Jul 28 (NHK) - Tomomi Inada has been replaced as Japan's defense minister after she stepped down to take responsibility for a controversy that has been swirling around her.
She said an internal inspection found it was illegal for officials to withhold records on Japan's peacekeeping mission in South Sudan.
Inada said, "This series of problems could lead to public distrust of how the Defense Ministry and the SDF handle the disclosure of public information. Repeated media reports suggest leaks of information were coming from inside and that could erode trust in their governance. As a result that has led to the very serious problem of the loss of morale in members of the forces in their daily duties in Japan and abroad."
The internal inspection found that Inada did not approve withholding the record.
But it also said it couldn't deny the possibility of her being told the copies existed.
The inspection says the Ground Self Defense Force inadequately decided not to disclose the records in July and October last year, fearing disclosure requests would increase.
Source: ANNnewsCH
