests by government ministries and agencies in the fiscal 2011 budget will be screened publicly. 幅広い基礎研究を支える科学研究費補助金など、多くの科学関連予算が、来年度の予算編成で、各省庁の要望を公開審査などでふるいにかける「政策コンテスト」の対象になった。
State-run universities, which are instrumental in promoting research and fostering human resources, are included in the list of entities to be publicly screened. Operational subsidies, which are the universities' major financial lifeline, will be cut by about 56 billion yen--or nearly 5 percent--if all of their requests are rejected during the public screening. The 56 billion yen corresponds to the entire amount of subsidies provided to Kyoto University, the second-biggest amount among national universities. 研究や人材育成の担い手である国立大も、この対象に含まれている。主要な財源となっている運営費交付金は、コンテストで全敗すると前年度比で約５６０億円、５％近い大幅減となる。 交付金が２番目に多い京都大のほぼ１校分の削減額だ。
Protect university subsidies
Since state-run universities were turned into incorporated bodies in 2004, state subsidies to them have been trimmed by about 1 percent annually--a total cut of just over 80 billion yen. This might exacerbate the current severe situation under which it is difficult to maintain research and education levels. ２００４年の法人化後、国立大の交付金は毎年約１％ずつ減らされ、すでに削減総額は８００億円以上になる。研究と教育の水準維持も厳しい状況だが、これに拍車がかかりかねない。
About 210 billion yen, or 15 percent, of the budgetary requests for promoting science and technology projects--direct investments in this important field--will be subject to public screening. Also subject to scrutiny is the budget for a space probe to succeed Hayabusa, which earlier this year returned to Earth after completing its mission to the Itokawa asteroid. 科学技術への直接投資である科学技術振興費についても、概算要求額の約１５％、２１００億円分がコンテストにかけられる。小惑星探査を実現した「はやぶさ」の後継機も対象に含まれる。
The important thing is to promote research and development in both basic and practical fields while fostering capable personnel. Government investment should be decided from comprehensive and strategic viewpoints. 大切なのは、研究開発を基礎と応用の両面で進めつつ、有能な人材を育てていくことだ。政府の投資も、総合的、戦略的な観点から決定されるべきだろう。
Screening science budgets, in which participants vie for superiority from a short-term perspective against other government policies, will open the door to serious problems in the future. 国の多種多様な政策と一列に並べて、短期的な視点から優劣を競わせるコンテストに委ねることは将来に禍根を残す。
Final decisions on whether the projects will go ahead will be made by an evaluation panel comprising government leaders. We hope the panel will at least scrutinize individual projects closely so as not to nip promising programs in the bud. 最終的な採否は、政府幹部らで作る評価会議が決める。少なくとも個々の事業を丁寧に精査し、可能性を秘めた芽まで摘んでしまわぬよう、努めてもらいたい。
Many people in the science and technology field are concerned that there could be a repeat of last autumn's open budget screening to eliminate waste in government spending. 特に、科学技術関係者は、公開で行われた昨秋の事業仕分けの再現を心配している。
Investments in future vital
The advisability of the government's project to develop a world-class supercomputer was questioned at a screening panel last year. One panel member even asked why Japan should try to develop the world's fastest computer. It is foolhardy to cut a budget without understanding how importance the project is. 政府の高速コンピューター開発事業が「世界一でなくてはダメなのか」と叩(たた)かれるなど、厳しい逆風にさらされた。重要性を理解できないまま切る、では困る。
The policy contests--and the opportunity to divide up more than 1 trillion yen set aside by the government--were introduced in return for a uniform 10 percent cut from the previous fiscal year in budgetary requests by all government ministries and agencies. 政策コンテストは、全省庁が前年度より概算要求額を一律１０％減らす見返りとして導入された。総額は１兆円超の見通しだ。
Most science-related budgets are compiled by the Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry. Due to constraints such as the 10 percent cut in budgetary requests and the 400 billion yen required for free high school education--an important policy of the ruling parties--subsidies for state-run universities will be screened. 科学関連予算の大半は文部科学省が編成を担う。だが、１０％削減と、与党の重要政策である高校無償化の経費約４０００億円が足かせとなり、国立大交付金などはコンテストに頼る結果になった。
We think high school tuition should only be made free if there is an income ceiling on recipients, so that only families who cannot afford to pay are entitled to the financial aid. 高校無償化は所得を制限し本当に必要な人向けにすべきだ。
Investments in the future should not be trimmed because money has to be set aside for government hand-out policies. バラマキ支給のしわ寄せで、未来への投資を削っていいはずがない。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 25, 2010) （2010年10月25日01時01分 読売新聞）
Plaid_SuuKyi The new flag has a white star in the middle with 3 columns of color - yellow, green and red. http://bit.ly/d3BQfl 1,287,763,699,000.00 via Seesmic Desktop Reply Retweet . （アウンサンスーチー女史） 新しい国旗は白い星印が三色旗の上に表示されている。三色は黄色、緑、赤。
Plaid_SuuKyi Yesterday the junta reveiled our new national flag, its suppose to stand for solidarity, peace & tranquility, & courage & decisiveness. 1,287,763,611,000.00 via Seesmic Desktop Reply Retweet . （アウンサンスーチー女史） 昨日ジャンタ（軍事政権）はビルマの新しい国旗を発表した。団結、平和平穏、勇気と決意を表すモチーフとなっている。
Plaid_SuuKyi My house arrest is due to expire on Nov 13 a week after the election. 1,287,763,334,000.00 via Seesmic Desktop Reply Retweet . （アウンサンスーチー女史） 私の自宅軟禁解除は総選挙の実施日より一週間後の１１月１３日になる見込み。
Plaid_SuuKyi Burma's highest court has agreed to hear my final appeal for release from house arrest. I want to be out before the election. 9:01 AM Oct 22nd via Seesmic Desktop （アウンサンスーチー女史） ビルマ最高裁には私の自宅軟禁解除の願いを聞いてもらった。総選挙の前に解放されることを願う。
Plaid_Hu Surprised the Myanmar Government allows @plaid_suukyi to use Twitter and have access to the Internet #imjustsayin 11:24 PM Oct 21st via web （胡錦濤国家主席） ビルマ政府がスーチーさんのtwitterをよく許したものだ。インターネットにもアクセスできている。驚いた。 （今までジャンタにより制限されていたのは間違いないと思う ｂｙスラチャイ）
Doesn't help the vote: "ASEAN has a non-interference policy that makes the bloc shy away from each of its member state’s domestic affairs." about 3 hours ago via web
Thanks @Plaid_Kimoon for expressing grave concern over the Junta not releasing me before the election. http://bit.ly/duXQud about 3 hours ago via web
The Junta has banned my National League for Democracy from taking part in this vote. about 3 hours ago via web Reply Retweet . The Junta have block any international monitors for the election. about 3 hours ago via web
I will not be voting in the elections, but I am not formally calling for a general boycott of the poll. about 3 hours ago via web
Still under house arrest and will be for the upcoming elections. about 3 hours ago via web
The Yomiuri Shimbun (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 19, 2010) Chinese leaders must calm anti-Japan rallies 反日デモ拡大 中国指導部は沈静化を急げ（10月19日付・読売社説）
Even as official Japan-China relations have been improving, a string of large anti-Japan demonstrations have been taking place in inland Chinese cities such as Chengdu, Xian and Wuhan. 日中関係が改善に向かう中で、中国の成都、西安、武漢など内陸部の都市で大規模な反日デモが相次いで発生した。
Involving thousands to tens of thousands of people, the demonstrations began at the end of last week over the September incident involving the collision of a Chinese fishing boat and Japan Coast Guard patrol vessels off the Senkaku Islands. 数千から数万人規模の反日デモは、尖閣諸島沖の漁船衝突事件に抗議して、先週末から発生した。
University students joined the demonstrations, responding to cell-phone text messages urging them to protest, and some ordinary citizens followed them. 携帯電話のショートメールの呼びかけに応じて大学生を中心に一般住民も加わった。
Some demonstrators became violent and attacked Japanese supermarkets and restaurants, breaking their windows. Rioters also burned Japanese national flags, turned over Japanese automobiles and left streets in shambles. 暴徒化した一部は、日系のスーパーや飲食店を襲撃し、ガラスを割るなどした。日本国旗を焼き払い、日本製自動車を横転させるなどの乱暴狼藉(ろうぜき)ぶりだった。
Similar demonstrations seem to be spreading to other cities in China. They are a serious concern for Japan-China relations. デモは、さらに他の都市にも拡大する様相を見せている。日中関係にとって憂慮すべき事態だ。
Chinese authorities must use every means at their disposal to stop demonstrations from turning into riots, protect the safety of Japanese residents and avoid any disruption to the operations of Japanese companies in the country. 中国当局は、デモの暴徒化を防ぎ、邦人の安全確保や、日系企業の事業に支障が出ないよう、万全の措置を講じるべきだ。
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Chinese youth frustrated
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said, "It is understandable that some people expressed their outrage against the recent erroneous words and deeds on the Japanese side." This stance sounds as if Beijing is encouraging illegal acts. 中国外務省の報道局長が「一部の群衆が日本の誤った言動に対して憤りを表明することは理解できる」と発言した。不法行為を助長するような政府の姿勢である。
University students living in inland regions of China have been suffering from a serious hiring slump. Economic disparities are also spreading between urban and rural regions of the country. 内陸部に住む大学生の就職難は深刻だ。都市と地方との経済格差も広がっている。
In addition to these factors of social instability, young people born from 1980 on have been taught anti-Japanese propaganda to stir their patriotic and nationalistic sentiment, education that was strengthened under the government of former Chinese President Jiang Zemin. Any little catalyst can prompt them to anti-Japan action. こうした社会不安に加えて、１９８０年以降に生まれた若者たちは、江沢民・前政権時代に強化された反日＝愛国・民族主義教育を受けており、わずかなきっかけで「反日」に走りやすい。
The international community is paying even more attention to the democratization of China, especially since imprisoned activist Liu Xiaobo was awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize. Leaders of the Chinese Communist Party are apparently most afraid that young people's frustrations, which are now taking the form of anti-Japan protests, could transform into antigovernment movements demanding democracy. 民主活動家、劉暁波氏にノーベル平和賞の授与が決まり、世界も中国の民主化の動きを注視している。こうした中で、若者たちの不満が、反日から民主化を求める反政府デモに転化する事態を、共産党指導部は最も恐れている。
That is why some observers suspect Chinese security authorities are maneuvering anti-Japan demonstrations to alleviate young people's discontent. 治安当局が若者たちの不満を和らげるため反日デモを誘導しているのではないか、との見方すら出ているのもこのためだ。
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Chinese leaders tested
The latest demonstrations happened during the plenary meeting of the party's Central Committee. Some observers have even said that it is difficult to rule out the possibility that the military and the conservative wing of the party, which are profoundly wary of Japan, have staged the demonstrations to pressure party leaders so they will not readily make concessions to Tokyo over the Senkaku incident. 今回のデモは、党中央委員会総会の期間と重なって起きた。対日警戒感が根強い軍・党内保守派から党指導部に対して、安易に日本に妥協しないよう、圧力を加えるために仕組まれた可能性も排除できないだろう。
Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping was elected vice chairman of the party's Central Military Commission at the committee's plenary meeting. This makes Xi certain to succeed party General Secretary Hu Jintao at the party's congress in autumn of 2012. We believe Xi needs to realize the significance of China's relations with Japan. 党中央委総会では、習近平国家副主席が、中央軍事委員会副主席に選出された。習氏が２０１２年秋の次期党大会で、胡錦濤総書記の後継者となることが確実になった。習氏は対日関係の重要性を理解する必要があるだろう。
Early this month, Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao confirmed in Brussels that they would promote a strategic, mutually beneficial relationship between their countries. However, if anti-Japan demonstrations continue to happen frequently in China, efforts to mend bilateral relations might fail. Chinese leaders' stance on the matter is being tested. 日中両首脳は今月上旬のブリュッセルでの会談で、戦略的互恵関係の推進を確認したばかりだ。だが、反日デモが頻発するようでは関係修復は頓挫しかねない。中国指導部の姿勢が問われている。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 19, 2010) （2010年10月19日01時30分 読売新聞）
The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 19, 2010) Low-cost carriers will ignite airfare war 格安航空参入 本格化する「空」の価格競争（10月18日付・読売社説）
Foreign low-cost carriers (LCCs) are lining up to enter the Japanese market. They are catching the eyes of customers by offering ultralow fares--for example, 5,000 yen for Haneda-Kuala Lumpur flights and 4,000 yen on the Ibaraki-Shanghai route. 羽田―クアラルンプール５０００円、茨城―上海４０００円――。 こうした超割安運賃を売り物に、海外の格安航空会社が相次いで日本市場に進出している。
Airfares in Japan are said to be the highest in the world. Intensified price competition will be ringing alarm bells at major domestic airlines, which have provided service to passengers calculated on the premise of charging high airfares. 航空料金が世界で最も高いと言われる日本に価格競争の波が押し寄せれば、高額運賃を前提に手厚いサービスを競ってきた国内航空大手にとって脅威となろう。
The advance into Japan by these carriers is expected to stimulate demand for air travel among passengers--especially young people--who are sensitive to fares, thereby attracting visitors from Asia and elsewhere. We hope these carriers' full entry into the Japanese market will help revitalize the national economy. だが、価格に敏感な若者層など新たな航空需要を開拓し、アジアなどからの訪日客を誘致する呼び水ともなる。本格参入を日本経済の活性化につなげたい。
LCCs now fly about 40 percent of all passengers in the United States and Europe and nearly 20 percent in Asia. Their trademark management strategy is to offer rock-bottom airfares by slashing operating costs. 格安航空は、欧米で利用客の約４割、アジアで約２割を占めるまでに成長している。特徴は、低料金を実現するために、運航費用を徹底的に削減する手法にある。
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Cost-cutting efforts
These airlines keep a lid on maintenance costs by using a limited number of aircraft models and maximizing flight numbers by shuttling between destinations with a short turnaround time. They crimp on personnel costs by making cabin crew clean the aircraft. Seats are squeezed close together and passengers must pay for in-flight meals and movies. 機種を統一して整備費を抑え、短時間の折り返し運航で便数を増やす。客室乗務員に清掃も担わせるなどして人件費を減らす。座席の間隔は狭く、機内食や映画鑑賞などは有料だ。
Australia's Jetstar Airways, South Korea's Jeju Air and China's Spring Airlines are already here, and Malaysia's AirAsia--the largest low-cost carrier in Asia--will start operating in Japan in December. This is expected to crank up competition among LCCs. 日本には、豪ジェットスター、韓国チェジュ、中国・春秋などに続き、アジア最大手マレーシア・エアアジアが１２月に就航し、競争は一気に激化するとみられる。
Regular international flights will resume at Haneda Airport late this month for the first time in 32 years with the completion of a new runway. The number of departure and arrival slots at Haneda and Narita airports will expand to 750,000 a year--1.5 times the current figure--in three to four years. １０月末から３２年ぶりに羽田の国際定期便が復活する。新滑走路が完成するためで、成田を含めた発着枠は３～４年後に年間７５万回と現在の１・５倍に拡大する。
The planned increase in slots will have the LCCs rubbing their hands with glee. Their entry into Japan had been hampered by the restricted number of available slots. 格安航空にとっては、参入を阻んでいた発着枠に余裕ができることが追い風だ。
To counter the arrival of foreign LCCs, All Nippon Airways will establish Japan's first full-scale LCC this year and start service next fiscal year. Japan Airlines, which is struggling to reconstruct itself after filing for court-administered bankruptcy early this year, also is contemplating launching an LCC. こうした動きに対抗し、全日本空輸は日本初の本格的な格安航空を年内に設立し、来年度から運航を始める。再建中の日本航空も検討に入っている。
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Change concept
Some observers have suggested the Japanese LCCs will steal passengers away from their parent airlines. But domestic airlines will fall behind foreign LCCs in attracting Asian passengers and also lose Japanese passengers to them if they sit idly by. ANA and JAL must overhaul their deep-seated, high-cost management mind-set and promote their low-cost business in earnest. 本体と顧客を奪い合う懸念もあるが、このままではアジア客の取り込みで後れを取るだけでなく、日本人客も奪われかねない。高コスト経営に慣れきった発想を改め、積極的に取り組むべきだ。
LLCs have not found a foothold in the Japanese market because this nation's civil aviation policy paid more heed to the intentions of domestic airlines sticking with high fares than to passengers. 格安航空がこれまで日本に浸透しなかったのは、航空政策が、利用者より、高額料金にこだわる国内航空会社の意向を優先してきたからだろう。
We think the government should reinforce its policy support of LCCs as this will enhance the international competitiveness of domestic airlines and promote Japan as a tourism-oriented country. 政府はこの際、国際競争力の向上と観光立国を推進する観点からも、格安航空に対する政策支援を充実させる必要がある。
The government must consider lowering the expensive landing fees that have rankled foreign airlines, build terminals exclusively for LCCs and deregulate the fare system so fares can be set flexibly. Needless to say, the industry must be closely supervised to ensure that passenger safety is never compromised. 各国の航空会社から批判が強い高額な着陸料の引き下げ、専用ターミナルの建設、価格設定を弾力化できる運賃制度の規制緩和などが検討課題となろう。安全が確保されているかどうか、監視の徹底は言うまでもない。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 18, 2010) （2010年10月18日01時28分 読売新聞）
The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 18, 2010) Formulate rules to protect gift of nature 生物多様性会議 自然の恵み守るルール作りを（10月17日付・読売社説）
International cooperation is indispensable to protect the Earth's natural environment, which is inhabited by a vast array of organisms. 様々な生き物が生息する地球の自然環境を守っていくためには、国際的協調が欠かせない。
The 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP10) kicks off in Nagoya on Monday to discuss related measures. About 190 countries and regions will participate. その方策を話し合う生物多様性条約の第１０回締約国会議（ＣＯＰ１０）が１８日から名古屋市で開幕し、約１９０の国・地域が参加する。
It is an urgent task to head off the ecosystem destruction currently under way across the globe. We hope COP10 will serve as a catalyst toward this end. 緊急の課題は、世界的に進む生態系の破壊を食い止めることだ。ＣＯＰ１０が、そのきっかけとなることを期待したい。
Biodiversity is a keyword of the conference, but it is unfamiliar to most people. 生物多様性――。これが会議のキーワードだが、一般にはなじみが薄いのが現状だろう。
The Earth's organisms are interconnected and interdependent. Microbes fertilize soil on which trees grow. Berries and fruits on the trees are precious food for animals. 地球上の生き物は、それぞれにつながりを持ち、依存し合って生きている。微生物が土壌を豊かにし、そこに樹木が育つ。その樹木の実は、動物の貴重な餌になる、というわけだ。
Of course, seafood and grains on our table also are a gift of nature. もちろん、我々の食卓に上る魚介類や穀物なども、自然の恵みそのものだ。
This natural cycle is predicated on the continued existence of a wide variety of organisms, believed to number in the tens of millions. We must protect this biodiversity and maintain the environment for its sustainable future use. こうした自然のサイクルは、数千万種とされる多種多様な生き物がいるからこそ成り立つ。この生物多様性を守り、将来も我々が持続的に利用できる環境を保持していかねばならない。
Halting biodiversity loss
However, it is said that as many as 40,000 kinds of organisms go extinct on Earth each year. This is partly due to a decline in tropical forests, host to a plethora of life forms, because of development by humans. だが、地球上では毎年、４万種もの生物が絶滅していると言われている。生物の宝庫である熱帯林が開発により減少していることなどが原因とされる。
Therefore, setting a concrete target to stop this biodiversity loss likely will be the focus of attention at the Nagoya conference. このため、名古屋会議では多様性の損失を食い止めるための具体的な目標設定が焦点となろう。
The European Union is calling for a target of halting biodiversity loss by 2020, but developing countries that want to place priority on development insist on a more moderate goal. 欧州連合（ＥＵ）は「２０２０年までに損失を止める」との目標を求めているが、開発を優先したい途上国側は、より緩やかな目標設定を主張している。
We hope countries will cooperate to reach a realistic agreement to tackle the problem. 各国が協力して取り組める現実的な着地点を見いだしたい。
Another contentious issue on the COP10 agenda is formulating rules on how profits should be apportioned to developing countries if companies in advanced countries make pharmaceuticals using animals, plants or microbes taken from developing countries. 先進国の企業が、途上国原産の動植物や微生物を利用して医薬品などを製造した際、その利益を原産国にどう配分するか。このルール作りも大きな論点だ。
Biological resources help our life in a variety of ways. For example, Madagascar periwinkle originally from Madagascar is used as a compound in making anticancer agents. マダガスカル原産のニチニチソウが抗がん剤の原料に使われるなど、生物資源は我々の生活の様々な面で役に立っている。
Bridging the divide
However, a wide gap exists between developing countries, which demand a larger share of the lucrative profits from their biological resources, and advanced nations, which want to reduce profit-sharing out of concern over an increased burden on drugmakers. しかし、ここでも、より多くの利益配分を求める途上国と、企業の負担増を懸念し、配分を抑えたい先進国の溝は深い。
The Convention on Biological Diversity, together with the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, are called "twin treaties." 生物多様性条約と、温室効果ガスの排出を削減させる気候変動枠組み条約は「双子の条約」と呼ばれる。
Yet the reality is that in either case, the tug-of-war between advanced countries and developing countries keep discussions from progressing. そのどちらも、先進国と途上国の対立が議論の進展を阻んでいるのが現状だ。
The diplomatic and organizational abilities of COP10 chair Japan will be put to the test in Nagoya, as attention focuses on whether the conference will be able to draw up fair and equitable rules. 名古屋会議で公平なルールを策定できるのか。議長国である日本の手腕が問われる。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 17, 2010) （2010年10月17日01時06分 読売新聞）
People all over the world held their breath as they watched the dramatic rescue of the Chilean miners and then breathed a collective sigh of relief as they were reunited with their families. 家族との対面に至る救出の一部始終を世界中が息をのんで見つめ、胸をなで下ろした。
All of the 33 miners were trapped 700 meters underground when the copper mine in northern Chile collapsed in early August. They were lifted safely to the surface after being stuck in a tunnel for 69 days. 南米チリ北部の鉱山で、地下約７００メートルに閉じこめられていた作業員３３人が全員、６９日ぶりに無事地上に戻ってきた。
It was a rescue drama that will be remembered by posterity. It was made possible by good judgment and effective leadership from a veteran miner, fine teamwork among the miners, the family love that supported them throughout the ordeal, aid offers from around the world, and the tenacious efforts and technological prowess of the rescue team that accomplished a dangerous mission. 地下のリーダーの的確な判断と指導力、作業員のチームワーク、それを支えた家族愛、世界中から差し伸べられた支援の手。危険を伴う作業を成し遂げた救出チームの努力と技術力、まさに歴史に残る救出劇だった。
Behind the accident, however, lies a daunting challenge for today's world: soaring global demand for resources driven by the robust economic growth of China and other emerging countries, as well as the decreasing availability of those resources. だが、今回の事故の背景を見れば、世界が直面している課題が浮かび上がってくることも無視できない。 中国など新興国の経済成長を背景とした資源需要の世界的な急増と、そうした資源がますます手に入れにくくなっているという現実である。
Chile has the world's largest copper reserves and is the largest producer of the metal. It has the world's largest open-pit copper mine, which stretches more than 4 kilometers and attracts droves of tourists, as well as many smaller mines. チリは、世界一の銅の埋蔵国、そして生産国だ。世界最大の露天掘りの銅山が４キロ以上にわたって広がり、観光名所となっている所があれば、規模の小さいものも少なくない。
The San Jose mine, where the accident occurred, is one of those medium- to small-sized mines. Its safety has been repeatedly called into question, and it was shut down following a fatal explosion in 2007. The mine was reopened in summer 2008 as copper prices shot up. 事故のあったサンホセ鉱山は、そんな中小の銅鉱山の一つで、安全面での問題がしばしば指摘され、２００７年に爆発事故で死者を出し、閉鎖されていた。ところが、銅価格の急騰で、０８年夏に操業を再開した。
It is hard to deny that the mining was resumed hastily without enough effort to deal with safety concerns. In the August accident, as much as 700,000 tons of rock collapsed. After years of serious effort to improve safety at large mines across the globe, the rock fall surprised many industry observers, who say such a large-scale mine cave-in is now almost unthinkable. 安全面で問題を抱えたまま操業を急いだ面が否めない。今回の事故では約７０万トンもの岩石が崩れ落ちた。大規模な鉱山では安全対策が進み、近年ではこうした大規模な落盤事故はまず考えられないと驚く関係者も多い。
Demand for copper and other metals is perking up as the world economy recovers from the global recession triggered by the collapse of U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers in 2008. In particular, China, where demand for copper started growing sharply in the late 1990s, now accounts for about a third of global demand. As a result of the explosive growth of demand, copper prices have skyrocketed. 銅などの金属の需要は、世界経済がリーマン・ショック後の落ち込みから回復するとともに急増している。とりわけ中国では、銅の需要は１９９０年代後半から急増し、世界の約３分の１を占める。その結果が価格の高騰だ。
Higher prices make even poor-quality mines economically viable. The trend in recent years has been toward deeper and poorer-quality mines. 価格が上がれば、条件の悪い鉱山でも採算が合うようになる。より深く、より悪条件の場所へ。
The San Jose mine was reopened against this backdrop. まさに今回のような鉱山が登場することになる。
The world's dependence on China for supplies of rare earth metals, which are indispensable for manufacturing a wide range of high-tech products, is attracting much international attention. But there is also no room for optimism about the future outlook of such common metals as copper, aluminum and lead. There are few alternatives for copper, an essential material to produce electric wires, and many of the easy-to-operate copper mines have already been developed. 中国頼みの希少資源としてレアアースが注目されているが、銅やアルミニウム、鉛などの金属についても決して将来を楽観できない。電線に欠かせない銅などは代替品も少なく、採取の容易な鉱山はかなりの部分がすでに開発済みである。
Mining-related accidents are, unfortunately, not a rarity. More effort should be made to expand international cooperation, not just in dealing with accidents once they occur, but also to prevent accidents by implementing proper safety measures. 世界的には、資源採掘をめぐる事故は珍しくない。今回示されたような事故後の国際協力ばかりでなく、事故防止の安全策にも力を合わせたい。
It is also necessary to take steps to prepare for the eventual depletion of these natural resources. It will become increasingly important in the coming years to make more efficient use of limited resources and expand their reuse. Japan has a significant role to play in promoting such efforts. 天然資源だから、いずれ枯渇することも考えておかなければならない。限られた資源を有効に使うこと、そして再利用がますます重要になる。日本の役割は決して小さくない。
The U.S. administration of President Barack Obama has approved the lifting of the moratorium on deepwater oil drilling imposed after the Deepwater Horizon explosion and spill in the Gulf of Mexico. It is also vital to minimize the environmental impact of underground mining and resource development projects. 米オバマ政権は、流出事故を起こした海底油田の操業再開にゴーサインを出した。地下資源の採取は、環境への影響を最小限に抑えることも大切だ。
The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 16, 2010) Japan-S. Korea navy ties needed to contain North 海上阻止訓練 「北の核」包囲へ日韓協力深めよ（10月15日付・読売社説）
Our world would immediately be put at risk if ships carrying nuclear weapons and nuclear-related goods were free to sail wherever they wanted. Nations around the world must join hands to stop such unrestricted conduct. 核兵器やその関連物資を積んだ船舶が自由気ままに航行するのを許しておけば、世界はたちまち危険きわまりない状況に陥ってしまう。国際社会は協力して、これを阻止しなければならない。
The latest maritime interdiction drill performed in waters off Busan, South Korea, was an example of the kind of cooperation that can be facilitated by the international community. 昨日、韓国・釜山沖で実施された韓国主催の海上阻止訓練は、そうした国際協力の実例である。
The two-day exercise that ended Thursday was organized by South Korea in accordance with the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), a U.S.-led program involving 96 nations to prevent the further spread of weapons of mass destruction. Four nations took part in the training--Japan, South Korea, the United States and Australia. 米国が主導して世界９６か国が参加・協力している大量破壊兵器拡散阻止構想（ＰＳＩ）に基づき、日韓米豪の４か国が参加した。
The exercise included a drill in which two destroyers from the Maritime Self-Defense Force played a leading role in halting and searching a vessel in cooperation with two South Korean Navy destroyers and a U.S. Navy aegis-equipped destroyer. The drill was based on a scenario in which the searched ship was carrying suspicious freight. 訓練では、日本の海上自衛隊の護衛艦２隻が、韓国海軍の駆逐艦や米国海軍イージス艦とともに、疑わしい貨物を積んだ船舶を停止させ船内を捜索する演習で、主要な役割を担った。
Over the years, the MSDF and the South Korean Navy have joined a large U.S. Navy exercise off the coast of Hawaii, known as RIMPAC. 海自と韓国海軍は、遠いハワイ沖での米海軍主催の環太平洋合同演習（リムパック）には、ともに参加してきた。
However, this latest event was the first of its kind in which Japan and South Korea sent ships for a multilateral drill in waters close to their shores. だが、近海での多国間訓練にそろって艦船を派遣したのは今回が初めてである。
Shared threat
The two nations have long adhered to their respective perceptions of history. This has probably been a factor behind the cautious attitude both nations have toward bilateral security cooperation. 過去の歴史へのこだわりが、日韓両国が安全保障の協力に慎重だった一因でもある。
However, a deepening threat posed by North Korea has changed all this. それを変えたのは、深刻化する北朝鮮の脅威だ。
Immediately after the reclusive state conducted a second nuclear test in May 2009 despite condemnation by the international community, South Korea said it would fully join the PSI. Seoul's decision to take the lead in organizing this month's maritime drill came after it concluded the sinking of a South Korean Navy patrol boat in March was caused by a torpedo attack by the North. 韓国は、昨年５月、北朝鮮が２度目の核実験を強行した直後にＰＳＩへの全面参加を表明した。今年３月の韓国海軍哨戒艦沈没事件では、北朝鮮の魚雷攻撃によると結論づけた後、今回の海上阻止訓練の主催に踏み切った。
North Korea--a country that has relentlessly pursued nuclear arms and ballistic missiles--is the greatest element of instability in East Asia. 東アジア最大の不安定要因は、核兵器や弾道ミサイルの開発をやめようともしない北朝鮮だ。
Pyongyang has declared it will bolster its nuclear deterrent, despite an economy facing imminent collapse. The hermit nation has also entered a period of transition, in which Kim Jong Un is being positioned as the heir apparent to his father, supreme leader Kim Jong Il, in what would be the third generation of the Kim family to hold power. 民生経済が破綻(はたん)する中、「核抑止力の強化」を宣言し、金正日総書記から正恩氏への特異な「３代世襲」の権力移行期に入った。
Keep up intl pressure
The international community should not drop its guard with respect to North Korea, which exports ballistic missiles to earn foreign cash, and imports materials and commodities needed to develop nuclear weapons and missiles. 北朝鮮が外貨稼ぎのために弾道ミサイルを輸出したり、核やミサイル開発に必要な関連物資を輸入したりすることへの警戒を、国際社会は怠ってはなるまい。
The U.N. Security Council has adopted a resolution against North Korea imposing an embargo on WMDs and goods related to the production of such arms, while also requesting member states to inspect vessels connected to North Korea suspected of carrying such cargo. 北朝鮮に対しては、大量破壊兵器とその関連物資などの禁輸と、それを積載した疑いのある船舶の検査を各国に要請した国連安全保障理事会の決議が存在する。
We believe it is essential to continue PSI-based maritime interdiction drills to ensure the U.N. resolution blocks Pyongyang's WMD ambitions. 安保理決議の実効性をあげるためにも、ＰＳＩに基づく海上阻止訓練の積み重ねが大切だ。
There is a limit to what can be achieved through such exercises, given the need to obtain consent from the nation a ship belongs to when a cargo inspection is deemed necessary in international waters. North Korea cannot be expected to accept such inspections. Still, carrying out multilateral maritime interdiction drills can do much to strongly deter the unpredictable regime from proliferating WMDs. 公海での貨物検査には船籍国の同意が必要で、北朝鮮が応じるはずがないという限界はあろう。だが、強い牽制(けんせい)効果はある。
Further progress in advancing cooperation between Japan and South Korea in this area will increase trust between the two nations, as well as improve collaboration between Tokyo, Seoul and Washington as they stand up to the challenge Pyongyang presents. 日韓が協力を進めることで互いの信頼は深まる。それが日米韓の連携を一層強化し、北朝鮮の挑発を抑止することにつながる。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 15, 2010) （2010年10月15日01時21分 読売新聞）
When the Berlin Wall came down, East Germans spilled into the streets and chanted, "We are one people." The outpouring of their longing for the freedom and prosperity of the West turned the wheels of history. ベルリンの壁が崩壊し、街に繰り出した旧東独の人々が叫んだ。「我々は一つの国民だ」。西側の自由と豊かさへのあこがれ。噴き出した人々の情念が歴史の歯車を動かした。
Germany's reunification, on Oct. 3, 1990, heralded a new era in contemporary history. １９９０年１０月の東西ドイツ統一は、現代史の新しい幕開けだった。
Celebrating the 20th anniversary, German President Christian Wulff noted: "In 1989 the East Germans chanted 'We are the people, we are one people.' This evoked a sense of national identity that had long been buried ... . Now, 20 years on, a new self-confidence has taken hold throughout Germany, a relaxed brand of patriotism, a frank assertion of belief in our country--a country that is aware of its great responsibility for the past and that is shaping the future accordingly." あれから２０年。統一記念式典で演説したウルフ大統領の言葉は印象的だ。 「旧東独の人々の叫びが、眠っていた国民のアイデンティティーを呼び覚ました。２０年後のいま、この国には新しい自信、緩やかな愛国心、そして過去への大きな責任とともに、未来を担おうとの意識が生まれている」
We would say Germany has scored historic successes over the past 20 years. ドイツにとって、歴史的な成功を収めた２０年だったといえよう。
Back in 1990, Germany's neighbors were apprehensive about reunification. Although Germany engaged in deep soul-searching after its defeat in World War II, former victim nations had yet to fully get over their collective memories of the destruction caused by Germany in the two world wars and the unspeakable horrors of the Nazi death camps. 当時、近隣国にはドイツ統一への警戒心が強かった。２度の大戦とユダヤ人虐殺。戦後ドイツが示した反省にもかかわらず、被害の記憶はなかなか消え去らなかった。
Aware of these sentiments, German leaders chose to incorporate their country into the multilateral cooperative framework of European nations which were striving to realize regional integration, even if that meant making some sacrifices. ドイツの指導者たちが取り組んだのは、地域統合をめざす欧州の多国間協力の枠組みに、代償を払ってでも自らを組み込むことだった。
Germany abandoned the Deutsche mark, which was Europe's strongest currency at the time, and agreed to adopt the euro. Germany also encouraged Poland, Czechoslovakia and other central and eastern European nations to join the EU as well as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. These policies won the support of the rest of Europe and the United States and the acceptance of Russia. 欧州最強の通貨だった独マルクを捨て、単一通貨ユーロの導入を認めた。ポーランドやチェコなど中東欧諸国を後押しして、欧州連合（ＥＵ）や北大西洋条約機構（ＮＡＴＯ）に次々迎え入れた。欧州諸国や米国はこれを支援し、ロシアも受け入れた。
Rather than allow itself to be swallowed up in the current of history, Germany opted to go with the times and lead the nation in a direction that would best serve the interests of its people. 歴史の奔流に身をまかせるのではなく、国民の利益のため、流れに棹（さお）さして望ましい方向へ導いていく。
There is no question that Bonn's foreign policy, based on this position, has worked very favorably for the country. そんなドイツの自覚的な外交戦略が大きな果実をもたらしたのは明らかだ。
As a result of the integration of European markets, more than 60 percent of German exports today are bound for Europe. Germany's highly competitive automobile and chemical industries are helping to prop up the European economy as a whole. 欧州市場の一体化により、ドイツの貿易のうち対欧は６割を超えた。自動車や化学品など強い産業競争力が欧州経済を下支えしている。
In foreign policy, Germany maintains independent relations with the United States and Russia, and is also party to negotiations over the Iranian nuclear issue. Also, many German troops are on missions in Afghanistan and the former Yugoslavia to restore law and order. 外交では、米国やロシアと自立した関係を築く一方、イランの核問題の交渉に加わっている。アフガニスタンや旧ユーゴスラビアの治安回復に多くの兵士が活動している。
Naturally, Germany is not without problems. The per-capita income of former East Germans is still only 70 percent of that of their West German compatriots, and the jobless rate is high. もちろん陰の面もある。旧東独の１人あたり所得は旧西独の７割で、その失業率は高い。
During the ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of reunification, Wulff appealed to his countrymen to be more accepting of Turkish and other immigrants from the Islamic world. ウルフ大統領は式典で、トルコなどイスラム系移民を社会に取り込む大切さを国民に訴えた。
What should the European Union do to reinforce its functions to overcome the problem of a single currency and fiscal concerns? How should the EU deal with conflict in the Middle East and the Iranian nuclear problem? The EU has an extremely important role to play in the international community. 単一通貨ユーロや財政の不安を乗り越えるために、ＥＵの機能をどう強めるか。中東紛争やイラン核問題をどう解決していくか。ＥＵが国際社会で果たす役割は極めて大きい。
As a core EU member, Germany bears the responsibility of further advancing the integration of Europe and leading the way in resolving various global issues. ＥＵの中核メンバーとして、ドイツは欧州統合を深化させ、世界の課題解決の先頭に立つ責務がある。
This autumn, commemorative events to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Japan and Germany kicked off in Japan. In Asia, a divided nation exists on the Korean Peninsula, and disputes over sovereignty and territory continue to flare elsewhere. この秋、日本で「日独交流１５０周年」の行事が始まった。アジアでは、朝鮮半島に分断国家が残り、領土や主権をめぐる摩擦が起きている。
Japan's circumstances are obviously different from Germany's, but there are many things we can learn from Germany. 置かれた環境は異なるが、ドイツの経験に学べることは少なくない。
The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 14, 2010) Continue dialogue with China to ensure security 海上安全保障 中国は協議に前向き対応を（10月13日付・読売社説）
The recent meeting between Japanese and Chinese defense chiefs marked a definite first step toward improving the soured relationship between Tokyo and Beijing, but the road ahead is not likely to be smooth. 日中関係の改善に向けての新たな一歩ではあるが、今後の道のりは平坦(へいたん)ではなかろう。
Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa and his Chinese counterpart Liang Guanglie agreed to steadily promote a strategic, mutually beneficial relationship between the two nations in Hanoi on Monday. Their conversation was held on the sidelines of a defense minister's meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations plus eight countries that include Japan and the United States. 北沢防衛相が訪問先のハノイで中国の梁光烈国防相と会談し、日中の戦略的互恵関係を着実に進展させることなどで一致した。
The meeting was in line with an agreement to "hold high-level talks when appropriate," made when Prime Minister Naoto Kan met Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in Brussels on Oct. 4. With Monday's meeting, Japan-China relations seem to be gradually normalizing after being strained following collisions last month between a Chinese trawler and two Japan Coast Guard vessels in waters near the Senkaku Islands. 会談が実現したのは、今月４日の日中首脳会談で合意した「ハイレベル協議の適宜開催」に沿うものだ。尖閣諸島沖の中国漁船衝突事件で悪化した日中関係は一応、正常化しつつあると言える。
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China still reluctant to engage
However, the meeting also revealed Beijing is still cautious toward Tokyo. In response to requests from China, the meeting was unofficial, and a scheduled port call to Qingdao, China, from Friday by a fleet of Maritime Self-Defense Force training ships likely will be postponed. 一方で、中国の慎重姿勢も目立った。中国側の要請で、会談は非公式な形式となった。１５日から予定されていた海上自衛隊練習艦による中国・青島寄港も、中国側の事情で延期される方向だ。
Liang reportedly told Kitazawa the naval exchange would be put off because China must carefully consider its citizens' feelings. But this claim sounds too one-sided and is difficult to understand. 梁国防相は、延期の理由について「中国国民の気持ちと態度を慎重に考慮する必要がある」と語ったが、あまりに一方的な主張であり、理解しがたい。
However, when Kitazawa requested the quick establishment of a maritime contact mechanism in the East China Sea, Liang reportedly agreed that tangible results needed to be produced soon. 北沢防衛相は会談で、「海上連絡メカニズム」の早期構築を呼びかけ、梁国防相は「早く成果を上げることが重要だ」と応じた。
The contact mechanism would facilitate emergency communication between defense chiefs and high-ranking officers to prevent minor collisions between Japanese and Chinese naval vessels from developing into serious situations. China established similar military hotlines with the United States and South Korea two years ago. 海上連絡メカニズムは、日中の防衛首脳や制服組幹部の緊急連絡体制を整備するものだ。艦船同士の些細(ささい)な接触が重大事態に発展するのを防ぐ狙いがある。中国は２年前、同様の軍事ホットラインを米国、韓国と設置している。
Although Japan and China have been planning such a system for more than 10 years, results have yet to materialize. But after the recent collisions off the Senkaku Islands and two incidents in which a Chinese Navy helicopter buzzed a MSDF destroyer this spring, establishment of a hotline is needed as quickly as possible. この問題は１０年以上前から日中間の懸案だが、実現していない。今回の漁船衝突事件や、今春の中国海軍ヘリによる海自艦船への異常接近を踏まえれば、日中は早急に協議を進める必要がある。
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Resolve needed to mend ties
There are still bones of contention between Japan and China, but the strategic, mutually beneficial relationship can only take shape if the two countries continue engaging in dialogue and making tangible achievements. 日中間には多くの意見の異なる問題が存在するが、対話を重ね、具体的な実績を上げてこそ、戦略的互恵関係は実態を伴う。
China's reluctance to promote bilateral defense exchanges, such as visits by high-ranking officers and port calls, is apparently motivated by a desire to keep its military situation hidden. 高官や艦船の相互訪問など一連の防衛交流に中国が慎重なのは、軍の実情が明らかになるのを避けたい思惑もあるのだろう。
However, enhanced military transparency by China will help reassure its neighbors, which see Beijing as a threat. We believe this also will benefit China itself. しかし、軍事的な透明性の向上は、周辺国の中国警戒論の緩和にもつながる。それは中国自身の利益にも合致するはずだ。
While in Hanoi, Kitazawa met with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Monday. The two defense chiefs reportedly agreed to continue to cooperate and consult closely to deal with China's intensifying naval activities in the East China Sea and other waters. 北沢防衛相はゲーツ米国防長官とも会談し、活発化している中国の海洋活動に関して日米が緊密に協議する方針を確認した。
On Tuesday, 10 ASEAN member states and eight other countries, including Japan, the United States and China, held the first meeting of their defense chiefs. The group adopted a joint declaration promoting multinational cooperation in maritime security and disaster rescue operations, among other areas. 翌１２日には、東南アジア諸国と日米中など計１８か国による初の国防相会議も開かれ、海上安全保障や災害救助などの多国間協力に関する共同宣言が採択された。
To steadily urge China to contribute to Asia's stability, we believe it is vital for Japan to increase cooperation with the United States and other concerned nations. アジアの安定に向けて中国の協力を粘り強く促すためにも、日本は米国や関係国との連携を強化することが重要である。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 13, 2010) （2010年10月13日01時50分 読売新聞）
The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 13, 2010) NHK reporter violated ethics code 捜索情報漏洩 報道倫理逸脱したＮＨＫ記者（10月11日付・読売社説）
The illegal gambling on professional baseball by dozens of sumo wrestlers and stablemasters has taken yet another twist--one that raises serious questions about the ethics of the press. 大相撲の野球賭博問題で、今度は報道側の倫理が厳しく問われる事態が明るみに出た。
A male reporter in his 30s, who then belonged to the sports section of NHK's News Department, allegedly sent an e-mail from his mobile phone in July to stablemaster Tokitsukaze, who was being investigated by the police over the gambling scandal. The reporter's e-mail allegedly tipped off Tokitsukaze, former makuuchi division wrestler Tokitsuumi, that the police would likely search sumo stables the following day. ＮＨＫの報道局スポーツ部に所属する３０歳代の男性記者が７月、警視庁の捜査対象になっていた時津風親方（元幕内時津海）に、「あす警察が捜索に入るようだ」などとメールを送信していたというのだ。
If this allegation is true, the reporter has committed an abominable act that violates journalists' code of ethics. NHK reportedly has been flooded with protests and complaints from the public following these revelations. 記者倫理を逸脱した言語道断の行為である。ＮＨＫにも抗議や苦情が殺到しているという。
Several hours after the reporter sent the e-mail, the Metropolitan Police Department searched several sumo stables on suspicion of organizing illegal gambling for profit. The MPD discovered the reporter had leaked the information as they trawled through the contents of Tokitsukaze's mobile phone, which was confiscated as evidence during the search. 当時、警視庁は賭博開張図利容疑で複数の相撲部屋を一斉捜索しているが、結果的に記者のメール送信から数時間後だった。その際に押収した親方の携帯電話の解析から情報漏洩(ろうえい)が発覚した。
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Standards thrown out
If the information leak by the reporter had resulted in evidence being destroyed, it could have seriously impeded the police investigation. The reporter's actions also might have violated certain laws. 仮に、この情報をもとに証拠隠滅などが行われていれば、どうだったろう。捜査に重大な支障が出た可能性があった。記者の行為が法に抵触する恐れもあった。
"Don't tell this to anybody else," the journalist's message reportedly said. "I'll get in huge trouble if you're found to have been tipped off by NHK." This suggests the reporter was fully aware that sending the e-mail was illicit. メールには「他言無用。ＮＨＫに聞いたとばれたら大変なので」などと記されていた。許されない行為であるという認識は、記者にもあったはずだ。
Nonetheless, the reporter fired off the e-mail because he wanted to reestablish his relationship with Tokitsukaze, the reporter reportedly said during an internal NHK investigation. それでも情報を送った理由として、記者は「メールをきっかけに、再び親方と関係作りをしたかった」と内部調査に答えている。
Objective reporting requires a journalist to keep some distance from the subject being covered. NHK reporters should observe this rule even more strictly than other sumo journalists because the broadcaster exclusively televises sumo tournaments live and enjoys special relations with the Japan Sumo Association. 客観的な報道をするためには、取材対象と一定の距離を置く必要がある。独占的に大相撲を中継し、相撲協会とも特殊な関係にあるＮＨＫならば、なおさらだ。
On the day before the reporter sent the e-mail, NHK made the painful decision not to broadcast the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament live--the first time a basho would not be aired live since NHK started televising the national sport decades ago. If the reporter tried to glean information by currying favor with a subject of NHK's coverage, we have to say the reporter has absolutely no ethical sense. 記者のメール送信の前日は、ＮＨＫが、テレビ中継始まって以来の名古屋場所の生中継中止という苦渋の決断をした日だ。その傍ら、取材対象に取り入ることで情報を得ようと記者が画策していたとしたらモラル欠如も甚だしい。
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Lessons to be learned
An ironclad rule for journalism is that information gained through news gathering activities will not be used for anything but reporting purposes. そもそも、取材活動で知り得た情報を報道目的以外に使わないというのは鉄則だ。
NHK has claimed the reporter heard about the impending police search from a newspaper reporter. Even if that is true, it does not justify leaking police information to a person subject to investigation. ＮＨＫは、捜索情報は他紙の記者から得たもの、と強調するが、そうだとしても、捜査対象に漏らしていい理由にはなるまい。
In 2008, NHK found that three employees, including a director, had engaged in insider trading based on information distributed within the public broadcaster. Since then, NHK employees have been given in-house training such as workshops on broadcast ethics. However, these efforts have failed. ＮＨＫでは２００８年、元ディレクターらによる局内情報をもとにしたインサイダー取引が発覚した。以後、放送倫理の勉強会を開くなど、社内教育を徹底してきたというが、生かされなかった。
Between 2004 and 2006, an increasing number of TV owners refused to pay NHK viewing fees following revelations of accounting irregularities at the broadcaster, including embezzlement of production money and fraudulent business trips by employees. We wonder if NHK has already forgotten just how difficult it is to regain viewers' trust. ０４～０６年には、制作費着服やカラ出張など不正経理が続発し、受信料の支払い拒否が相次いだ。視聴者の信頼回復がいかに困難か、よもやＮＨＫは忘れていまい。
The latest scandal should not be dismissed simply as the actions of a single reporter. The whole NHK organization should examine the latest episode seriously and announce steps to prevent a repeat of similar scandals. 記者個人の問題で終わらせてはならない。ＮＨＫは組織全体で今回の不祥事を検証し、改めて再発防止策を公表すべきだ。
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 11, 2010) （2010年10月11日01時06分 読売新聞）
After more than two months underground, the 33 miners in Chile could start seeing sunlight as early as Wednesday, the country's mining minister said. チリの鉱山の地下７００メートルのシェルターに生存する坑夫３３人の救出作業は明日水曜日に行われる予定。
Millions of Koreans got a glimpse of their next leader Sunday, when he appeared next to his father live on state television for the first time, during a huge military parade. 大きな軍を伴ってパーティーの模様は全土にテレビ中継され数百万人の人々が次代のリーダーの素顔を垣間見た。
China Places Nobelist's Wife Under House Arrest 中国ノーベル平和賞受賞劉暁波氏の奥様を自宅軟禁に
The wife of Liu Xiaobo, the imprisoned Chinese activist who won this year's Nobel Peace Prize, was allowed to meet with her husband Sunday for an hour--only to then have her phone and Internet access cut off by state authorities when she returned home. 日曜日に一時間だけ面会を許された。 その後、自宅に戻ってみると電話とインターネットの回線が遮断されていた。 事実上の自宅軟禁状態にあります。
