NHK, Japan's national broadcaster, is under siege -- and with it this country's commitment to freedom of speech.
Last week, a government regulatory panel approved a ministerial directive that would compel NHK to broadcast information on the abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea. Indications are that Yoshihide Suga, communications minister, will give the order to NHK soon.
The Oct. 24 evening edition of the Asahi Shinbun quoted the minister as saying, "The greatest hope of [the abductees] awaiting rescue in North Korea lies with the knowledge that their families in Japan, the people of Japan and the government have not abandoned them." He added that, in his desire to order NHK to air broadcasts about the abductees on shortwave radio, he had "no intention whatsoever of interfering in the content [of what is broadcast] and that freedom of expression and freedom of information must be protected."