Listen to: Segment <http://play.rbn.com/?url=demnow/demnow/demand/2004/april/audio/dn20040412.ra&proto=rtsp&start=27:20.0>
U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney arrived in Japan to lend support to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi for keeping troops in Iraq despite threats to execute three Japanese hostages. We go to Tokyo to speak with the international coordinator of Peace Boat, a Japan-based NGO focusing on peace education and advocacy. [Includes rush transcript]
As Vice President Dick Cheney visits Japan, thousands take to the streets in Tokyo to protest the country's participation in the Iraq occupation.
Vice President Dick Cheney was in Japan today where he told Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi that he was doing the right thing by resisting mounting political pressure and keeping Japanese troops in Iraq despite shock over the kidnapping of three Japanese civilians.
In Japan, the news of the hostages has been the country's top story for much of the past week. Being held are an 18-year-old who had traveled to Iraq to study the effects of depleted uranium, a 32-year-old freelance journalist and a 34-year-old aid worker. On Saturday, Al Jazeera recevied a faxed statement that said the three hostages would be released within 24 hours but they are still being held leading to increased calls for Japan to pull its troops from Iraq. There have been large demonstrations in Japan, protesting the country's participation in the Iraq occupation.
* Ryo Ijichi, international coordinator of Peace Boat, a Japan based NGO focusing on peace education and advocacy. It was started by Japanese university students some 20 years ago. . . .
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