英字新聞
読売、毎日、朝日各社英字新聞の主として社説を学習研究します

The Yomiuri Shimbun
Giants must work toward ensuring self-discipline on part of players
巨人野球賭博　選手の規律順守を徹底したい

Pitcher Kyosuke Takagi of the Yomiuri Giants has admitted his involvement in gambling on Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) games. He is the latest Giants player to admit betting on ball games, following three other pitchers who were suspended by NPB last November for an indefinite period.
　読売巨人軍の高木京介投手が野球賭博に関与していたことを認めた。日本プロフェッショナル野球組織（ＮＰＢ）から昨年１１月に無期失格処分を受けた３投手に続く不祥事だ。

The Giants have made all-out efforts to regain confidence lost over the gambling scandal. It is extremely regrettable that the latest revelation came out shortly before the pennant race begins, betraying baseball fans again. The club’s president, Hiroshi Kubo, apologized at a news conference, saying, “I couldn’t regret this any more than I do.”
　巨人軍は、球団を挙げて信頼回復に取り組んできた。プロ野球の開幕間近に、ファンを再び裏切ることになったのは、極めて残念な事態である。巨人軍の久保博社長は記者会見で、「重ね重ね、痛恨の極みです」と謝罪した。

The club has filed a complaint against Takagi with NPB Commissioner Katsuhiko Kumazaki. Appropriate disciplinary action will be handed down following the NPB’s investigations.
　巨人軍は、高木選手をＮＰＢの熊崎勝彦コミッショナーに告発した。ＮＰＢの調査を経て、厳正な処分が下されよう。

To take the responsibility for a series of gambling scandals, Giants owner Kojiro Shiraishi, Chairman Tsunekazu Momoi and Executive Adviser Tsuneo Watanabe have resigned. Shoichi Oikawa, executive adviser of The Yomiuri Shimbun Holdings, will succeed Shiraishi as the club’s owner.
　一連の問題の責任を取り、巨人軍の白石興二郎オーナー、桃井恒和会長、渡辺恒雄最高顧問が辞任した。後任のオーナーには、老川祥一・読売新聞グループ本社最高顧問が就いた。

“I deeply apologize to all baseball fans,” Oikawa said. “I would like to regain the trust of the public as soon as possible.”
　老川新オーナーは、「すべての野球ファンに深くお詫わびを申し上げます。一刻も早く信頼を回復したい」と語った。

Lawyer Noboru Matsuda, who has served in such positions as chief of the special investigation squad of the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, has assumed the post of acting owner. We want him to help the team strengthen its discipline.
　オーナー代行には、東京地検特捜部長などを歴任した弁護士の松田昇氏が就任した。巨人軍の綱紀粛正に力を注いでもらいたい。

Bolster instruction programs

Takagi bet on eight or nine professional baseball games from April to May in 2014 at the inducement of Shoki Kasahara, who was disqualified indefinitely. Takagi bet against a restaurateur who is an acquaintance of Kasahara. NPB investigations determined that the man habitually bets on baseball games.
　高木選手は２０１４年４～５月に、無期失格となった笠原将生元選手に誘われて、プロ野球の８～９試合を対象に賭けをした。相手は、笠原元選手の知人の飲食店経営者だ。ＮＰＢの調査で野球賭博常習者と認定されている。

Takagi’s acts obviously violate the article of the Nippon Professional Baseball Agreement that bans betting on baseball games. He bowed at a press conference, saying, “I am very sorry for betraying the confidence of the people concerned.”
　高木選手の行為は、試合を対象にした賭けを禁じた野球協約に明らかに違反する。記者会見で「関係者の皆さんを裏切ってしまい、本当に申し訳ありませんでした」と頭を下げた。

In hearings conducted by the club, questioning all Giants players, Takagi denied involvement in gambling on ball games. The restaurateur in question did not comply with the club’s request for cooperation in the investigation.
　巨人軍が全選手を対象に実施したヒアリング調査で、高木選手は野球賭博への関与を否定していた。飲食店経営者は、巨人軍の調査協力要請に応じなかった。

The probe by the club, which has no investigatory power, could have its own limits. But the fact remains that the club could not uncover Takagi’s involvement when the wrongdoing by the other three players came to light. It cannot be helped if the club is criticized, in hindsight, for failing to conduct a thorough probe.
　捜査権を持たない球団の調査には、限界があるだろう。だが、３選手の不祥事が明らかになった際、高木選手の関与をあぶり出せなかったことは事実だ。結果として、調査を尽くさなかったと批判されても、仕方あるまい。

Kazuhiro Kiyohara, who once played with the Giants, has been indicted on charges of possessing stimulant drugs.
　かつて巨人軍に在籍した清原和博元選手は、覚醒剤取締法違反（所持）で起訴された。

Children look up to pro baseball players. If they commit wrongdoing, it will have a big social impact. Fully aware of the heavy responsibility they bear, they need to exercise self-discipline throughout their careers and even after retirement.
　プロ野球選手は、子供たちのあこがれの存在だ。不祥事を起こせば、社会的影響が大きい。重い責任を背負っているという自覚を持ち、現役中はもちろん、引退後も身を律することが求められる。

The Giants must bolster instruction of their players through seminars and other programs.
　巨人軍は、研修などで選手教育を強化しなければならない。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, March 12, 2016)

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 11
EDITORIAL: The voices from Tohoku must be heard 5 years after the disaster
（社説）震災から５年　心は一つ、じゃない世界で

Exactly five years have passed since March 11, 2011, when Japan was struck by what has been described as the biggest postwar national crisis.
On that day, the Great East Japan Earthquake and subsequent tsunami ravaged wide areas in the northeastern Tohoku region and triggered the meltdowns at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.
　戦後最大の国難といわれた東日本大震災と福島第一原発の事故が起きた「３・１１」から、５年がたつ。

Reconstruction work is continuing in coastal areas of Miyagi and Iwate prefectures. Many residents are still struggling to rebuild their shattered livelihoods.
　宮城県や岩手県の海沿いでは工事の音が鳴り響く。だが、暮らしの再建はこれからだ。

Around 170,000 people, mainly residents in Fukushima Prefecture, are living away from their homes as evacuees.
福島県をはじめ、約１７万人が避難先での生活を強いられている。

People in the affected areas are still reeling from the aftermath and fallout of the devastating natural disasters and the harrowing nuclear accident.
　震災と原発事故は、今もなお続いている。

But how many people in other parts of the nation far from the stricken areas truly understand the harsh realities in communities battered by the disasters?
被災地から離れた全国で、その現実感を保つ人はどれだけいるだろう。

GAP WIDENS BETWEEN AFFECTED AREAS, OUTSIDE WORLD
　■深まる「外」との分断

Immediately after the disasters occurred, everybody’s heart went out to people in the affected areas. Many Japanese talked about “mutual support” and the “ties” that bound them with the victims. The kanji for “kizuna,” meaning “human bonds,” was chosen as the Chinese character that most powerfully symbolized the year.
　直後は、だれもが被災地のことを思い、「支え合い」「つながろう」の言葉を口にした。年の世相を表す「今年の漢字」に、「絆」が選ばれもした。

But we now wonder if all of the sympathetic feelings expressed back then were genuine. In the disaster-stricken areas, many people are lamenting the growing psychological distance with the rest of Japan.
Various emotionally charged issues have divided communities in the affected areas.
　あの意識ははたして本物だったろうか。被災地の間ではむしろ、距離が開いていく「分断」を憂える声が聞こえてくる。

They include forcing residents to leave the places where they have lived for a long time, and constructing levees that separate the land from the sea, which has supported their livelihoods.
　住み慣れた土地を離れる住宅移転。生活の場である海と陸とを隔てる防潮堤。

Debates over whether to preserve or remove remnants of buildings destroyed by the disasters have raised complicated feelings: a desire to forget what happened mixed with a determination to never forget.
「忘れたい」と「忘れまい」が同居する震災遺構。それぞれの問題をめぐり地元の意見は割れてきた。

Such divisions threaten to destroy harmony among community members. The problem is most acutely felt in Fukushima Prefecture.
　人間と地域の和が壊れる。その痛みがもっとも深刻なのは、福島県だ。

Disputes over the effects of radiation have shaken residents’ values and judgments. The problem has been compounded by the fact that Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of the Fukushima No. 1 plant, paid different amounts of compensation to victims based on radiation levels in their areas.
Families and communities have been split into opposing groups.
　放射線の影響をめぐり、住民の価値観や判断は揺れた。線量による区域割りで東京電力からの賠償額が違ったことも絡み、家族や地域は切り刻まれた。

Some residents are working hard to repair the severed ties, and a variety of efforts are under way to heal wounded communities. They include a program to guide visitors to deserted towns and a project to provide information about Fukushima to people who voluntarily fled their communities in the prefecture.
　ささくれだつ空気の中で、修復を求めて奔走する人たちはいた。無人の町を訪問者に案内したり、自主避難者向けに福島からの情報発信を始めたり。さまざまな活動が生まれた。

Sachiko Bamba, a resident of Minami-Soma city, has worked with doctors to organize more than 80 study sessions to help citizens learn about radiation.
　南相馬市の番場さち子さんもその一人だ。医師と一緒に放射線についての市民向け勉強会を８０回以上重ねた。

Her project is driven by the belief that acquiring accurate knowledge about radiation helps people make educated decisions about their futures and assume a positive attitude toward life.
まずは正しい知識を得る。それが今後の生活の方針を納得して選び、前向きになる支えになると考えた。

Bamba and other like-minded people are concerned that residents’ struggles to overcome the huge challenges over the past five years remain largely unknown to people in other parts of the nation, creating widening perception gaps.
　番場さんらがいま懸念するのは、５年にわたる苦悩と克服の歩みが、被災地の「外」に伝わらず、認識のギャップが広がっていることだ。

They still receive questions from people outside Fukushima Prefecture on whether local residents must wear masks when they go out or whether rice produced in Fukushima Prefecture is safe for eating.
　「福島県では外出時にマスクは必要か」「福島産の米は食べられるのか」。県外から、そんな質問が今も続く。

The safety of various farm products from Fukushima Prefecture has been confirmed through constant measurements of airborne radiation and human exposure doses as well as continuous efforts to decontaminate polluted areas and check radiation in all foodstuffs.
　空間線量や体内の被曝（ひばく）の継続的な測定、食材の全量検査、除染作業などさまざまな努力を重ねた結果、安全が確かめられたものは少なくない。

But people outside the prefecture are not receiving much information about such improvements and progress.
だが、そうした正常化された部分は、県外になかなか伝わらない。

Last year, a man outside Fukushima Prefecture who called himself an anti-nuclear activist criticized a mother for remaining in Koriyama and supposedly exposing her child to health risks. She was deeply disheartened by the simple, inconsiderate and ill-founded argument against living in Fukushima that was based on his opposition to nuclear power.
　郡山市に住む母親は昨年、県外の反原発活動家を名乗る男性から「子供が病気になる」と非難された。原発への否定を無頓着に福島への忌避に重ねる口調に落胆した。

“How long will this kind of nonsense continue?” she uttered to herself.
「まだこんなことが続くのか」

STUDENTS SEEKING WORDS FOR COMMUNICATION
　■「言葉」を探す高校生

It is probably inevitable that differences in perceptions will appear over time between people in the disaster areas and those in the rest of the nation.
　時がたてば、被災地とほかとの間に意識の違いが生じるのは仕方のないことでもある。

To make our society less vulnerable to disasters, however, it is vital to constantly narrow such perception gaps. The positions of people currently struggling with hardships and those who are not may be reversed at any time.
　だが、災害に強い社会を築くには、その溝を埋める不断の努力が欠かせない。いま苦境と闘う人と、そうでない人とは、いつ立場が変わるかも知れない。

People in Fukushima Prefecture want to share their experiences over the past five years with the outside world. They believe the facts about the divisions caused by the nuclear disaster and their efforts to overcome them should be part of the lessons learned by the entire nation.
　福島の人びとが「この５年」を外に知ってほしいと思うのは、原発事故がもたらす分断の実相と克服の努力を全国の教訓として共有すべきだと考えるからでもある。

People in the prefecture are continuing their quest to find ways to achieve this goal.
　模索は続いている。

At Futaba Future School, a prefectural high school that opened last spring in the town of Hirono, Fukushima Prefecture, theater is a required course.
　福島県広野町に昨春開校した県立ふたば未来学園高校では必修科目に演劇を組み入れる。

The course is taught by reputed playwright Oriza Hirata, who has instructed his students to “express as they are the discrepancies in feelings due to different positions and unsolvable issues.”
　指導する劇作家の平田オリザ氏が生徒たちに課したのは、「立場の違いによるすれ違いや解決できない課題をそのまま表現する」こと。

At the outset of the course, Hirata told the students: “Let me tell you something. Nobody in the world understands things about Fukushima and you.”
　授業の冒頭、平田氏は言う。「言っとくけど、福島や君たちのことなんて世界の誰も理解なんてしてないからね」

The challenge facing the students is how to communicate their feelings to indifferent people. Tackling this challenge requires them to ask themselves whether they can really imagine the feelings of others.
　関心のない人に、どうやったら自分の思いが伝わるか。それは同時に、自分が他者の思いを想像できているかを自問することにもなる。

Bamba of Minami-Soma has also set up a study group to learn from TEPCO executives. She decided to stay in contact with the operator of the crippled nuclear plant to learn more about the company, which is responsible for rebuilding the devastated communities in the prefecture.
　番場さんは、福島担当の東電役員を招いた勉強会も始めた。事故を起こした東電とあえて交流するのは、最後まで福島の再生に努める責任を負っている相手のことを知るためだ。

In this world, people’s hearts are not one. History is littered with many examples of painful divisions among people, including the cases of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the only cities to suffer a nuclear attack, communities afflicted by pollution-caused diseases like Minamata disease, and Okinawa Prefecture, which has been forced to bear an excessive burden of hosting U.S. military bases.
　この世は、「心は一つ」ではない。歴史をみれば、分断はいくつも存在した。原爆に苦しんだ広島と長崎、水俣病など公害に侵された町、過大な米軍基地を押しつけられた沖縄――。

Various areas around this nation have been suffering on their own and fighting the pain caused by misunderstandings and perception gaps. Exchanges are growing between Fukushima Prefecture and other areas grappling with these problems.
　重い痛みを背負い、他者との意識差に傷つき悩みながら闘ってきた全国の地域がある。いま、そうした地域と福島とで交流する催しが増えている。

START WITH THINGS THAT CANNOT BE EASILY SHARED
　■伝わらないことから

If people living in different places and thinking about different issues want to connect with each other, they need to start talking about things that they both do not understand and continue their dialogue.
　住む場所も考える問題も違う人間同士が「つながる」ためには、「互いにわからない」ことから出発し、対話を重ねていくしかない。

“A desire to communicate is only born out of an experience of being unable to communicate,” Hirata says. “From this point of view, children in the stricken areas who have experienced the disaster, the mutual help and the divisions have the potential to play leading roles in reconstruction efforts and open up a new future for our society.”
　「伝えたい気持ちは、伝わらない経験があって初めて生まれる。その点で、震災と助け合いと分断とを経験した被災地の子どもたちには、復興を担い、世の中を切りひらく潜在的な力がある」と平田氏は言う。

Every Japanese should pay fresh and serious attention--and respond--to the messages people in the affected areas are sending out.
　被災地からの発信を一人ひとりが受け止め、返していくことから、もう一度始めたい。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 10
EDITORIAL: Despite utilities’ attempts, nuclear safety myth can never be revived
（社説）原発事故から５年　許されぬ安全神話の復活

Japan should become a society that is not dependent on nuclear power generation as quickly as possible.
　できるだけ早く原子力発電に頼らない社会を実現すべきだ。

Five years have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake and subsequent tsunami devastated wide areas in the northeastern Tohoku region on March 11, 2011, triggering the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.
　東日本大震災と福島第一原発の事故が起きてから、明日で５年になる。

Our editorials will continue arguing for a nuclear-free future for Japanese society.
私たちは社説で改めて、「原発ゼロ社会」の実現を訴えていく。

The Otsu District Court in Shiga Prefecture on March 9 issued an injunction against the operation of two reactors at Kansai Electric Power Co.’s Takahama nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture. The court told the utility to immediately shut down the No. 3 reactor at the plant and keep the No. 4 unit off-line. Both reactors were restarted earlier this year, but a malfunction automatically shut down the No. 4 unit on Feb. 29.
　大津地裁はきのう、関西電力高浜３、４号機（福井県）の運転を差し止める仮処分決定を出した。

It was the first time for a Japanese court to order a halt to an online nuclear reactor.
稼働中の原発を司法が止めるのは初めてのことだ。

The Abe administration can hardly claim that its policy decisions concerning nuclear power generation have been solidly based on lessons learned from the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
　安倍政権は、福島の原発事故の教訓をできる限り生かしたとは到底言えない。

Rather, the administration has been trying to revive the nuclear power policy that was in place before the disaster and restart as many reactors as possible.
原発政策を震災前に押し戻し、再稼働へ突き進もうとしている。

The court decision echoes public anxiety about the government’s move to gradually regain Japan’s nuclear capacity without serious public debate on the issue.
　今回の地裁の判断は、なし崩しの再稼働に対する国民の不安に沿ったものでもある。

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government should sincerely respond to the important social changes caused by the triple meltdown and take steps toward a major shift in energy policy.
安倍政権は、原発事故がもたらした社会の変化に真摯（しんし）に向き合い、エネルギー政策の大きな転換へと動くべきである。

MANY QUESTIONS ABOUT NEW SAFETY STANDARDS
　■新基準にも疑問

As for the Takahama plant, the Fukui District Court issued an injunction against plans to restart the two reactors in April last year.
　高浜をめぐっては昨年４月にも福井地裁が再稼働を禁じる仮処分決定を出した。

Although another judge at the district court repealed the injunction eight months later, the fact remains that the judiciary has twice denied the safety of reactors that passed the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s stricter safety standards introduced after the Fukushima disaster.
　約８カ月後に別の裁判長が取り消したとはいえ、原子力規制委員会が「新規制基準に適合している」と判断した原発の安全性が２度にわたり否定された。

When the Fukui District Court in April rejected the restarts of the reactors, proponents of nuclear power generation played down the importance of the order, saying it was “an exceptional decision by an exceptional judge.”
After the Otsu District Court’s injunction, however, this argument no longer holds water.
　昨年４月の際、原発推進の立場からは「特異な裁判長による特異な判断」との批判もあったが、もはやそんなとらえ方をするわけにはいかない。

Looking back on the harrowing accident in Fukushima Prefecture, the district court pointed out that a severe nuclear accident could cause environmental destruction beyond national borders. It is hard to assert that efficiency in power generation should be pursued even at the risk of devastating disasters, the court maintained.
　今回の決定は、事故を振り返り、環境破壊は国を超える可能性さえあるとし、「単に発電の効率性をもって、甚大な災禍とひきかえにすべきだとは言い難い」と述べた。

The court also contended that the NRA and Kansai Electric have made insufficient efforts to pinpoint the causes of the Fukushima accident.
　そのうえで事故原因の究明について関電や規制委の姿勢は不十分と批判。

The NRA’s endorsement of the safety of a reactor cannot be seen as a base for a sense of security within society, the court said.
規制委の許可がただちに社会の安心の基礎となるとは考えられないと断じた。

The court’s decision that meeting the new regulatory standards alone does not necessarily ensure the safety of a reactor has huge implications.
　新たな規制基準を満たしたとしても、それだけで原発の安全性が確保されるわけではない。その司法判断の意味は重い。

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has said the Abe administration remains committed to promoting reactor restarts in line with the NRA’s judgments.
　安倍政権は「規制委の判断を尊重して再稼働を進める方針に変わりない」（菅官房長官）としている。

But the administration should carefully consider the significance of the fact that the judiciary has raised fundamental questions about the entire system of post-Fukushima nuclear safety regulation.
だが、事故後の安全規制の仕組み全般について、司法が根源的な疑問を呈した意味をよく考えるべきだ。

EVACUATION PLANS IN DOUBT
　■問われる避難計画

An Asahi Shimbun editorial published in July 2011 called for the creation of a society without nuclear power.
　朝日新聞は２０１１年７月に社説で「原発ゼロ社会」を提言した。

While supporting the temporary operation of the minimum number of reactors that are absolutely needed to meet electricity demand, the editorial proposed that nuclear power generation should be phased out in two to three decades by decommissioning dangerous and aging reactors.
当面どうしても必要な原発の稼働は認めるものの、危険度の高い原発や古い原発から閉めて２０～３０年後をめどにすべて廃炉にするという考えだ。

In fact, all nuclear reactors in Japan were off-line for about two years and one month over the past five years. No serious power crunches or economic upheavals took place during the period, disproving initial warnings about such possibilities.
The experiences during the period have shown that the number of “absolutely necessary nuclear reactors” is not that many. This lends weight to the argument that strict conditions must be met for restarting a reactor.
　実際にはこの５年のうち約２年１カ月は国内の原発がすべて止まっていた。当初心配された深刻な電力不足や経済の大混乱は起きず、「どうしても必要な原発」はさほど多くないことがわかった。再稼働の条件は厳しく設定すべきである。

A growing number of Japanese are calling for the immediate shutdown of all reactors or a steady reduction in Japan’s dependence on nuclear energy. An Asahi Shimbun public opinion poll in February confirmed this trend; a majority of respondents voiced opposition to reactor restarts.
　原発の即時全面停止や依存度低減といった脱原発を求める世論が高まり、先月の朝日新聞の世論調査でも過半数が再稼働に反対している。

The Abe administration initially pledged to lower the nation’s dependence on nuclear power over time. But it has gradually ratcheted up its rhetoric in promoting nuclear power generation through remarks that appear designed to create a new “nuclear safety myth.”
　安倍政権は当初は「原発依存度の低減」を掲げたが、徐々に新たな「安全神話」を思わせる言動が目立っている。

In his 2013 speech supporting Tokyo’s bid to host the 2020 Summer Olympics, Abe told the world that the situation concerning radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima plant was “under control.”
　安倍首相は１３年、東京五輪招致で原発の汚染水状況を「アンダーコントロール（管理下にある）」と世界にアピールした。

He has also contended in the Diet that the NRA’s new safety standards were “the strictest in the world.”
規制委の新基準についても国会で「世界一厳しい」と持ち上げた。

But the Otsu District Court’s decision adjudged the standards as insufficient for giving the green light to a reactor restart.
だが、今回の地裁決定は、その基準も再稼働の十分条件ではないとの判断を示した。

In addition, there have been serious concerns about the lack of effective and reliable plans for emergency evacuations during severe nuclear accidents.
　さらに避難計画の不備はかねて懸念の的だった。

The new safety standards do not cover evacuation plans, and the NRA does not examine such plans when it evaluates the safety of a reactor.
新基準に避難計画は入っておらず、規制委の審査対象になっていない。

In the case of the Takahama plant, a severe nuclear accident would force about 180,000 residents in Fukui, Kyoto and Shiga prefectures to evacuate. But no drill to ascertain the viability of evacuation plans was conducted before the two reactors resumed operations.
　高浜の場合、福井、京都、滋賀の３府県にまたがる約１８万人が避難を余儀なくされるが、再稼働前に計画の実効性を確かめる訓練も実施されなかった。

The court referred to the government’s “obligation to develop regulatory standards from a broad perspective that also covers the need of evacuation plans.” The government should immediately respond to this proposition.
　地裁は「避難計画をも視野に入れた幅広い規制基準をつくる義務が国家にあるのではないか」と投げかけた。政府がただちに答えるべき問いだ。

NUCLEAR POWER OF GREAT PUBLIC CONCERN
　■国民の重大な関心事

Despite the enormous scale of damage caused by the Fukushima accident, the responsibility of those who had championed nuclear power generation has yet to be clarified.
　あれだけの事故でありながら原発を推進してきた人たちの責任は明らかになっていない。

As the Otsu District Court pointed out, the Japanese public who watched the disaster unfold at the Fukushima No. 1 plant understand the “overwhelming scope” of the damages caused by the accident as well as the “great confusion” that arose during the evacuation process.
　大津地裁が言う通り、原発事故を経験した国民は事故の影響の範囲について、「圧倒的な広さとその避難に大きな混乱が生じたことを知悉（ちしつ）している」。

Yet both the government and electric utilities are working in tandem to restart reactors as if they have forgotten what happened five years ago.
　にもかかわらず、政府と電力会社は事故を忘れたかのように再稼働へ足並みをそろえる。

Some revelations have cast serious doubt about utilities’ commitment to learning lessons from the accident and putting the top priority on safety.
Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of the stricken Fukushima plant, recently “discovered” a guideline in its operational manual that would have allowed it to announce core meltdowns much earlier than it did.
Kyushu Electric Power Co. has asked for the NRA’s permission to withdraw a plan to build a quake-proof building that can serve as an on-site response center during a severe nuclear accident. The company promised to build the emergency facility at its Sendai nuclear power plant before it restarted two reactors at the plant last year.
　東京電力が炉心溶融の判定基準を今ごろ「発見」したり、九州電力が川内（せんだい）原発の再稼働前に約束していた免震重要棟の建設を撤回したりと、事業者の反省、安全優先の徹底は怪しい。

These episodes raise suspicions that the utilities are returning to their pre-disaster practice of cunningly using experts to make key decisions about their nuclear power operations within the close-knit pro-nuclear community.
　専門家をうまく使い、事故前のように仲間内で決めようとしているのか。疑念が膨らむ。

Many issues concerning nuclear power policy are too complicated and arcane for ordinary citizens to easily understand. But the Fukushima nuclear crisis has reminded Japanese that nuclear power generation is an issue that is directly linked to their livelihoods and lifestyle choices.
　原子力政策は難解だが、原発は、人びとの暮らし方、生き方の選択と直結した問題であることを事故は思い起こさせた。

No matter how hard they try to revive the safety myth about nuclear power, government policymakers and members of the “nuclear village,” the closed and small community of people and organizations with vested interests in promoting nuclear power, will never be able to bring the nation back to the days before the Fukushima disaster.
　政権と少数の「原発ムラ」関係者たちが、いくら安全神話を復活させようとしても、事故前に戻ることはできない。

Nuclear power generation has already become a familiar issue and a matter of serious concern to the great majority of Japanese.
原発はすでに大多数の国民の、身近で重大な関心事なのである。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 9
EDITORIAL: Tokyo and Seoul must be faithful to agreement on 'comfort women'
（社説）慰安婦問題　日韓合意を育てるには

In its concluding observations, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) on March 7 criticized Japan for failing to "fully adopt a victim-centered approach" over the December 2015 Japan-South Korea agreement on the "comfort women" issue.
　国連の女子差別撤廃委員会（ＣＥＤＡＷ）は、慰安婦問題をめぐる昨年末の日韓合意について「被害者中心のアプローチが十分にとられていない」などと遺憾を表す最終見解を発表した。

The Japanese government reacted with displeasure.
"That's a real shame as it (the panel's reaction) diverges greatly from the reception of the international community," Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida told a news conference on March 8.
これに対し、岸田文雄外相が「国際社会の受け止めとはかけ離れている」と述べるなど、日本政府は反発している。

But doesn't such a knee-jerk reaction to the CEDAW observations only convey to the people of both Japan and South Korea a message that is incongruous with the spirit of the agreement?
　しかし、国連委員会の見解に対して反発するだけでは、合意の精神から離れたメッセージを日韓両国民に送ることにならないか。

We believe the only reasonable response to the CEDAW observations now is to act faithfully on each clause of the agreement, one by one.
こうした見解や見方に対する答えは、合意の中身を一つずつ着実に実行に移していくことに尽きるはずだ。

For decades, the comfort women issue plagued both Tokyo and Seoul, and the partners were finally able to reach an agreement at the end of the landmark 50th year of the normalization of their diplomatic ties.
　慰安婦問題は、日韓国交正常化５０年という節目の年の最後になってようやく合意をみた、両国政府にとって長年の懸案だった。

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, as well as the leaders of the United States and other countries, hailed the efforts made by Tokyo and Seoul to reach that accord.
合意に対して、国連の潘基文（パンギムン）・事務総長や米国をはじめとする国々から、日韓のその努力と成果に対して歓迎の意を表する動きがあった。

However, the contents of the agreement can hardly be said to have been fully appreciated in either country. In fact, there still remain very hard feelings about the agreement in both countries, particularly in South Korea.
　しかし、日韓双方の国内で合意内容が浸透したと言える状況にはない。むしろ、日韓両国、とりわけ韓国国内には強い反対意見があるのが現状だ。

Precisely because such is the case, no final resolution to the comfort women issue can be hoped for unless the governments abide by the agreement. And for that, the political leaders of both nations must be firmly resolved to abide by it.
　それだけに、政府間で約束が守られなければ、最終的な解決など望めない。そのためには日韓の政治指導者の強い意思が欠かせない。

Fortunately, some signs of change have been seen. For example, when a lawmaker of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party called the women "professional prostitutes" after the agreement was signed, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, speaking in the Diet, immediately chastised the offending lawmaker for misrepresenting the spirit of the agreement.
　実際、変化の兆しも出てきてはいる。日韓合意の発表後、慰安婦のことを「職業としての娼婦（しょうふ）」と発言した自民党の国会議員に対し、安倍首相は国会ですぐに「合意を踏まえた発言を」などと諭した。

And on the South Korean side, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se made no mention of the comfort women issue when he recently attended a U.N. Human Rights Council session. This was a first since President Park Geun-hye took office in 2013.
一方、韓国の尹炳世（ユンビョンセ）外相は先日開かれた国連人権理事会で、慰安婦問題について言及しなかった。朴政権になって初めてのことだ。

It is vital that both Tokyo and Seoul continue making these efforts.
　双方とも、こうした努力を重ねることが重要だ。

Under the agreement, the Japanese government is to pledge 1 billion yen ($8.8 million) to a fund to be established by the South Korean government for carrying out "projects for recovering the honor and dignity and healing the psychological wounds of all comfort women."
　日韓は、韓国政府が作る財団に日本が政府予算から１０億円を出すことで一致している。「元慰安婦の名誉と尊厳の回復、心の傷の癒やしのための事業」にあたるためだ。

This arrangement partly addresses the CEDAW's reference to Japan's need to "adopt a victim-centered approach."
最終見解の勧告にある「被害者中心のアプローチ」に重なる部分がある。

The agreement also confirms both countries' intention to resolve the comfort women issue "finally and irreversibly."
　また、両政府は慰安婦問題の「最終的かつ不可逆的」な解決も確認しあっている。

Both governments must strive to honor this agreement and continue to calmly exchange their views based on objective facts.
　両国政府関係者は、この合意が保たれるように努力し、双方が事実に基づいた冷静な主張を重ねていく必要がある。

To change the international community's perception of the comfort women issue, it is vital that Japan and South Korea work together to act fully and faithfully on the agreement and let it grow strong by deepening their mutual trust.
　日韓が手を携えて合意の内容を着実に履行する。互いに信頼関係を深めながら大きく育てていく。慰安婦問題をみつめる国際社会の視線を変えることも、こうした取り組みの積み重ねにかかっているはずだ。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 7
EDITORIAL: Broadcasters must stand up to LDP pressure
（社説）「停波」発言　放送局の姿勢を見たい

Communications minister Sanae Takaichi has reiterated that she or others in her post could order broadcasters to suspend operations if they repeatedly air politically unfair programs.
　政治的に公平でない番組を繰り返し流した場合、時の総務大臣の判断で、放送局に電波停止を命じることもありうる――。
　高市早苗総務相が、こう繰り返し表明している。

Takaichi, who also said some of her predecessors made similar remarks, has ruled out changing her position despite a series of statements by media executives and legal scholars criticizing her assertion.
これまでの総務大臣も同様のことを述べてきた、とも言っている。放送関係者や法学者らによる批判声明が相次いでいるが、考えを変えるつもりはないという。

Takaichi doesn’t understand the spirit of the Broadcast Law.
　高市氏は放送法の意義を理解していない。

The principal aim of the law is to secure the freedom of expression guaranteed by the Constitution.
放送法の精神は、憲法が保障する表現の自由を確保することにある。

The law’s Article 4, which requires political fairness in broadcasting, should not be used as a legal base to penalize broadcasters with orders to suspend their operations. That’s because there can be no clear definition of the term “political fairness.”
　様々に解釈できる「政治的公平」を定めた第４条を、停波という処分と結びつけるべきではない。

The communications minister, who is a politician, cannot be expected to serve as a good judge of whether a program is politically fair or not.
番組が政治的に公平か否か、自身も政治家である大臣が判断することには矛盾がある。

The current Liberal Democratic Party has taken a series of aggressive actions to meddle in the content of TV programs. The ruling party has made “requests” and conducted “interviews” that could be regarded as attempts to intimidate broadcasters.
　いまの自民党は、番組内容にまで踏み込み、威圧ともとれる「要望」や「事情聴取」などでテレビへの干渉を強めている。

Coming from a Cabinet minister of this high-handed governing party, Takaichi’s reference to possibly ordering broadcasters to suspend programs can be taken as an open challenge to the freedom of broadcasting.
そんな政権党の大臣が「停波」を口にすることは、放送の自由への圧力と受け止められる。

What is worrisome is that TV broadcasters could be daunted by her words.
　心配なのは、テレビ報道に萎縮が広がることだ。

Some employees of TV stations have reportedly said they feel silent pressure from their higher-ups. Others have mentioned growing signs that the people involved in producing TV programs are exercising self-restraint and using their own judgment to avoid provoking controversy.
　「上から無言のプレッシャーがある」「自主規制や忖度（そんたく）によって萎縮が蔓延（まんえん）している」。現場にはそんな声があるという。

The people’s right to know, a foundation of democracy, would be seriously undermined if broadcasters conduct docile news reporting out of fear of being labeled “unfair” by the government.
政権から「公平ではない」と言われるのを恐れて報道が手ぬるくなれば、民主主義社会の基本である国民の知る権利の足元が掘り崩される。

Even if they are undaunted by the government’s threat, TV broadcasters would lose the trust of viewers if they suspect TV programs are made in line with the government’s wishes.
　実際は萎縮していないとしても、視聴者が「政権の意に沿った放送だろう」と疑えば、テレビ報道は信頼を失う。

Takaichi’s remarks have effectively aroused such suspicions among the public. The situation is causing heavy losses for society.
高市氏の発言は結果として、こうした疑念を膨らませている。社会にとって大きな損失である。

Asked about Takaichi’s remarks, the heads of all the national TV networks have stressed that broadcasters are committed to the principle of “independence and autonomy.” They should demonstrate their commitment to the principle through their programs.
　在京キー局のトップはみな、記者会見で高市氏の発言について問われ、「放送は自主自律」と答えている。その覚悟を具体的に示してほしい。

Some TV broadcasters have already aired programs that dug into this issue and showed their own positions while providing viewers with information to think about related questions themselves.
　すでに、この問題を掘り下げて、視聴者に考える材料を提供しながら、自らの姿勢を示した報道番組もある。

But such moves have been limited in scope and show no signs of developing into a major trend.
だが、そうした動きは一部にとどまり、広がりが見えない。

Many newscasters who have criticized the government will be replaced as part of program changes this spring. This has made Japanese TV viewers attentive to the attitudes of TV broadcasters toward news reporting.
　春の番組改編で、政権に厳しくものを言ってきたキャスターが次々と交代することもあり、視聴者は今後の報道姿勢を注目している。

As an important player in journalism, TV stations should do more to communicate their views and opinions directly to viewers.
テレビ局は報道の担い手として、自分たちの考え方を、もっと積極的に直接視聴者に伝えたらどうだろうか。

Article 1 of the Broadcast Law says the law’s purpose is to “ensure that broadcasting will contribute to the sound development of democracy by clarifying the professional responsibilities of those who are involved in broadcasting.”
　放送法第１条には「放送に携わる者の職責を明らかにすることによって、放送が健全な民主主義の発達に資するようにする」とある。

TV broadcasters have a duty to clearly show how they are trying to fulfill these responsibilities.
それをどう実践しているのか、分かりやすく見せてほしい。

--The Asahi Shimbun, March 6
EDITORIAL: LDP needs to be serious about narrowing vote-value gap
（社説）衆院制度改革　放置できぬ格差拡大

There must be absolutely no further delay in the long-overdue electoral reform to redress grievous inequalities in representation.
To reduce the glaring disparity in the relative weight of a vote in Lower House single-seat constituencies, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party should respond positively to the major reapportionment and redistricting proposals made by its junior coalition partner, Komeito, and the opposition Democratic Party of Japan.
　もはや待ったなしである。衆院小選挙区の一票の格差是正に向け、自民党は公明党や民主党が主張する定数配分の抜本改革案に歩み寄るべきだ。

The 2015 national census has confirmed the worsening of the situation. A vote in the least populous Miyagi No. 5 district is “worth” the value of 2.334 votes in the most populous Tokyo No. 1, according to preliminary figures announced by the internal affairs ministry on Feb. 26.
　総務省が先月発表した２０１５年国勢調査の速報値によれば、人口が最も少ない宮城５区と最多の東京１区を比べると、格差は２・３３４倍となった。

The maximum gap in vote value narrowed to a ratio of 1.998 to 1 as a result of the changes made in 2013, which reduced the number of single-seat constituencies in five prefectures by one each.
But the latest demographic data have found a vote-value disparity of more than two--the standard of the Supreme Court for ruling “a state of unconstitutionality”--in 37 districts, including 14 in Tokyo, when compared with Miyagi No. 5.
１３年の「０増５減」に伴う区割り見直しで最大格差は１・９９８倍に縮小していたが、今回の調査では２倍以上の格差があるのは３７選挙区に上る。

As a formula to allocate Lower House seats to the 47 prefectures, a research council on the electoral system in January recommended the adoption of an apportion method that was proposed by John Quincy Adams, the sixth president of the United States.
　都道府県の間の定数配分の計算式として、衆院議長の諮問機関である有識者調査会は「アダムズ方式」の導入による抜本改革を答申した。

Many parties including the DPJ and Komeito have said they will accept the proposal. While the LDP has shown a reluctance to immediately adopt the method, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has promised to “respect” the panel’s recommendations.
民主、公明など多くの党が受け入れを表明し、消極的な自民党も安倍首相が「尊重する」と答弁している。

The question is when the Adams method should be introduced.
　残る焦点は、アダムズ方式をいつ導入するかだ。

In line with the panel’s proposal, which called for a net reduction of six seats elected in single-seat constituencies, the DPJ has proposed a combination of an increase of seven in the seats allocated to five prefectures and a reduction of one each in 13 prefectures, changes based on the 2010 national census. Komeito argues for an adjustment comprising an increase of nine seats combined with a reduction of 15 based on the 2015 data.
　答申が求めた小選挙区定数の６削減を前提に定数配分を見直す場合、民主党は１０年調査に基づく「７増１３減」を、公明党は１５年調査に基づく「９増１５減」を主張している。

Abe, however, is apparently tilting toward the idea of limiting the immediate changes based on the 2015 census to cut six seats through redistricting within six prefectures. He prefers postponing a major overhaul based on the Adams apportion method until after the full census scheduled for 2020.
　一方、安倍首相は１５年調査では、選挙区画見直しによる是正と定数の６減にとどめ、アダムズ方式導入による抜本改革は２０年の大規模調査以降に実施するとの方針だ。

Abe claims his position is in line with the council’s recommendations, which said a reapportionment based on the Adams formula should be carried out in response to the findings of full censuses conducted once a decade.
　アダムズ方式による配分見直しは１０年ごとの大規模国勢調査に基づき実施するとの答申に沿ったものだ、と首相はいう。

It is true that the panel didn’t propose any specific time frame for the reform. But Abe’s position ignores the reality of serious inequality in the value of votes.
　確かに、答申に導入時期は書いていない。だが、首相の言い分は、投票価値の不平等という現実から目を背けている。

What is important is not to follow the letter of the panel’s recommendations. The crucial issue is how to respond to the calls for substantial electoral reform made by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court declared the past three Lower House elections to have been conducted “in a state of unconstitutionality” because of a sharp vote-value disparity. The court has also urged an early abolition of the method of first distributing one seat to each of the 47 prefectures before allocating the remaining seats.
　大事なことは、答申に形式的に沿うことではない。過去３回の衆院選を違憲状態と判断し、「１人別枠」という定数配分方式の速やかな撤廃という最高裁の求めにどう応えるかだ。

The LDP’s “zero increase and six reduction” proposal would effectively keep the “one seat to each prefecture first” system intact.
　自民党が今回実施するという「０増６減」では、１人別枠方式は実質的に温存される。

Given that at least one Lower House election will be held by the time of the next national census, Komeito’s argument for introducing the Adams approach immediately by applying it to the newest demographic data is the most reasonable one.
　次の国勢調査までに少なくとも１回は衆院選があることを考えれば、最新データをもとにアダムズ方式を導入するとの公明党の主張が最も理にかなう。

Lower House Speaker Tadamori Oshima, who is serving as a broker in the negotiations over the issue among the parties, has expressed a desire to see the emergence of consensus by the end of this month. Abe should agree to the proposal put forward by Komeito, the LDP’s political ally.
　調整役の大島衆院議長は今月中に結論を出したいというが、安倍首相は友党・公明党の主張を受け入れるべきだ。

We can understand the argument that slashing the number of seats allocated to sparsely populated areas would make it difficult to incorporate the voices of people in rural areas into the central government’s policies.
　人口が少ない地域の定数が減れば、地方の声が国政に届きにくくなるという指摘があるのはわかる。

But the constitutional imperative of equality in the value of votes should not be obscured by this problem, which should be discussed from a different viewpoint.
ただ、それは憲法が求める「投票価値の平等」とは別の観点から論ずべき問題だ。

The judiciary has ordered that the existing inequality should be redressed as quickly as possible. The legislature has a responsibility to carry out the order.
　いまある不平等を、できるだけ早く正す。それが司法の要請であり、立法府の責任である。