"Put women in unions' mainstream!"; Labornet TV program discusses revision of temporary staffing services law

The Abe administration proposed a bill to revise the temporary staffing services law to the current Diet session, aiming for the enforcement in 2015. "Most regular workers will be replaced with temps once the law is enforced," warned the guest speakers to the Labornet TV program aired on Feb. 12. "Those who have jobs without fixed contract terms won't be directly affected, but you will still be part of an evil plan to pass a terrible society full of low-wage jobs and without job security on to the forthcoming generations. Would you dare to do so?" stressed journalist TOKAIRIN Satoshi. "Even now, female temp workers suffer from a variety of serious sexual harassments. It is prohibited for temp agancies' clients to interview candidates registered with agencies. However, in reality, future supervisors interview those who are registered with temp agencies and select the ones of 'their types.' Women are treated just like goods," said lawyer ITAKURA Yumi (photo). Asked by the anchors what to do, Tokairin said we should fight in solidarity. "Since all three national centers, Rengo, Zenroren and Zenrokyo are strongly opposing the revision, we should get united despite differences with respect to other issues," he pointed out. Itakura urged unions to reform their approaches to gender. "A great majority of temp workers are women, but most labor unions are ruled by men and unable to address the temp workers issue effectively. It is necessary to integrate women into the mainstream of labor unions," she said. Even the audience in the studio joined the enthusiastic discussion by proposing a general strike. (M)   
   Archive video (no subtitles)

「労組のあり方を女性中心に」～レイバーネットTV「派遣法改悪」めぐって熱いトーク

安 倍政権のもと今国会に上程され、来年から施行されようとしている「派遣法改悪」。これが成立すると、ハケンだらけの社会になる。12日のレイバーネット TVでゲストの二人が警告した。「正社員のあなたはいい。でも自分たちの子どもや孫にとんでもない不安定と低賃金の雇用社会を渡すことになる。それでいい のか！」（東海林智さん）。「今でも派遣女性へのセクハラはひどい。事前面接は禁止されているが実際は、派遣先の上司が面接して“好み”の女性を選んでい るのが実態。女性はモノ扱いだ」（板倉由実弁護士/写真）。ではどうしたらいいのか？ 「この法改正には、連合・全労連・全労協など全ての労組が反対で一致している。潮流をこえてたたかうときだ」（東海林）。「ハケンは女性が多い。男性中心 主義の労組では限界がある。組合を女性中心に変えることがポイント」（板倉）。ギャラリーからは「ゼネストだ」の声も飛び出し、熱いトークが続いた。 （M）  
放送アーカイブ（特集は12分・井上眼科病院争議は69分から）

Protests against NHK: 62 civic groups demand resignation of president, two rightist governors

Citizens' groups led by Japan Action Resolution of the "Comfort Women" Issue staged protests against NHK (Nippon Hoso Kyokai), Japan's public broadcasting station, in Tokyo on Feb. 1 and 12, demanding resignation of its new president MOMII Katsuto and two nationalist governors, novelist HYAKUTA Naoki and philosopher HASEGAWA Michiko.

In the action held in the evening of Feb. 1, a week after the new NHK chief's first press conference where he made a controversial remark on "comfort women," protesters handed a letter to a staff member of the broadcaster's customers relations office NHK Heart Plaza. According to a participant, the staff member was much more bureaucratic than the real bureaucrats. " He identified himself only by his family name and refused to tell us his full name or give us a name card, because, according to him, he was not meeting with us as an individual. He said that all he would do is to take the letter to the secretariat of the president and he had no authority to say anything to us. He didn't allow our members who had cameras to enter the room where we met and demanded that we leave as soon as the time originally given had passed." On Feb. 12, some 80 protesters held a rally in front of the main gate of the NHK HQs at the time when the executive board members of the broadcaster were  meeting. Among the rally participants, there were three people who formerly worked for NHK as staff member or board member. Prior to the rally, representatives of Japan Action Resolution of the "Comfort Women" Issue and three other organizations met with staff members of Heart Plaza for half and hour and handed a letter of protest signed by 62 civil groups. (By SATO Kazuyuki and A)

NHK籾井会長、百田・長谷川両委員は辞任せよ！～全国62団体の賛同携え抗議アクション
NHK 経営委員会が開かれた2月12日の日中、東京・渋谷区にあるNHK前で、「籾井会長、百田・長谷川両委員は辞任せよ！－安倍総理・経営委員会の任命責任を 問う」抗議行動（第2弾）が実施されました。呼びかけは日本軍「慰安婦」問題解決全国行動で、当日提出した「申し入れ書」には、全国から62団体が賛同。 門前集会には、元NHK経営委員や元NHK職員3名を含む、約80人が結集しました。まず11時40分、４団体４名の代表（WAM・VAWW-RAC・ オール連帯・全国行動）がハートプラザに行き、経営委員会への「申し入れ書」を提出。NHK側担当者に約30分間、趣旨説明をしました。（佐藤和之） 

霞ヶ関官僚よりはるかに「官僚的」なNHK～籾井会長「慰安婦」発言に抗議
２ 月１日の対ＮＨＫ抗議行動に行きました、私が正面入り口で、ＮＨＫ籾井会長への抗議文を手渡しする「申し入れ行動」に参加しました。ＮＨＫハートプラザは 「なんでも相談してください」という担当のはず。しかし、対応したその責任者は、姓を「マツザキ」と名乗りながら、「私の名前は言わない。名刺はない。個 人で会うのではないし、答える権限もないし、答えない。抗議文を会長室に持っていくだけ。はい、時間です！」という対応。２名のカメラマンが入ってきた が、そのマツザキ氏に「カメラは絶対ダメ」として退場させられました。霞が関の国家官僚なんかより、はるかに「官僚的」でした。（A） 

300 protest against state secrets law in front of Diet; Movement has taken root

Hundreds of people participated in protests staged across the country on Feb. 6 against the state secrets law that was forced enacted on Dec. 6, 2013. The protests were organized as the first of a serial actions to be held on the 6^th every month. In Tokyo, 300 citizens including many union members gathered in front of the Diet building and expressed their anger and determination to fight till the abolishment of the law through powerful chants. "It is reflected in the large number of participants that the movement against the law has taken root firmly in the society," said a member of the organizing commission. In the rally held in a diet members office building later on the same day, a multi-party Diet members team that visited intelligence agencies of European countries and the U.S. in January reported on their trip. "In the U.S., CIA has built up a surveillance state by secretly spending $10 billion each year since the 9.11, but, due to the negative impact, CIA's activities are getting increasing scrutiny. On the other hand, Japanese government has just decided to establish the equivalent of CIA in Japan. It is utterly unacceptable. A country like the U.S.riddled with state secrets and wars is definitely not the vision for Japan," said MIYAMOTO Takeshi of the Communist Party in the report. (M)  
 Photos  

「秘密保護法」廃止運動は根付いている！～約300人が国会前行動

「秘 密保護法廃止！市民は怒っているぞ！あきらめないぞ！」。寒さを吹き飛ばすように国会前で大コールがわき起こった（写真）。参加者は労組・市民団体・個人 など約300人。この日2月6日は「強行採決の12月6日を忘れない“６の日”」行動の初日で、全国一斉に取り組まれた。たくさんの参加に主催団体（「秘 密保護法」廃止へ！実行委員会）メンバーも「廃止運動は根付いている」と自信を深めた。引き続く院内集会では、超党派の「情報機関」欧米視察団（1月）の 報告があった。共産党・宮本たけし議員（視察団）は「アメリカでは9.11以降、秘密裏にCIAが年間1兆円の予算を使い、監視国家を作り上げてきた。負 の側面が多く、いまそのCIAのやり過ぎがチェックされようとしている。逆に日本政府は日本版CIAをこれから作ろうとしているが、とんでもない。アメリ カのような秘密国家・戦争国家をめざしてはいけない」と強く訴えた。（M） 
写真速報

Column by unionist ISHIKAWA Genji on arrest of a non-regular worker for food-poisoning

A contract worker was arrested in late January for allegedly tainting frozen food with pesticide in a food-poisoning incident occurred at a factory of a subsidiary of Maruha Nichiro Holdings Inc., a major seafood processing company late last year. The suspect was reportedly complaining about his wage and making efforts to get a regular worker status. There is no doubt that he was dissatisfied with the working conditions at the factory. Regrettably, even nowadays, some workers seem to be struggling in severe conditions expressed in following remarks by Friedrich Engels: "In poverty, workers have no other choices than starving to death, suicide or crime"; "The first, most uncivilized and most ineffective resistance by workers was committing crimes." However, I urge them not to make a mistake in choosing ways of resistance. You cannot change the society with crimes. Our slogans are: "Labor unions are the most reliable safety net for workers!" and "Let's join a labor union to solve problems for workers!" (excerpt)

* ISHIKAWA Genji is the president of Japan Union, a vice president of National Union of General Workers Tokyo Tobu and the executive director of Labor Consultation Center (a non-profit organization) 
  * Photo (the factory where the food-poisoning occurred, taken from a TV news program) 

犯罪によって現状を変えることはできない～石川源嗣のコラム

水産大手マルハニチロ子会社の群馬工場での農薬混入事件で契約社員が逮捕された。かつて彼は「正社員になれるよう頑張っている」「しかしこんな給料じゃ、 やっていけない」と愚痴をこぼしていたという。労働条件に不満を持っていたことは間違いないようだ。「貧しさのために、労働者には、餓死か、自殺か、犯罪 かの選択肢しかない」「労働者の抵抗の最初の、もっとも粗野な、そしてもっとも効果のない形態が犯罪であった」 というエンゲルスの言葉は残念ながらまだ時代遅れになっていない。しかしその方法を間違えてはならない。犯罪によって現状を変えることはできない。私たち のスローガンは「労働者にとって最強のセーフティネットは労働組合！」、「労働問題を労働組合加入で解決しよう！」である。（石川源嗣のコラム）
　＊写真＝テレビ報道より

Don’t exclude the democratic ‘high school textbook’! ~ lawsuit against the outrageous Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education

 The Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education in June last year decided that public high schools in Tokyo must not adopt the “Japanese History Textbook” published by Jikkyo Shuppan, saying that it is improper. 

 The board said that the reason is with respect to hoisting of the national flag and singing the national anthem. The textbook describes the issue in part as “there is an action of forcing public officials in some municipalities,” which is different from the position of the board.

 This description seems to have irritated the board, which continues to force to sing ‘Kimigayo’ , the national anthem, in the field of education.

 Consequently, none of about 200 public high schools in Tokyo selected the textbook of Jikkyo Shuppan.

 On February 7, a group of 67 teachers and citizens filed a lawsuit at the Tokyo District Court in demand for annulling the board’s decision.

 MASUDA Miyako, secretary general of the plaintiffs, said, “Abe administration is going to reform the education system in order to restore Japan into the prewar regime, making the Emperor as the sovereign. The board plays a role as its vanguard.  We want to stop the board’s action through this trial by any means. ” (SASAKI Yumi)

民主的な「実教出版教科書」を排除するな！～暴走する都教委を提訴

昨 年（2013年）6月都教委は、実教出版社の『高校日本史』を不適切として、学校で使ってはならないと議決した。理由は、国旗掲揚・国歌斉唱について「一 部の自治体で公務員への強制の動きがある」と記述されていることが、都教委の考えと異なっているからというもの。「君が代」強制を続ける都教委のカンにさ わったのだろう。結果、この教科書を採択した都立学校（約200校）はゼロだった。この議決（処分）の取り消しを求めて、2月7日、67人の教員、市民が 原告となり東京地裁に提訴した。原告団・事務局長の増田都子さんは、「安倍政権は天皇を元首化して戦前の体制にもどすために教育を変えようとしている。そ の先兵の役割を都教委が果たしている。この裁判を通して何とか都教委に歯止めをかけたい」と語った。（佐々木有美）