英语新闻阅读

Compensation group set up as spill deadline dawns

China's maritime authorities have set up a working group to assist with compensation claims for the oil leaking in North China's Bohai bay as the time set for the US company ConocoPhillips to clean up the spill hits deadline day, the Beijing Times reported.

The State Oceanic Administration (SOA) said the leak at Penglai 19-3 oil field, the largest offshore oilfield in China, has caused severe pollution.

Concerned parties, including the government and fishermen in 16 provinces and cities in the affected area, have the right to lodge claims for compensation according to the law.

The assessment of the ecological pollution resulting from the spill has been completed, said Fang Jianmeng, SOA’s Beihai branch, on T uesday. Fang said the administration was compiling a report based on the assessment, which can provide a legal basis for compensation claims.

ConocoPhillips said on Monday it had cleaned up 99 percent of the mineral oil-based drilling mud near Platform C at Penglai 19-3 oil field.

However, the company's statement raised questions from environmental experts and lawyers.

The US company has been widely criticized for its slow response to the oil spill, which has lasted for more than two months and has still not been stopped.

In addition, ConocoPhillips did not apologize to the Chinese public until Aug 24, more than two months after the oil spill was discovered.

The company has also not worked out a compensation plan for the damage the incident has caused to the ocean environment and the nearby fishery industry.

'Big brother' Liu happily receives silver USA's Jason Richardson, right, China's Liu Xiang and Britain's Andrew Turner (not seen in the picture) pose on the podium for the men's 110m Hurdles medal ceremony at the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011. The Chinese team lodged an appeal to the Daegu organizers after the race video review shows first finisher Dayron Robles from Cuba made arm contact to Liu twice over the last two hurdles. Liu, as a result, lost his balance and faded to the third after the last hurdle. The organizer disqualified Robles and awarded the gold to second finisher Jason Richardson from the US. Liu was given the silver and Turner took the bronze.

Constant parade of leaders

Japan's ever-changing prime ministers are a result of US influence and the country's flawed political system

Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda replaced Naoto Kan as the leader of the ruling Democratic Party (DPJ) on Monday and became Japan's sixth prime minister in five years the next day.

The reason that the DPJ seized the reins of government in September 2009 was not because the Japanese people preferred the party, which lacked experience in governance, but because they had completely lost confidence in the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) which had been in power for decades.

After the DPJ came to power, its first prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama, was in power for barely eight months before he resigned. His successor Naoto Kan was in office for 14 months before he too resigned. Now, the country is trying yet another prime minister.

From 1993 to 2011, Japan has had 13 prime ministers, while over the same period the United States has had three presidents. This demonstrates that Japan's political circumstances and institutional design are unsuited to keeping a long-term leader.

Outsiders might view Noda's election as the result of a power struggle and political deal within the DPJ, which is a mix of the left, middle and right. But it is worth pointing out that there is a "US factor" behind the revolving door for Japan's prime ministers.

From Tanaka Kakuei in the 1970s to Yukio Hatoyama in 2009, the country's leaders have fallen from power partly because they "were not obedient enough to the US".

The Japan-US alliance is an unequal alliance, and Japan's relationship with the US is a major political issue inside Japan.

Yukio Hatoyama, the first DPJ prime minister, criticized Japan's foreign policy for being excessively dependent on the US and advocated strengthening the country's relationship with Asian countries and discussing the Diaoyu Islands problem with China. He was heavily criticized by the hawkish politicians who fanned public indignation. Hatoyama eventually resigned as he was unable to fulfill his election pledge to relocate the deeply unpopular US military base off the island of Okinawa.

On leaving office Hatoyama said: "History will prove me right."

Naoto Kan, who succeeded Hatoyama, tactfully turned from idealism to realism. He debarred alien members inside the DPJ (especially supporters of influential former party leader Ichiro Ozawa), and won US favor by taking a hard line with China. But the Kan government's ineffective relief efforts after the massive earthquake and tsunami in March, and its inadequate response to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear crisis resulted in people's disappointment turning to anger.

On Aug 26, Naoto Kan stepped down after three key pieces of legislation were passed to finance

post-disaster reconstruction and promote renewable energy.

On Aug 27, five candidates entered the DPJ leadership election, although it was expected to be a contest between former foreign minister Seiji Maehara, who is popular with voters, and Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda, who received support from the DPJ's largest intraparty group led by Ichiro Ozawa. Noda's win was something of a surprise.

Like Seiji Maehara, Noda is considered a hardliner toward China, but as prime minister he will have to make economic recovery his priority, so he might be more moderate in diplomacy.

Of course, whether Noda can stay in power depends on whether he can promote unity within DPJ (in particular dealing with Ozawa and Hatoyama); whether he can work with the opposition parties, especially the LDP, to create a "national salvation cabinet", rather than succumbing to a "twisted Diet"; and whether he can further boost the China-Japan relationship while consolidating Japanese-US ties.

There is a fundamental contradiction in Japan's public opinion, which is influenced to a large degree by the media. On the one hand, people welcome hawkish leaders who talk of safeguarding "national security and interests" by containing the supposed "China threat" and stand up to other neighboring countries that have territorial disputes with Japan. On the other hand, they hope their leaders can build cooperative relations with China, Russia and other countries so as to promote reconstruction and economic revitalization in the aftermath of the March disasters.

But neither the hawks, nor the doves, can simultaneously meet such contradictory expectations and demands, not to mention tackling the country's tough domestic problems, such as an aging population, the radiation leaks, and raising taxes to meet social security commitments. All of which will be a challenge. But as we know, when the going gets tough the Japanese simply try another prime minister.

The author is a researcher with the Institute of Japanese Studies under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.