Japanese politician expects suffrage for ethnic Koreans

SEOUL, Dec. 12 (Yonhap) -- The chief of Japan's ruling party said Saturday he
expects his country's parliament will pass legislation next year that will give
ethnic Koreans living in Japan the right to vote in local elections.
"The bill to give suffrage to foreign residents should be a government-sponsored
bill because it is a matter on which the government has to show its stance,"
Ichiro Ozawa, secretary-general of the Democratic Party of Japan, said in a
speech at Seoul's Kookmin University. "The bill may be realized in the next
parliamentary session."
More than 600,000 ethnic Koreans reside in Japan as a legacy of its 1910-45
colonization of the Korean Peninsula, during which many Koreans were forced to
move to the island nation.
Ozawa is on a three-day visit to South Korea that ends Sunday and follows his
trip to China.
Regarding South Korea's invitation to Japanese Emperor Akihito, Ozawa was
positive but cautious.
"It may be possible if the Korean people welcome (the emperor)," Ozawa told
reporters after the speech.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak earlier in the year expressed hope for
Akihito to visit South Korea next year, with the aim of bridging a historical
divide between the two countries. Many Asian nations, South Korea included, still
hold bitter memories of Japan's past military aggression in the early half of
last century.
Following his speech, Ozawa had a dinner meeting with President Lee to discuss
ways to strengthen bilateral ties and improve regional stability, according to
presidential spokeswoman Kim Eun-hye.
With next year marking the 100th anniversary of Japan's forceful annexation of
Korea, the two agreed to make a fresh start and not be bound by the past, Kim
said.
Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, whose left-of-center Democratic Party of
Japan took power in September, has pledged stronger ties with the rest of Asia.
ejkim@yna.co.kr
(END)