Japan government to consider review of Abe’s cherry blossom party

November 13, 2019

Tokyo--The Japanese government is considering reviewing guidelines for the cherry blossom-viewing party hosted every April by the prime minister, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Tuesday.

The government needs to consider clarifying the criteria for inviting guests to the party, Suga said at a press conference.

"A review will be considered" because the guidelines are under fire, a senior government official said.

The guidelines for this year's party, held on April 13, noted that guests would include lawmakers, vice ministers, ministry bureau chiefs and representatives of various groups.

Opposition lawmakers claim that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has exploited the guidelines to invite many of his own supporters to the event.

In a meeting with government officials on Tuesday, opposition lawmakers demanded that lists of guests to the party be disclosed.

But a Cabinet Office official in charge of the event said that the lists have already been discarded because they are documents that need to be kept for less than one year.

The official also declined to clarify whether there are slots for guests recommended by Abe to attend the party.

Yukio Edano, leader of the major opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, told a party meeting that Abe is "strongly suspected of violating the public offices election law and the political funds control law" in connection with the party. Jiji Press