61804    Seeing the American system as a model, here in Japan the National Institute for Research Advancement (NIRA) has pushed ahead with "the study on developing a foundation for citizens' public-interest activities" which places civil activity organizations as a third force in addressing problems difficult for government and companies to handle, and while it proposes the enactment of the "Fundamental Civic Non-Profit Activity Law," the New Harbinger Party Sakigake got the study project to draft the bill off the ground.

61805    An international symposium will also be held in Osaka later this month.

61806    No obvious reactions to these movements from the government have been observed.

61807    It is expected that there will be considerable resistance from bureaucrats as implementing the NPO law may ultimately strip the government agencies of their authority, as was the case with other deregulations.

61808    As well, we are likely to hear the arguments that the tax breaks will result in lower tax revenue or will become a breeding ground for tax evasion.

61809    Needles to say, direct import of the American system would not solve the problem.

61810    As a matter of course, it will be necessary for the citizens' groups to become further aware of their social responsibility to grow out of their government subcontractor-like status and to reinforce the organizational skills to bring forward policy proposals.

61811    However, it will be more important to fully recognize that without community participation an aging society fast approaching in the near future cannot exist, and to fundamentally shift policies.

61812    The paradox where it is more difficult for bona-fide non-profit groups to obtain incorporation than it is for profit-oriented joint-stock companies must be resolved without further delay.

61813    At the halfway mark of his term, President Clinton has been put to a major test as he heads toward the presidential re-election.

61814    CNN and Time Magazine in the US announced the results of their public opinion poll concerning President Clinton at the beginning of the New Year.

61815    According to the poll, only 24 percent of the American public expect President Clinton to be re-elected next year, and the percentage of those who forecasted his re-election to be unlikely reached as high as 65 percent.

61816    Furthermore, the new US Congress that has convened on the 4th is putting pressure on President Clinton for the new reforms.

61817    The buzzword of Newt Gingrich, the new Speaker of the House of Representatives, is "small government."

61818    From Day One at the Congress, the Speaker threw down the gauntlet to President Clinton by forcing through a congressional reform that curtails the number of standing committees as well as subcommittees in addition to drastically reducing the number of committee staff.