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Establishment of Diet body to monitor specially designated secrets

May 22, 2014

On May 22, the Party's Intelligence and Secrecy Protection Project Team (Chairman: Nobutaka Machimura, member of the House of Representatives) reached an agreement on a lawmaker-initiated bill for the amendment of the Diet Act to establish an "Information Monitoring Committee" (name tentative) in both houses to monitor administration of the Act on the Protection of Specially Designated Secrets.

 

The committee would be comprised of eight members from each of the houses. Memberships will be allocated among factions according to their numbers of seats, with final selection by resolution of the majority of each house. Both Speaker and Vice-Speaker of the House of Representatives and President and Vice-President of the House of Councillors would also attend and provide comments. The committee, which will have closed proceedings, will examine whether the designation and revocation of secret information is performed appropriately based on annual reports by the government and hearings with the heads of government agencies empowered to designate secrets. It will have the power to issue advisories requiring improvements if it finds administration to be inappropriate.

 

The establishment of the monitoring body is based on an agreement from December of last year among four political parties: the LDP, New Komeito, Japan Restoration Party, and Your Party. During his initial remarks, Chairman Machimura said, "The committee is a completely new kind of organization, and this is a bill with deep significance." He vowed to pass the legislation during the current session.

 

Chairman Machimura of the Intelligence and Secrecy Policy PT vows passage during the current session

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