Yoshia Morishita : News articles about Somalia in relation to Japan

Saturday, Jan. 10, 2009
SDF weapons rules may be eased to fight piracy
Kyodo News
A bill is being drafted to make it easier for the Self-Defense Forces to use their weapons if they engage in antipiracy missions off Somalia, government sources said Friday.
The Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito ruling bloc kicked off debate Friday, and the government hopes to submit the bill to the Diet to deploy Maritime Self-Defense Force ships off Somalia, where piracy has been rampant. Any government bill must be endorsed by the ruling bloc before going to the Diet.
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The relaxed rules may allow the MSDF to fire on armed ships to prevent piracy even when not under attack, stirring concern of violating the war-renouncing Constitution.
A coalition panel held its first meeting on the issue Friday, but the discussion did not specifically mention easing the rules on arms use — apparently out of consideration for Buddhist-backed New Komeito, which is traditionally dovish.
Nevertheless, Gen Nakatani, a former Defense Agency chief and LDP member who cochairs the project team with New Komeito's Shigeki Sato, told other panel members at the outset of the meeting to act "so we can take steps swiftly."
According to the government sources, the bill states the need to protect non-Japanese ships and crew from pirates under Japanese law, arguing that antipiracy operations are "an important and urgent issue that the international community should tackle (together)."
The government is also mulling over the various situations in which the SDF should be allowed to use arms.
Currently, SDF personnel are allowed to use weapons only to protect themselves, foreign troops and civilians under their care, and in emergency evacuations.
Another issue the government is looking at is whether Japanese criminal law can be applied to piracy "no matter what the criminals' nationalities are or where the crimes are perpetrated," the bill said.
The use of a Penal Code provision that criminalizes interference with government officials in the execution of their duties is also being considered.
Given that other countries patrolling off Somalia often hand captured pirates to Somali authorities, Japan will still need to clarify how much it could touch upon antipiracy activities, the sources said.
Warships from the United States, the European Union and elsewhere have been patrolling off the Horn of Africa nation to crack down on piracy, which has expanded substantially in recent years.
Japanese officials and lawmakers have been talking about sending the MSDF to join the international effort, but no established legal framework exists for such duty.
The government also is considering applying a maritime police-action provision

Doc abducted in Ethiopia freed safely
The Yomiuri Shimbun
A Japanese woman kidnapped by an armed group in Ethiopia in September has been freed, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday morning.
The ministry said it confirmed Keiko Akahane, a 32-year-old doctor, had no major injuries and was in good condition. Wilhem Sools, a Dutch male nurse who was abducted with Akahane, also was released safely, the ministry said.
Akahane and the nurse work for the French medical aid group Medicins du Monde (MDM).
Akahane was released Wednesday afternoon, and was handed over to MDM. MDM then reported her release to the Japanese Embassy in Kenya. Akahane was transferred to an airport in Nairobi, and Ambassador Shigeo Iwatani met her there.
Akahane was still in Nairobi as of Thursday morning and was to undergo a medical examination, the Foreign Ministry said.
The ministry refused to answer whether a ransom was paid to the armed group for Akahane's release.
Negotiations with the armed group for the release of Akahane and the nurse were conducted mainly by MDM, the Foreign Ministry said. The ministry said it would not announce the details of Akahane's release or any statement from her because MDM was expected to do so soon.
Akahane was engaged in medical activities in the Ogaden region in eastern Ethiopia on behalf of MDM. She was abducted in the region, which is close to the border of Somalia, on Sept. 22 with the Dutch nurse by the armed group. The two were then taken to Mogadishu, the Somali capital.
Many Somalis live in the Ogaden region, and armed Somali groups go in and out the region. Antigovernment forces seeking independence from Ethiopia also are active in the region, creating political uncertainty.
A string of abductions targeting foreigners took place last year in Somalia and neighboring regions. Six to eight foreigners including members of another French humanitarian support group are still being held in Mogadishu.
At a press conference held Thursday morning, Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura said, "We condemn this despicable criminal act of abduction."
Kawamura said the government will ask Japanese citizens to stay away from foreign danger zones. He also said the government would urge nongovernmental organizations to be more safety conscious. "When the groups go to dangerous areas to help people in need, it is important for those groups to do the best they can to inform their people of the dangers present in such areas," Kawamura said.
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Abductors say ransom paid
By Shiomi Kadoya
Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent
JOHANNESBURG--An armed group that freed Japanese doctor Keiko Akahane and a Dutch nurse Wednesday has claimed it received a ransom in exchange for releasing them, it was learned Thursday.
According to a source in Nairobi who phoned the armed group on Wednesday night, a man who claimed to be a spokesman for the armed group told the source that the group freed Akahane and the nurse Wednesday afternoon after confirming the ransom had been paid.
The man reportedly said the armed group had received the money and reportedly transferred the two to Nairobi from an airport in Mogadishu.
The transfer was kept secret to avoid the attention of the local media, the man told the source.
The armed group first demanded the release of group members imprisoned in Ethiopia in exchange for freeing the two. The group then demanded that MDM pay 3 million dollars (279 million yen) as ransom, but MDM refused the demand. Finally, the group demanded the Japanese government pay 1 million dollars as ransom for the release of Akahane by a deadline of Dec. 10.
(Jan. 9, 2009)