How was the threat of a new infectious disease dealt with? It is the government's responsibility to keep records of its decision-making process.
Regarding the responses to the outbreak of the new coronavirus, the government, under guidelines for managing administrative documents, has designated the ongoing situation as a historic emergency. This has become the first case since a guideline policy on historic emergencies was introduced in 2012. The latest designation made it mandatory to create documents such as minutes of important meetings related to the situation.
The spread of the unknown virus poses a national crisis, thus it is natural for the government to take a special approach in managing official documents.
The policy on historic emergencies was introduced after reflecting on the responses to the Great East Japan Earthquake. The administration of the Democratic Party of Japan failed to compile minutes of meetings at 10 organizations, including the disaster emergency response headquarters. This caused problems in verifying the responses to the accident at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, among other measures.
In dealing with the infectious disease, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Cabinet must not repeat the same mistakes.
In the absence of therapeutic drugs or vaccines, the government is pressed to grope for ways to prevent the spread of the disease.
The government has taken measures that are having a major impact on the lives of the people, such as requesting elementary, junior high and high schools to close all at once and asking organizers to refrain from holding events. It is also taking steps to help children's guardians and companies who are taking on burdens.
Each ministry and agency on the front line should keep documents of the details of their decision-making processes on various measures.
Fulfill accountability
Was the government's judgment appropriate for each occasion? Was information smoothly provided to the public? Each case will be verified afterward and passed down to future generations. This accumulation will help in the event of another similar disaster hitting the nation.
The Abe Cabinet has repeatedly been criticized for its sloppy management of public documents, including the falsification by the Finance Ministry of documents to approve the sale of state-owned land to school operator Moritomo Gakuen.
Recording the policy-making process and fulfilling accountability to the public are essential to a healthy democracy. Politicians and bureaucrats should recognize the importance of document management.
In the event of a historic emergency, the guidelines oblige the government to record the people who speak and their statements in minutes of meetings at which policies are decided and approved. At meetings aimed at exchanging information, the guidelines only require recording the progress of activities and items to be confirmed.
Regarding the responses to the outbreak of COVID-19, relevant policies have been decided at the government's coronavirus headquarters headed by Abe.
The prime minister has explained that he made a de facto decision to call for the school closure at informal talks with relevant ministers before consulting with the coronavirus headquarters. If that is the case, the contents of such talks should also be recorded.
The government should not interpret the guidelines simply by the book, but thoroughly preserve documents in an appropriate manner.
-- The original Japanese article appeared in The Yomiuri Shimbun on March 20, 2020
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
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