Liberal Japan

You may not have known it, but the Japanese government has its own internet media web site. It’s called seifu kouhou onrain (政府公報オンライン), which roughly translates as government publicity online. There, they have a wide range of media, including audio and video programs on various government policies and issues.

Early this year, a popular Japanese tarento, Yuuki Maomi sat down with Bunmei Ibuki, current head of the MEXT (Education) Ministry, to discuss his policies. This was on January 29, 2006. Here, too, he discusses “rights metabolic syndrome“. He specifies human rights and rights of the individual as being at least some of the rights he is talking about. He thinks that rights need to be balanced against koueki (公益), the public good.

To see a video of the first half of the interview, click here.

To read a transcript of the first half of the interview, click here.

I have below, put the first half of the interview in blockquotes and then followed them with my own English translations. Please help me to improve these translations by offering comments.

Interview begins here:

○優木まおみ氏
　では、伊吹文明文部科学大臣にお話を伺います。失礼します。

Ms. Yuuki Maomi:
Okay then, Education Minister Ibuki I want to humbly ask you my questions. Please forgive my rudeness.

○伊吹大臣
　いらっしゃい。

Minister Ibuki:
Go right ahead.

○優木まおみ氏
　私、実は大学で教育を学んでいまして、小学校教員の免許を持っているんです。だから、今日は本当に教育というのは他人事ではない感じで、すごく楽しみにしてきました。

Ms. Yuuki Maomi:
Well, in fact, I actually went to the university and studied education, and I have received certification as an elementary school teacher. That’s why, today when we talk about education, I don’t at all feel like an outsider to the topic. I’ve been really looking forward to this.

○伊吹大臣
　教育というのは、だれでも話せることだからね。その代わり、だれでも理想の日本人像を持っていますから、なかなかまとまった議論にするというのは難しいんですね。

　どうぞおかけください。レディーファーストで。

Minister Ibuki:
When it comes to education, it is something we can all talk about. All Japanese have impressions about the ideal education. Despite this, it’s very hard to bring about agreement in a debate about the topic.

Please have a seat. It’s lady’s first.

○優木まおみ氏
　ありがとうございます。
　こんにちは、政府インターネットテレビ『大臣のほんね』。今日は伊吹文明文部科学大臣にお話を伺います。大臣、今日はよろしくお願いいたします。

Ms. Yuuki Maomi:
Thank you. [pause in program] Hello (directed at viewers), this is government internet TV, and this program is “The Minister’s real views” [honne views as opposed to tatemae views.] Today I will humbly ask questions of MEXT Minister Bunmei Ibuki. Minister, please look favorably upon me.

○伊吹大臣
　こちらこそ。

Minister Ibuki:
It’s indeed here. [i.e.You should not have to ask me to look favorably upon you, instead I should have to ask you to look favorably upon me.]

○優木まおみ氏
　伊吹さんが文部科学大臣に就任されて、およそ３か月が過ぎたわけですけれども、就任してからの感想というのを、まずお聞かせいただけますか。

Ms. Yuuki Maomi:
Mr. Ibuki, it has been about three months since you first took on the job of MEXT Minister, so first I’d humbly like to ask you what your impressions have been so far.

○伊吹大臣
　安倍内閣ができまして、安倍さんが小泉さん時代の忘れ物というんでしょうか。小泉さんは経済を立て直すために大変な御努力をなすって、その成果が随分いろいろなところへ出てきたわけですけれども、ライブドアの問題、村上ファンドの問題とか、格差による、勝った者の傲慢さ、負けた者の無気力というようなことが出てきていますから、そこを埋めようとして、教育再生を自分の最優先課題にされたと思うんです。

　教育再生の基本は今の教育基本法をなおすというところから始めないといけないので、安倍内閣の教育再生会議、文部科学省でお願いしている中央教育審議会。こういうところで広く国民の意見を聞いて、やっていきたいと思います。

Minister Ibuki:
The Abe cabinet has been completed, and Mr. Abe has spoken of what we must call Mr. Koizumi’s forgotten items. Mr. Koizumi put forth a great effort to fix up the economy, and there have been various successes, but we’ve had the Livedoor problem, and the Murakami fund problem, then resulting from (income) disparities you’ve had the insolence of winners and the apathy of losers; so these are gaps that need to be filled, and that’s why, for me, resuscitating education is a top priority.

○優木まおみ氏
　今お話にも出ましたけれども、平成18年12月に新しい教育基本法が成立しました。12月22日に公布・施行されたわけですけれども、今回の教育基本法改正のねらいというのは一体何なんでしょうか。

Ms. Yuuki Maomi:
Well, now that you’ve humbly mentioned it, in December 2006, a new Fundamental Law of Education was established. This was officially announced and set forth on December 22, but as far as the goal of revising the Fundamental Law of Education, what is this all about?

○伊吹大臣
　なおす前の教育基本法も大変よくできている法律なんです。例えば権利の大切さとかね、そのことはもう何ら間違いはないし、正しいこと。

　戦争に負けたときに、私は小学校の１年生だったんだけれども、これぐらいのバターの小さな１センチぐらいの塊はとても貴重なもので、栄養が随分あるものなんです。バターはいろんな栄養があるんです。だけれども、今はバターはそう貴重なものではなくて、幾らでも食べられるようになってしまったから、余り食べ過ぎるとメタボリック症候群になりますからね。そういうときは少しバターを控えて、そして、野菜も食べて、健康に暮らしていくというふうに時代が変わってきているわけです。

　だから、人権というのも個人の権利というのも大切なんだけれども、余り使い過ぎると権利メタボリック症候群になるので、家族あるいは会社、地域社会、そして日本の国の一員であるという公共の精神というんですか。自分の乗っている船のために努力をすることによって、自分の権利も主張できる。大切な自由にはやはり規律があるということを中心に法律が改正されたというふうに理解してもらったらいいと思うんです。

Minister Ibuki:
As far as the law is concerned, the previous Fundamental Law of Education was really well done. For example, the importance of rights and so on, no mistaking it, that was the correct thing.

At the time of being defeated in the war — by the way, I was an elementary school student , a first grader — this much butter, this little bit, about a 1 centimeter lump was a precious thing, it had a lot of nourishment. Butter has after all various aspects of nutrition. However, these days butter is not a precious thing anymore, we can eat all we like of it, and so if we eat too much of it we’ll get a metabolic syndrome, right? So we say in a time like this, we need to refrain a little bit, eat some more vegetables, that’s to say we live in a time where we’ve got to really watch our health.

That’s why I say, when we talk about human rights, when we talk about the rights of individuals, they’re important, but if used too much you’ll get a rights metabolic syndrome; there’s family or say the company, there’s local society, and then shall we say, (there’s you as) a member of the country of Japan, sharing the same spirit (mind/psychology).

Depending on how much effort you put forth for the boat you’re aboard, you can also emphasize your own rights. The main thing I want to ask you to understand is that freedom is important, but of course we’ve got to center our revisions of the law around the idea of order (discipline/rules).

○優木まおみ氏
　具体的には、どのように取り組んでいくというか、伝えていく形になるんでしょうか。

Ms. Yuuki Maomi:
Perhaps you could give a concrete idea about how you will proceed?

○伊吹大臣
　今、学校の先生というのは非常にお気の毒だと思うんです。それは三世代一緒じゃないから、おじいちゃん、おばあちゃんもいない。だから、御家庭で教えていたことや地域社会で教えていたことが、みんな学校の先生におぶさっているという感じがあって大変なんだけれども、それに負けてもらっては先生方もよくないので、待遇は十分考えながら、教員免許も何年かに一度は時代に合うように一度研修を受けてチェックをさせてもらいたいとか、教える内容も今お話ししたように、少しずつ権利と公益のバランスを取るように教えていくとか、地域の教育力を高めていくとか、そういう具体策をこれから教員基本法に沿って始めるということですね。

Minister Ibuki:
These days, if we speak of the teachers, I think we really have to feel sorry for them right now. This is because we don’t have three generations (of family) (living) together (these days), grandpa and grandma aren’t there (in the home) (anymore). Therefore, the stuff that used to get taught in the homes, the regional society stuff that used to get taught, isn’t taught in the homes anymore. It’s felt that the school teacher has to teach all this, which is very rough. But to receive defeat is no good, so while trying to treat teachers considerately, we’ve got to make sure that every so many years, they get a teaching certification that matches the age they are in. (We) want to give the teachers a training course, then check them, things like that. Then as far as that goes, there’s the course content, which little by little we’ve got to (increase) the balance between rights and public good and so on. We want to raise the educational power in the regions (of Japan) and so on. These are concrete things that (we) will follow along with as we revise the Fundamental Law of Education.

○優木まおみ氏
　お話は尽きませんが、後半ではさらに伊吹大臣の素顔に迫っていきたいと思います。お楽しみに。

Ms. Yuuki Maomi:
I’ve exhausted this topic, so for the second half of our talk we’ll ask Minister Ibuki to show his honest face. Let’s look forward to it …

Interview excerpt ends here.

There is a second part of this interview in which, Ibuki notes that Japanese style kaare (カーレ) or curry, and Japanese style potato salad can only be found in Japan. These are among his favorite foods. The second part of the interview is more about Ibuki’s personality than policy.

To see a video of the second part of the interview, click here.

To read a transcript of the second part of the interview click here.

To see videos of other ministers, click here.

To read transcripts of other ministers, click here.