When it comes to public relations, the Japanese government tends toward imprecision. Many say the Japanese language is already built for vagueness, but that doesn't mean Japanese people can't see through the haze.
In the last few weeks, trade minister Yukio Edano's attempts to explain possible resumption of operations at the Oi nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture has resulted in statements so fuzzy they could mean just about anything. On April 9, he announced that the ministry determined that the Oi plant's No. 3 and 4 reactors, currently offline for routine inspections, had "roughly" conformed to safety standards. Critics called him out on his choice of words, and he answered that it wasn't his "intention" to imply the government was "in a hurry," but if there were any problems then "politics" would take "full responsibility."
Tokyo Shimbun wondered what exactly "responsibility" meant in this context. After all, no one has yet to take "full responsibility" for the Fukushima No. 1 reactor accident. The government hasn't even set up an independent nuclear watchdog. It's difficult to accept a claim of responsibility when there's no proof that anyone learned anything from previous mistakes. This skepticism was reflected in an Asahi Shimbun survey that found 70 percent of the public did not believe Noda's reassurances of safety. Moreover, 66 percent said they didn't believe the supply and demand projections of the plant's operator, Kansai Electric Power Co., which has indicated it may not have enough power to cover peak demand this summer without the Oi reactor.