文|蔡成平      环球时报英文版Global Times  2011年7月18日

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Editor's Note:

Among the 722 members of Japan's Diet, the 37-year-old Tsutomu Takamura (Takamura), a member of the Special Committee on Disasters, stands out. He is the first Japanese politician to graduate from Peking University, and speaks fluent Chinese. What role can China play in post-disaster reconstruction?  Is there true friendship between Japan and China? Global Times (GT) reporter Cai Chengping interviewd Takamura on these issues.

GT: Some hold that compared to Japan's democratic system, China deals with emergencies more roughly but reacts faster. Do you agree?

Takamura: We cannot simply compare China's single-party system with Japan's. Under the structure of Japan's democratic system, although the government plays a critical organization role, it addresses disasters in a very different way. 

In Japan, the Cabinet Office coordinates and sets responsibilities. The agencies and ministries of the Cabinet set related policies and measures to respond to disaster relief. Take animals, where the Environment Ministry has jurisdiction over pets, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries administers farm animals and it's the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's business after farm animals are turned into food.

 From the point of crisis administration, this kind of administrative organizations, established after World War II, and the three-level system of central government, prefecture and city aren't optimal. This was also one of the lessons learnt from the massive earthquake.

In order to avoid the same problems, Japan should gradually improve its administrative organizations to deal with catastrophe.

GT: Post-disaster reconstruction is a massive project. What role can Chinese enterprises play? 

Takamura: Japanese people always have an excessively sensitive attitudes toward capital from China. But during the bubble period in Japan, Japan constantly invested in US land, stocks, and property and purchased many US enterprises, which was often criticized within the US.

Japan welcomes capital that means mutual development, such as the capital invested in Japanese businesses, talent, or technology. Japan welcomes those enterprises with long-term plans and views, rather than surplus capital generated from China's bubble economy and used for speculative purposes in Japan.

In a globalized age, people who are sensitive to Chinese capital are narrowly nationalistic, which is not in keeping with the zeitgeist. Chinese people's aid to the disaster-hit areas deserve gratitude from the Japanese public as well. The scenes of Chinese volunteers in disaster-hit areas eating dumplings together with earthquake victims were touching as well. Both China and Japan should work together more closely, with tolerance and open hearts.

GT: It will soon be the 40th anniversary of the normalization of Sino-Japanese relations. You always assert that Sino-Japanese relations should be "beyond friendship." What do you mean by this? 

Takamura: I mean that we shouldn't emphasize our "friendship," because when countries "strengthen their friendship," it really means they are unfriendly. If they have to deliberately strengthen their friendship, is it a real friendship or just a polite formula?

It is better to get back to reality and strengthen cooperation in such fields as energy conservation, environment protection, investment, technology, culture and security guarantee to lay a strong basis in reality for true "friendship" than just mouth some platitudes.

Of course, when countries pursue their own interests, they will inevitably be confronted with some conflicts, such as historical and territorial issues, but these couldn't be more normal. Intentionally avoiding conflicts is an archaic idea and it is absolutely unnecessary. It is difficult to establish a sound Sino-Japanese relationship if the two countries cannot face up to conflicts and contradictions.

The more deeply the two countries communicate, the more conflicts they will be faced with. I'm afraid that the current mode of Sino-Japanese relations that avoids conflicts and intentionally "strengthens friendship" can't be described as mature diplomatic relations. Facing up to and solving conflicts depends on whether the two sides could open their minds.

GT: Former Democratic Party of Japan leader Ichiro Ozawa once proposed that China, Japan and US should establish a kind of equilateral triangle relationship. How do you see his proposal?

Takamura: All the judgments over Japan's alliance with the US are one-sided. Japan should not involve itself in a triangular power struggle with the US and China.

For Japan, it's beyond doubt that both China and the US are important. From the perspective of national interests, Japan must get along well with China and all the countries in East Asia and Southeast Asia.

Likewise, for China and the US, Japan plays an indispensable role. China, Japan and US should not have a triangular relationship with each other and it is also difficult for them to establish a really equal relationship.

Comparing the China-Japan-US relations to a line might be more appropriate. China and US are at each end of the line while Japan is on the line. The ideal situation would be for Japan to stay in the middle of the line and keep the same distance from both China and the US.

Japan has the advantage of excellent technology in energy conservation, environment protection and traditional industries. As for Japan's international contributions, besides Official Development Assistance (ODA), this also includes humanitarian aid. Japan should make the best of its own advantages and pursue more expansive diplomacy.