Japan PM Rebukes Defence Minister Over A-Bomb Remarks

Jul 02, 03:07 AM

Current Headlines: Text of report in English by Japanese news agency Kyodo

Tokyo, July 2 Kyodo - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sternly warned Defence Minister Fumio Kyuma on Monday to be more careful with his words following weekend comments taken as justifying the US atomic bombing of Japan in World War II.

"I hope the minister will continue to carry out his duties especially on the issue of nuclear disarmament after having reflected on his words and fully grasped the weight of such remarks," Abe told reporters, rejecting calls from the opposition that Kyuma be sacked.

Kyuma apologized for and retracted the remarks Sunday.

After being summoned by Abe to the prime minister's official residence early Monday morning, Kyuma indicated to reporters he has no intention of resigning despite pressure from the opposition.

"I told (the minister) that Japan is the world's only country to have suffered from atomic bombs and that we must always stand from the viewpoint of the A-bomb sufferers in Nagasaki and Hiroshima and consider their feelings," Abe told reporters separately. "I cautioned him to take care not to make remarks that will cause misunderstanding."

In a regular news conference earlier in the morning, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki said, "With the premier's stern warning, I believe we can have (Kyuma) continue his duties as a minister."

Despite such moves in Tokyo, protests over the remarks continued in Nagasaki, with Nagasaki Mayor Tomihisa Taue saying he will protest directly to Abe and Kyuma as early as Tuesday in Tokyo.

The defence minister "lacks consideration for the A-bombing survivors and Nagasaki citizens," Taue told reporters in Nagasaki, while suggesting he may reject Kyuma's attendance at the Aug. 9 memorial service.

A-bombing survivors, peace campaigners and labour union members in Nagasaki, meanwhile, staged sit-in in the peace memorial park there, and some 100 people gathered in front of the cenotaph for A- bomb victims in Hiroshima, seeking Kyuma's dismissal.

The defence minister, who is himself from Nagasaki, caused a stir on Saturday when he said in a speech that "I understand the bombing (of Nagasaki) brought the war to its end. I think it was something that couldn't be helped."

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party is concerned about the possibility of adverse impact on the party in the July 29 House of Councillors election as Abe's administration has already been hit by a fiasco of pension recordkeeping blunders and other scandals.

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