Current location:Earth Explorer news portal > opinions
VOX POPULI: Seven years on, the Moritomo Gakuen scandal still unexplained
Earth Explorer news portal2024-05-07 15:28:41【opinions】4People have gathered around
Introduction“Spotlight” is a 2015 U.S. film based on a true story of The Boston Globe’s team of reporters exposi
“Spotlight” is a 2015 U.S. film based on a true story of The Boston Globe’s team of reporters exposing extensive child sexual abuse by Catholic priests and the systemic cover-up of the scandal.
In one memorable scene, one of the reporters meets with a judge and requests access to a document that has been submitted to the court for evidence.
But the judge tells him with a scowl that the document in question is highly classified and demands to know who at the newspaper will take responsibility if the document gets published.
The reporter immediately replies with a question that goes to the effect: “But if we don’t publish it, who is going to take responsibility?”
According to a reporter of the local newspaper on which the movie was based, the above exchange really did take place before the court released the document.
The film reminds me of the sorry reality of information disclosure in Japan.
Incredible fuss is made over the possibility of problems emerging because of the disclosure, whereas no one who decides against disclosure has their responsibility questioned.
Something is quite amiss in this.
It was on Feb. 9 exactly seven years ago that The Asahi Shimbun first reported on the so-called Moritomo Gakuen scandal.
Why did the government sell its land at a whopping discount of 800 million yen ($5.35 million) in such a murky way?
Why did the Finance Ministry falsify its documents?
These questions remain unanswered to this day.
No progress has been made in the disclosure of official documents that are crucial to anyone’s understanding of this scandal in its entirety.
In a lawsuit demanding the disclosure of documents the Finance Ministry submitted to prosecutors, even whether those falsified documents exist has not been revealed.
Official documents are meant for disclosure “in principle,” says the government. Well, talk is cheap.
By obscuring reality, are we not allowing irreparable damage to be made to what is truly important but invisible to the eye, such as the future of our democracy and social justice?
Who is going to take responsibility--and how--for not revealing the truth?
The Moritomo Gakuen scandal is definitely not over.
--The Asahi Shimbun, Feb. 9
* *
*Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
Address of this article:http://sudan.whetstonetavern.com/article-08e199988.html
Very good!(49)
Related articles
- The night that bra
- Scheffler wiped out from Masters and opens with a 69 at Hilton Head. He trails Poston by 6 shots
- AP Week in Pictures: North America
- Montreal scores twice in final minutes and rallies to beat Minnesota 4
- It's 20 years since the last ever episode of Friends. But from body
- Alabama lawmakers advance bill to strengthen state's weak open records law
- Deion Sanders' sons Shilo and Shedeur take on some recruiting duties for Colorado
- Defending champion Lilia Vu withdraws from Chevron Championship with back injury before 1st round
- Emily Andre shares sweet snap breastfeeding her baby daughter in hospital as she thanks midwives
- Proposal would assure schools that cooperate fully in NCAA investigations avoid postseason ban
Popular articles
- Tom Brady roast: Netflix live event features Robert Kraft and Bill Belichick reunion
- Giants may consider QB in NFL draft as Daniel Jones recovers from ACL injury
- John Adams' Nativity oratorio 'El Nino' gets colorful staging at the Met
- Georgia governor signs income tax cuts as property tax measure heads to November ballot
Recommended
Millions of people across Oklahoma, southern Kansas at risk of tornadoes and severe thunderstorms
Kansas adds AJ Storr after he led Wisconsin in scoring this season
Packers sign former Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Andre Dillard
Bethenny Frankel confesses that she used to 'force' herself to have sex with ex
PWHL's strong first season coincides with a growing appetite for women's sports
Defending champion Lilia Vu withdraws from Chevron Championship with back injury before 1st round
Judge denies request for Bob Baffert
The Dallas Stars have a big age gap with players who have come together for No. 1 seed in the West
Links
- Drury, Noesen help Hurricanes beat Islanders 6
- Study says El Nino, not climate change, was key driver of low rainfall that snarled Panama Canal
- Blake Lively is seen in first
- MILF Manor 2 contestants nearly QUIT over fears the controversial show would ruin their reputation
- King Charles returns to public duties after cancer diagnosis
- ROBERT HARDMAN: When Charles wears his T
- Abreu and Criswell lead Red Sox to 4
- Study says El Nino, not climate change, was key driver of low rainfall that snarled Panama Canal
- ROBERT HARDMAN: When Charles wears his T
- Biden administration details how producers of sustainable aviation fuel will get tax credits