Ozawa, Hatoyama, Koshiishi agree on need to prevent split within DPJ

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TOKYO, Dec. 12 Kyodo -
Democratic Party of Japan bigwig Ichiro Ozawa agreed Sunday with two fellow
senior DPJ lawmakers -- former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Azuma
Koshiishi, leader of the party's House of Councillors caucus -- on the need to
avoid situations in which the ruling party may be split, DPJ sources said.
The three, who met at a Tokyo hotel, shared the view as they discussed the
situation within the party ahead of a meeting of DPJ executives Monday to talk
about the issue of summoning Ozawa to a Diet panel session for deliberations
involving alleged falsification of political funds reports by his fund
management body, they said.
In Monday's executive meeting, DPJ Secretary General Katsuya Okada is expected
to seek approval for a plan to convene the House of Representatives political
ethics council with the aim of deciding to summon Ozawa for the deliberations,
according to party sources.
Ozawa and Hatoyama have been critical of the way Prime Minister Naoto Kan, who
succeeded Hatoyama in June, is running the government, while Koshiishi, a
member of the DPJ's executive board, is known to be close to Ozawa.
Koshiishi has expressed objection to the move by Okada and others in the DPJ
leadership toward summoning Ozawa to appear before the lower house council,
saying it would split the party.
==Kyodo