“83 percent of Japanese Against Dispatching Troops”

More than 80 percent of Japanese people are either against dispatching troops or delaying it until the security on the ground is maintained.

According to the Mainichi Shimbun on December 1, a recent public opinion poll of 1,036 people from November 29 to 30 showed that 43 percent of the people answered, “Japan should not dispatch troops at any time.”

40 percent of the people were conditional supporters, saying, “Japan should wait until the situation on the ground is better.” Meanwhile, only 9 percent of the respondents answered, “Japan should dispatch as soon as possible.”

When asked if the Self-Defense Forces would be the targets of terrorist attacks, 79 percent responded in the affirmative while the other 11 percent responded in the negative.

Also, the approval rating for the Junichiro Koizumi government has fallen by 14 percent to 42 percent since October. The response of “not supporting the government” has risen by 11 percent to 37 percent. On the other hand, the approval rating for the leading opposition, Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) has risen to 27 percent. DPJ has publicly opposed troop dispatch. 76 percent of the respondents answered the poll before the two Japanese diplomats were murdered in Iraq. (November 29)

parkwj@donga.com