Essay highlights issues of SDF control
Written by Writer on Thursday, November 13th, 2008
Essay highlights issues of SDF control
Shozo Nakayama and Chikara Shima / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers
Former Air Self-Defense Force Chief of Staff Toshio Tamogami, who was dismissed after an essay he wrote contradicting the government’s official view of Japan’s war responsibility was made public, defended his views during questioning at the Diet.
Tamogami insisted during questioning as an unsworn witness Tuesday at the House of Councillors Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that his essay should be seen as his exercising freedom of speech.
Government officials said during the session that publication of the essay was problematic, but were unable to come up with concrete measures for preventing a recurrence of such an incident.
The session also raised questions over how the government can best ensure civilian control of the SDF.
During the Diet session, Tamogami reiterated his passionate views on the subject and refused to back down or apologize.
“No other country has the comprehensive civilian controls that Japan has over its military,” Tamogami said. “There’s probably no other industrialized nation where a minister’s permission is required to submit an essay.”
Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said it was extremely problematic that Tamogami did not report his submission of an essay to the Defense Ministry, in violation of ministry rules.
But Tamogami argued that he wrote the essay based on “historical studies” and that it was not related to his duties.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura also said the content of the essay was problematic in terms of civilian control, saying, “It was totally different from the government’s opinion.”
Tamogami disputed this view, arguing that his essay was no different from the views expressed in 1995 by then Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, who expressed regret over Japan’s wartime actions and colonial rule.
After the committee session, Tamogami was animated when speaking to reporters.
“Even the Murayama statement can’t restrict freedom of speech and freedom of expression,” he said. “But I can see now that the Murayama statement is actually a tool for suppressing people’s freedom of speech.”
Opposition parties believe it is telling that the ministry had not addressed the fact that Tamogami held views contrary to the official government line for many years, even though the ministry is supposed to be in control of the SDF.
DPJ lawmaker Keiichiro Asao noted that Tamogami published another essay, with similar content, in the May 2007 issue of the ASDF’s internal magazine, but did not receive any warning.
“The biggest problem with this is that the past essay seemed to be OK, but this time it wasn’t. It’s a case of double standards,” Asao said.
Satoshi Inoue, a lawmaker of the Japanese Communist Party, pointed out that when Tamogami was head of the SDF’s Joint Staff College, a school for senior SDF officers, he launched a course on historical viewpoints in which he taught his own views on “the Greater East Asia War.”
He went on to accuse Tamogami of “revising the system for educating senior officers of all of Ground, Maritime and Air Self-Defense Forces.”
The accusations put Hamada on the defensive, and he was forced to admit the essay that appeared in the SDF magazine had not been handled properly and had not been checked.
On the issue of the college course, he said: “I haven’t heard about that. I’d like to confirm [the details].”
Since the controversy over Tamogami came to light, the Defense Ministry has been considering measures for preventing a similar incident. However, it was unable to present any firm plans at Tuesday’s session.
Hamada also expressed his intention to strengthen checks on the way SDF personnel express their opinions publicly. “Standard procedures should be clearer. I’ll set out some concrete rules,” he said.
He also vowed to review the way SDF personnel are taught and said the ministry intends to make changes after reviewing the way other industrialized nations handle such issues.
But he added that there is only so much the ministry can do, and that ultimately, “it is a matter for the consciences of individual SDF personnel.”
The dismissal in 1978 of Hiroomi Kurisu, then chairman of the SDF Joint Staff Council, for his remarks about the possibility of the SDF’s undertaking “extralegal action” offers some precedent for a top SDF officer being dismissed for expressing personal views.
His remarks were made at a press conference and reiterated on other occasions. Soon after, a recommendation was made that he resign, and he left his SDF job.
Kurisu remarks related directly to management of the SDF. The Tamogami controversy, in contrast, centers mainly on his historical views, which run counter to the government’s.
As a result, one Defense Ministry official said, “Because the problem is not directly related to SDF duties, a salary cut would be the strongest possible penalty if disciplinary action is taken.”
The latest controversy stems partly from the government’s failure to hold thorough discussions on a policy for guaranteeing civilian control.
The ruling parties plan to set up a working group on the issue to examine the relationship between SDF chiefs of staff and the Diet.
But it remains unclear how effective such moves will be.
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Conflicting views
Ninety-four ASDF members submitted entries to the essay contest Tamogami won, prompting speculation that the ASDF encouraged members to apply in an organized manner under Tamogami’s initiative.
The Defense Ministry is interviewing concerned officers to try and get to the bottom of the matter. However, the facts remain elusive, with the ministry’s explanation to the press contradicting Tamogami’s version of events.
The ASDF faxed copies of application forms for the essay contest to units across the nation.
The ministry said this was because an education division of the ASDF’s Staff Office decided to notify units of the competition of its own accord after seeing an advertisement for the contest in a national newspaper.
But during the Diet session, Tamogami said, “I notified the ASDF division chief about the contest.”
When the ministry asked for clarification, the ASDF division chief’s reply contradicted Tamogami’s assertion. “I notified people about the contest at a meeting of senior officers that Mr. Tamogami attended,” the division chief said.
The ministry on Tuesday made public the outlines of essays by three of the 94 ASDF officers, after securing their approval.
Hamada said their essays did not conflict with the government’s official view. But the points made by other officers in their essays is not yet known.
(Nov. 13, 2008)
