Kenji Yoshimura and Tsuneyo Muraoka / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers
Former Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Yoshihiko Fukuda, who supports a government plan to relocate U.S. jet fighters to an Iwakuni air base, and former Iwakuni Mayor Katsusuke Ihara, who opposes the plan, are set to clash in Sunday's mayoral election.
The contest for the post of mayor in Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture, is attracting much attention from the central government and ruling parties because the issue of U.S. military realignment may well be affected by the outcome of the contest.
The election in this city of about 150,000 people also appears to have become another proxy race between the ruling and opposition parties.
The Japanese and U.S. governments have already agreed to transfer 59 U.S. aircraft, including FA-18 fighters, from Atsugi Naval Air Facility in Kanagawa Prefecture to the U.S. Marine Corps' Iwakuni Air Station by 2014. Along with Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture, the future of the Iwakuni base has taken on a symbolic significance in moves to reorganize U.S. military forces in Japan.
While the mayor of Iwakuni does not have the authority to reject the planned relocation, the central government is still concerned about the outcome of the election.
"If Mr. Ihara is reelected it'll give people the impression that the relocation issue isn't being handled well," one government official said.
The mayoral race can also be interpreted as a prelude to the upcoming House of Representatives by-election in Yamaguchi Constituency No. 2. The race, which will be the first such election under the administration of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, will be held April 27, and comes as a result of Yoshihiko Fukuda's resignation from the lower house to run for mayor.
In the mayoral race, the LDP has essentially backed Fukuda, while the largest opposition party, the Democratic Party of Japan, is supporting Ihara. But as both candidates have distanced themselves from the established political parties, emphasizing their desire to represent the people of the city, both the LDP and DPJ plan to refrain from high-profile campaign activities such as having senior party members participate in the campaign.
On Monday, the day after campaigning kicked off, Fukuda made a speech in the parking lot of a restaurant overlooking aircraft departing and arriving at the Iwakuni base.
"This area is tormented by noise. Please let me negotiate with the central government on issues such as a review of flight routes and a reduction of flight hours," Fukuda told a crowd.
Fukuda is emphasizing his "conditional fight" strategy for dealing with the Iwakuni base issue, and also his plans to focus on revitalizing the regional economy and improving local finances.
The quiet shopping district in front of JR Iwakuni Station has turned into a shuttered shopping arcade of closed stores, while the city government has incurred debts of more than 100 billion yen on which the interest alone adds up to 7 million yen a day.
The Fukuda camp supported by the Iwakuni Municipal Assembly and business people has held a series of small meetings to attract votes from people concerned about economic issues. The LDP has made behind-the-scenes efforts to win backing from companies. In addition, the support base of the LDP's coalition junior partner, New Komeito, is believed to be capable of garnering 7,000 to 8,000 votes and is expected to favor Fukuda.
Effectively, this is the third vote asking local residents for their opinion about the relocation. The camp opposing the issue has won in the past two votes--a referendum in March 2006 and in the previous mayoral election in April the same year.
But the central government ratcheted up pressure on Ihara for his strong opposition to the relocation by withdrawing a fiscal 2007 subsidy of about 3.5 billion yen earmarked for the construction of a new city government building and by removing the city from a list of municipalities subject to financial assistance to help cover costs resulting from the reorganization of U.S. military forces in Japan.
Ihara was focusing his attention on the suburbs of Iwakuni on Monday.
"This election will determine whether or not the [city's] base will get bigger. If that does happen, it'll make life here much more difficult," Ihara said.
While senior officials of the Ihara camp are trying to rally people opposed to the relocation, their remarks reveal the close nature of the race this time round.
"Compared with the landslide victory last time, the mood this time is clearly different," one of the officials said, sensing the precarious nature of the contest.
With Iwakuni residents split into two distinct camps over the relocation issue, confusion over the issue has in some ways caused the community to lose its bearings.
"While we're at loggerheads [over the relocation], the local economy has deteriorated, leading young people to leave here," an elderly man said.
(Feb. 6, 2008)
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