Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto failed to give a good reason for not including semigovernmental corporations in a bill that would require government ministries and agencies to disclose information on their activities at the request of the public.
At a plenary session of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, Hashimoto would only say that the tripartite alliance had agreed to insert a clause that calls for a bill requiring disclosure by such corporations to be introduced to the Diet within two years.
"I recognize strong public demand (to include semigovernmental organizations in the bill), and we would like to take the matter seriously," Hashimoto said in response to a question by Hidenori Sasaki from the Democratic Party of Japan.
Hashimoto, however, did not say why such steps cannot be taken immediately. At the beginning of the session, Sadatoshi Ozato, Management and Coordination Agency chief, explained the bill, which aims to make the government more accountable for its activities.
The bill allows anyone -- Japanese, foreigners or corporations -- to access information upon request, including electronic information contained on floppy disks.
However, the bill exempts the government from providing information that falls under six categories, including information that identifies individuals and information that could endanger the nation or damage relations with other countries.