普天間移設問題―仕切り直すしかあるまい

沖縄普天間の基地移設問題は自民党政権時、長い時間をかけて検討されたものです。
それでも解決できない。
鳩山首相は人が良すぎます。
人々を幸せにするために良い返事をし続けていたのかも知れません。
誰が担当してもこの移設は難しいのです。
テレビで大きな顔をして堂々と発言を繰り返している社民党の福島党首。
少子化担当よりも普天間移設担当に任命したらどうでしょうか。
そうすればこの問題を担当する人の苦しみが少しは理解出来るかも知れない。
新聞社は鳩山首相の非難ばかりするのを少し抑えて、解決策の手助けをする方向で記事を書いて欲しい。

srachai from khonkaen, thailand

2010/05/15
--The Asahi Shimbun, May 14
EDITORIAL: Futenma impasse.
普天間移設問題―仕切り直すしかあるまい

Just two weeks remain before the expiry of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama's self-imposed end-of-May deadline for resolving the issue of relocating the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture. This was a promise he made not only to the Japanese people, but also to Washington.
　沖縄県の米海兵隊普天間飛行場の移設問題で、鳩山由紀夫首相が内外に約束した「５月末決着」の期限まで残り半月余りとなった。

Hatoyama repeatedly said he would find a solution by working closely with the U.S. government, Okinawa and local communities in deciding the relocation site. But it is now clear that there is no hope for him to honor his promise.
　米国政府、沖縄、移設先の地元のいずれの理解も得た形で決着する。首相はそう繰り返してきたが、もはや絶望的なことは誰の目にも明らかだ。

As things stand, Hatoyama will probably have to start anew from scratch.
　こうなっては、いったん仕切り直すしかないのではないか。

Hatoyama seems to be trying to keep up appearances with a hastily arranged relocation plan. Meantime, his talks with Okinawa and Washington will clearly extend beyond the deadline he set to allow for final adjustments in the policy.
　首相としては、沖縄や米国と６月以降も調整を続けることを前提に、現時点での政府方針をとりまとめ、なお体裁を整えようとしているようだ。

The plan he apparently has in mind will call for building a pier-type runway off the Henoko district of Nago in Okinawa Prefecture. Drills currently conducted at the Futenma airfield in Ginowan would be transferred to Tokunoshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture and Self-Defense Forces bases in other parts of the nation.
　代替滑走路は桟橋方式を念頭に名護市辺野古沿岸に建設し、訓練は鹿児島県徳之島のほか全国の自衛隊基地などに分散することが柱になりそうだ。

In a desperate attempt to avoid being humiliated in the Diet for failing to fulfill his promise, Hatoyama is knocking out a plan that is designed only to gloss over his faults and is supported by nobody. This will achieve nothing. It will only delay reaching consensus and completing the actual relocation. Hatoyama's missteps have thrown the issue into the realm of the "not-in-my-backyard" fight.
　責任の追及から逃れようともがき、短時日のうちに誰からも歓迎されないつじつま合わせの案をまとめても、合意形成も案の実現もかえって遠のこう。問題を基地の押し付け合いにしてしまったのは本末転倒である。

Hatoyama must own up to his political responsibility. He failed, not only on his promise to move the facility "at least" out of the prefecture, but also in settling the issue by his own deadline.
　「最低でも県外」「５月末決着」という二つの公約を果たせない政治責任を、首相は認めなければならない。

Hatoyama should, in point by point fashion, explain how matters reached this stage and apologize to voters, especially those in Okinawa Prefecture.
　ここに至った経緯を丁寧に説明し、沖縄県民をはじめとする有権者に率直におわびするべきである。

No communication between the leaders
　■首脳外交が機能不全

Saturday marks the 38th anniversary of the U.S. reversion of Okinawa to Japanese sovereignty.
　折しもあす、沖縄は本土に復帰して３８年になる。

Previously, people in Okinawa didn't openly demand the relocation of U.S. bases out of their prefecture. That's probably because they didn't have the heart to pass on their burden to others.
　沖縄の人々はこれまで、米軍基地を「県外に移せ」と公然と言うことはなかった。自らの痛みを他人に背負わせるのは忍びないとの思いからだろう。

But in the latest Asahi Shimbun survey of residents in Okinawa, 53 percent of the respondents voiced support for moving some of the bases in the prefecture to elsewhere in the nation, up from 38 percent in a poll last year. Public opinion in Okinawa has changed dramatically.
　しかし今回の朝日新聞の世論調査では、県民の５３％が県外移設に賛成と答えた。昨年は３８％にとどまっていたから、民意は大きく変化した。

When Hatoyama's Democratic Party of Japan took power from the Liberal Democratic Party last year, the Okinawan people had high expectations that the new government would finally ease their burden of hosting the bulk of U.S. military facilities in Japan. Those expectations are now unlikely to be fulfilled.
　県内への基地集中と過重な負担が、政権交代でやっと改善されるのではと期待したのに、裏切られようとしている。

Bitter disappointment and deep anger have caused them to feel that people on the mainland are discriminating against Okinawa.
その失望と怒りが、最近は「沖縄差別」という言葉となって噴き出してもいる。

It is impossible to keep the Japan-U.S. alliance on a stable footing without the support and cooperation of the local communities hosting U.S. bases. From this viewpoint, Hatoyama has done a serious disservice to the nation. His clumsy approach has served only to rub local residents the wrong way.
　基地を提供する地元の理解なしに、日米同盟を安定的に維持していくことができるはずはない。その意味で県民を逆なでする結果を招いた首相の取り運びのまずさは何とも罪深い。

In the meantime, Japan-U.S. summit diplomacy has hardly functioned. During his meetings with U.S. President Barack Obama, Hatoyama should have talked candidly about his decision to reconsider the 2006 bilateral agreement to move Futenma to Henoko and sought the president's understanding.
　この間、日米間の首脳外交の機能不全も目を覆うばかりであった。
　首相はオバマ米大統領との会談で、なぜ日米合意の辺野古移設案を見直そうとしたのかを率直に語り、理解を求めるべきだった。

However, there is nothing to suggest that the two men have had meaningful communication on the Futenma issue since then. This has made it very hard for the Hatoyama administration to offer a convincing explanation to the audience at home about progress in talks with Washington. It has become even more difficult for the government to persuade local communities to accept a fresh burden.
　その後、普天間問題で両首脳間に円滑な意思疎通がなされた形跡はない。これでは、日本国内に対して対米外交の進捗（しんちょく）状況を説明しようがないし、新たな負担を求めることになる移設先の説得などはもとよりおぼつかない。

Debate on fundamental security issues

　■安保の根本の議論を
It is impossible for Japan and the United States to resolve highly contentious political problems, such as those concerned with national security, when the leaders of the two nations are not communicating. Hatoyama is to blame for not realizing this point.
　首脳同士の対話ができない状況で、安全保障関係のような高度に政治的な懸案を解決することは到底できない。そのことへの理解不足も、首相の深刻な落ち度だったと言わざるを得ない。

The prime minister must seize the initiative and reverse the situation promptly so that Tokyo and Washington can closely consult on this and other issues.
　首相みずから、政治レベルで対米協議ができない現状を打開すべきだ。

Hatoyama must act swiftly to review the government's posture and map out a new comprehensive strategy for tackling this challenge. He should initiate national debate from a broader perspective. This should be in terms of overall bilateral security and sharing of the burden.
　首相は今後、この問題に取り組む態勢を早急に立て直し、総合的な戦略を練り上げなければならない。安保とその負担のあり方を大局的な見地から議論し直すべきである。

What are the main security threats to both Japan and the United States in this region? How should the two countries respond to crises? What functions should U.S. Marines perform in terms of maintaining regional stability? Obviously, the Japan-U.S. security alliance is a major stabilizing factor in East Asia. There is no doubt about the need to keep U.S. forces stationed in Japan. Does that mean the Marines can only perform their core function if they remain in Okinawa forever? Is there really no other alternative?
　日米両国にとって、この地域での脅威は何なのか。それにどう対処すべきか。そのなかで、米海兵隊はどのような機能を果たすのか。
　東アジアの安定装置として日米同盟の機能は大きい。在日米軍の存在は必要だ。だが海兵隊はずっと沖縄にいなければその機能を発揮できないのか。

It is vital that serious debate should start on these and other fundamental questions concerning the bilateral security alliance, not only between the two governments but also among members of the Japanese public. Without such debate, it will be impossible to find an acceptable answer to the intractable question of how the burden of the security alliance should be shared.
　そうした日米安保の根本を見据えた議論を日米政府間で、また日本全体を巻き込んで起こすことが不可欠ではないか。それ抜きに、安保の負担の分かち合いという困難な方程式の解にたどりつくことはできないだろう。

Hatoyama was not wrong in trying to find a way to move the Futenma base out of Okinawa. The 2006 agreement would have also been very difficult to carry out. But relocating the facility out of the prefecture would have required tremendous political power and time.
　県外移設を模索しようとした方向性は間違っていなかった。もともと日米合意案も容易に進んだとは思えない。だが、「県外」を本気でやろうとすれば大変な政治力と時間がいる。

Diplomatic efforts to change the regional security environment under a long timeframe are also important for finding a way out of the current impasse over the Futenma relocation. Changes in the situation on the Korean Peninsula and the overall security landscape in East Asia could make it possible for the United States to deploy the Marines differently.
　時間軸を長く取り、外交で地域の安全保障環境を変えていくことも、この問題の出口を見いだす上で大切だ。
　朝鮮半島情勢の転換や東アジア全体の安保環境の変化があれば、海兵隊の配置も変わってくるだろう。

Making a fresh start on the relocation plan could delay the return of the Futenma base to Japan until after the 2014 deadline under the current agreement. If the government is to have any hope of persuading Okinawans to accept such a delay, it needs to offer a vision for the future relocation of the base out of the prefecture or out of Japan altogether.
　仕切り直しで、普天間返還が日米合意の２０１４年より遅くなる事態もありうる。そのことにぎりぎり県民の理解を得るには、将来的な県外・国外移設への展望を示すことが欠かせない。

Another challenge for the government is to figure out how to accomplish the planned transfer of 8,000 Marines stationed in Okinawa to Guam, as provided for under the bilateral pact. The issue of sharing the burden of national security should not be used as a surrogate for an election-year partisan battle. Nonpartisan efforts are needed to find a solution.
　日米合意にある海兵隊８千人のグアム移転をどう実現していくかも、今後の作業のポイントだ。
　安保の負担の問題を政争の具にしてはならない。与野党を超えて知恵を絞ってもらいたい。

U.S. should show more understanding
　■米国も一層の理解を

We urge Washington to be more supportive of Japan's efforts to settle the issue.
　米国にも一層の理解を求めたい。

The U.S. strategy to project its power globally is underpinned by its bases in Japan, which cover a wide range of areas from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean. Obama was right on the mark when he described the Japan-U.S. relationship as a cornerstone of his country's diplomacy.
　米国がグローバルパワーたりえているのは、太平洋からインド洋までをカバーする在日米軍基地があってのことだ。オバマ大統領が日米関係を米国の「要石」と語った通りだ。

Washington is also responsible for ensuring stable operation of the bilateral security treaty. We hope the Obama administration will be flexible in its thinking in working with the Japanese government to find a way to reduce the burden borne by Okinawa.
　日米安保の安定的な運用には、米国にも責任がある。米国政府も柔軟な発想で、日本政府とともに真剣に沖縄の負担軽減を探ってほしい。

To improve the political environment for such cooperation, the Hatoyama administration must start by trying to repair its deeply tarnished credibility.
　そうした環境をつくるためにも、深く傷ついた政権の信頼をまず回復させるところから始めなければならない。