| OVAC Quarterly News Magazine Vol.15 October, 2004 |
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| “Share the view” is quarterly publication providing current information and topics on NGO/NPO sectors in Japan and opinions of Mr. Noboru Hayase, our Executive Director and editorial writers out of our monthly opinion magazine “Volo”. Taking into consideration of the wide-ranged non-governmental activities in Japan, it also includes information on volunteering, activities & movements of non-profit & community-based groups. |
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The Theory of Personal Responsibility"
- Denying the Significance of Civil Action |
 "We would like to apologize to you all for causing so much trouble and thank you for all your support."
Three young Japanese, two civil activists and a journalist, were held hostage in Iraq. When they were released unharmed, the families could express nothing but regret and appreciation at the press conference. They looked pathetic. That was in stark contrast to the active attitude they took right after the abduction - urging the government to accept the captors' demands and withdraw the Self-Defense Forces (SDF) from Iraq. We can easily imagine the families' fear that the storm of public criticism that they were caught in could be transferred to the three hostages upon their return to Japan.
From early on, elements of the media, as well as some members of the ruling coalition, criticized the three hostages and their families. "Lacking any sense of personal responsibility, their thoughtless and irresponsible acts impose a severe, unnecessary burden on the government and its related agencies," the Yomiuri Shimbun, an active leader of the criticism, said in an editorial, which was echoed by the Nihon Keizai Shimbun and the Sankei Shimbun. Some critics have even gone so far as to call for legislation to prohibit civilians, including journalists and civil activists, from entering regions in defiance of the government's evacuation advice.
This "theory of personal responsibility" is apparently very persuasive. What can we make of it?
Naturally, those people should make every effort to ensure their own safety. The acts of the former hostages should be assessed from this point of view. But why did the criticism of the hostages and their families spread so rapidly before people knew exactly what happened?
The phrase "personal responsibility" has come into widespread use in the financial field since the introduction of a refund cap on bank deposits. It has never been used for those who get involved in this kind of incident. Although many people feel that it is a cold criticism, it has spread widely in this country. This is partly due to the unprecedented development of the current hostage crisis.
In this incident the kidnappers demanded the SDF withdrawal from Iraq as a condition for the release of the hostages. The families also demanded the withdrawal. Their demands insinuated that the government was one party of this incident, and at first the abductees' families expressed opinions that conflicted with the government's Iraq policy. These two factors provided the background to the spreading of "the theory of personal responsibility."
As for the former factor, it implies that the current incident involved not only the three hostages but also the government and called the government's Iraq policy itself into question. Surely, if the government had not dispatched the SDF troops to Iraq, the incident of the hostage-takers demanding their withdrawal would not have occurred. However, it was declared that the abductees' "thoughtless and irresponsible" acts caused the incident. So the public attention was diverted from debates over the deployment of the SDF or the conduct of the U.S. Forces, which underlay the incident. As a result the government's policy remained unquestioned and all the responsibilities had to be shouldered by the three ex-hostages.
The latter factor also had a powerful effect on the trend. At first the families demanded the SDF withdrawal. In response, citizens' groups mounted a campaign for its pull-out and collected about 150 million signatures in three days. At the same time, they took vigorous actions in the media, including the Al-Jazeera news network to appeal to the public there for help.
Although public opinion in Japan has been divided over the deployment in the first place, the withdrawal means to bow to the demand of terrorists who use innocent civilians as hostages. It has undermining effects on the handling of such a crisis. But I do not intend to discuss here the rights and wrongs of the withdrawal.
The point is that "the theory of personal responsibility" surfaced as a countermeasure against swelling anti-government activities. Some actually said, "The Self-Defense Forces should be tasked to carry out the mission in a dangerous area. Civilians are not allowed to have their own way." Such logic, if accepted, would impose great limitations on civil action: citizens' groups could not carry out their missions altogether or would be put under the control of the SDF.
NPOs are NGOs at the same time. That is a primary reason why NPOs attract people's attention. Just like governments NPOs are not for profit. On the other hand NPOs are independent from governments and act according to their own judgment. This makes their activities wide-ranging, quick and pioneering. The significance of citizens' groups lies in the fact that they can provide various solutions which are different from the government's policies and that they can organize activities which the government cannot take on. The United Nations, which is a union of national governments, acknowledges the significance of NGOs. Ever since its establishment, the Economic and Social Council, one of the main bodies like the Security Council, has recognized NGOs as its partners.
Governments, pursuing their national interests, can only make limited contributions to humanitarian aid, which should be politically neutral. The Japanese government has not yet launched or even planned any supportive activities for street children in Iraq or any research into the damage of the depleted uranium shells. This kind of research can only be conducted by a citizens' group.
In addition, many have reported that anti-U.S. Forces sentiment is spreading in Iraq. Some perceive the SDF as a loyal follower of the U.S. Forces, to our regret. Those negative images can be countered by Japanese civil activities in Iraq. Actually, civilians' efforts were reported to have worked very well in this incident to liberate the hostages. The good impressions made by Japanese companies that had done business in Iraq in the past were also assumed to be helpful. The current incident has proven that civilians can play important roles in such a situation.
In order to make full use of their advantages, civilians should conduct their activities at their own risk, of course. Many famous freelance journalists, like Robert Capa, lost their lives in the battlefield. Some staff members of NGOs were also killed recently while conducting their activities. The three released hostages must have been more or less aware of their own responsibility for their own safety. Unfortunately, they had to face serious consequences.
However, punitive reactions towards the three are absolutely wrong. The French daily Le Monde reported on April 20, "The government and conservative elements of media are desperate to blast the released hostages for acting irresponsibly although the Japanese people should be proud of these young citizens driven by humanism." Even U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, who has long been urging war on Iraq, said "I'm pleased that these Japanese citizens were willing to put themselves at risk for a greater good, for a better purpose. And the Japanese people should be very proud that they have citizens like this willing to do that." We have to share these points of view regardless of political stance.
"Personal responsibility" should be used for self-discipline by citizens. The phrase should never be used to reject those who undertake challenging tasks.
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| Noboru Hayase,
Executive Director, Osaka Voluntary Action Center |
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