Diet begins mulling antipiracy bill amid operations off Somalia

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TOKYO, April 14 Kyodo -
The House of Representatives on Tuesday began deliberating an antipiracy bill
that would expand the scope of escort missions carried out by Japan's
Self-Defense Forces off the coast of Somalia.
The legislative move comes as the SDF's current legal mandate has already shown
limitations of sorts with regard to helping ships not covered by it to repel
suspicious boats in the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden.
The bill, which is to be debated at the lower house's special committee on
antipiracy and antiterrorism operations, is aimed at authorizing the SDF to
escort any commercial ship, regardless of any connection to Japan.
It would also authorize the SDF to fire at pirate vessels -- but not at the
pirates themselves -- which, despite repeated warnings, close in on commercial
ships.
''Establishing this law to deal with piracy appropriately and effectively is an
urgent matter. I will devote all my power to an early enactment of the
legislation,'' Prime Minister Taro Aso said at the plenary session of the lower
chamber on Tuesday afternoon.
Unlike previous laws enacted to authorize the SDF to go abroad, such as to Iraq
and the Indian Ocean for operations connected to Afghanistan, the
government-sponsored bill does not require parliamentary endorsement before SDF
troops are dispatched.
The main opposition Democratic Party of Japan has thus asked the ruling bloc of
the Liberal Democratic Party and the New Komeito party to consider amending the
bill so that the need for such an endorsement is written in.
But Aso has shown reluctance to add a provision for parliamentary endorsement
to the proposal on the grounds that the SDF's antipiracy operations constitute
a policing action that does not require parliamentary endorsement.
Two Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyers have provided escort missions off
the Horn of Africa since late last month on the basis of the maritime police
action provision in the Self-Defense Forces Law.
The provision limits the destroyers to escorting only Japan-linked ships, such
as Japanese-registered ships and foreign ones operated by Japanese shipping
firms. It also requires them to use only necessary minimal force against
pirates for self-defense and emergency evacuations.
The government hopes to switch the antipiracy mission's mandate from the
maritime police action provision to the antipiracy legislation as soon as the
proposal is enacted.
Many in the opposition camp are wary of dispatching SDF personnel and vessels
overseas because of their activities' potential conflict with the country's
war-renouncing Constitution, which limits the use of force abroad.
On Tuesday, Aso denied that the use of weapons by the SDF in antipiracy
operations would contravene the Constitution. ''Using weapons within the scope
of laws and regulations against those who commit crimes punishable by Japanese
criminal law would not constitute the use of force (limited under the
Constitution),'' he said.
Meanwhile, Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura said Monday that he hoped the
Diet will pass the bill ''as soon as possible'' because vessels not covered by
the SDF's maritime police action mandate have asked for assistance.
''We will propose holding a consultation (with the opposition camp) after
seeing the counterproposal from the Democratic Party of Japan,'' the
government's top spokesman told a news conference.
In addition to escorting 20 Japan-linked commercial ships in the gulf, the MSDF
destroyers have so far helped two vessels unrelated to Japan repel suspicious
boats that had apparently been approaching them.
The Defense Ministry has explained that their non-forceful maneuvers, including
declaring their presence through loudspeakers, were humanitarian acts based on
the seamen's law, which stipulates the rescue of vessels and crew involved in
distress situations.
Some experts say the reliance on the seamen's law to help unrelated vessels
would effectively expand the scope of the country's antipiracy activities
without basing them on solid legal footing.
==Kyodo