Wen seeks Japan`s acceptance of planned execution of 4 convicts+

BEIJING, April 3 Kyodo -
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Saturday sought Japan's acceptance of Beijing's
planned execution of four Japanese men convicted of drug smuggling, saying
stimulant drug smuggling is a ''serious crime'' and the measure is ''based on
Chinese law.''
During a meeting with Wen in Beijing, Deputy Prime Minister Naoto Kan voiced
concern over the executions, possibly next week, saying many people in Japan
feel the penalty is severer than Japanese standards, Kan told reporters after
the meeting.
Kan quoted Wen as saying, ''This issue is being handled on the basis of Chinese
law. The stimulant drugs they attempted to take (to Japan from China) would
have exposed thousands of people to danger.''
It is the first time that a Chinese leader has commented on the issue.
Calling drug smuggling a serious crime, Wen asked Japan to accept China's
decision to execute the convicts, according to Kan.
China has informed Japan that it will execute, possibly next Thursday, three
Japanese men convicted in drug smuggling cases, along with another Japanese
male convict who could be executed as early as Monday.
If the first convict, identified as Mitsunobu Akano, is executed, it will be
the first execution by China of a Japanese national since the two countries
normalized diplomatic relations in 1972.
On Friday, Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada was vague about whether
Japan will ask China not to carry out the executions. ''Each country has its
own laws and legal system and the death sentences were given under that
framework,'' Okada said.
Akano, 65, was convicted of attempting to smuggle drugs totaling 2.5 kilograms
from China to Japan in 2006. His death sentence was finalized in 2009, while
the sentences for the three other men were finalized in 2007.
On other issues Kan, also finance minister, said he did not press Wen to let
the yuan appreciate, but asked him to make a ''sensible judgment'' in reforming
China's dollar-pegged currency system. ''I did not tell him what (China) should
do,'' Kan said.
U.S. lawmakers and industry groups have urged the Treasury Department to label
China a ''currency manipulator'' in a semiannual report due April 15 in what
would be the first such designation since 1994.
Kan said Wen criticized Western powers, notably the United States, for telling
China to revalue the yuan, also known as the renminbi.
Last month, Wen denied claims the yuan is undervalued, dismissing U.S.
criticism that China is maintaining the yuan at an artificially low level to
give its products an unfair trade advantage.
Wen said China will continue to reform the yuan's exchange rate while keeping
it ''basically stable'' and ''at a balanced level.''
Kan also said he hailed China's efforts to address the case of poisoned
dumplings that made 10 Japanese people ill in December 2007 and January 2008,
referring to the arrest Friday by Chinese police of a Chinese suspect.
He quoted Wen as saying the premier himself had taken the lead in investigating
the incident, which sparked anxiety in Japan over the safety of imported
Chinese products.
''I have never eased up on investigating (this case),'' Wen was quoted as saying.
Kan said he agreed with Wen to advance a new bilateral initiative to ensure
food safety that Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Wen agreed last
October to create in the wake of the dumpling case.
The envisaged initiative would involve ministerial-level talks but other
details are not yet known.
Kan conveyed Hatoyama's invitation to Wen to visit Japan in the near future,
and Wen said he would give it positive consideration.
Later Saturday, Kan co-chaired a Japan-China finance dialogue with Chinese
Finance Minister Xie Xuren. Kan held separate talks with Chinese Vice Premier
Li Keqiang in the evening.
==Kyodo