英字新聞

The Yomiuri Shimbun May 6, 2013
Tokyo Olympic bid committee must do its best to overcome Inose's gaffe
猪瀬知事発言　東京五輪実現へ失点挽回せよ（5月5日付・読売社説）

How can Japan recover from the damage caused by the Tokyo governor's thoughtless remarks on the other bidders for the 2020 Summer Olympics? With less than five months before the International Olympic Committee chooses a host city, Japan's bidding campaign for the Games is entering a crucial stage.
　東京都知事の非常識な発言による失点を、どう挽回するか。五輪の招致活動は、これからが正念場である。

"Islamic countries, the only thing they share in common is Allah and they are fighting with each other, and they have classes," Tokyo Gov. Naoki Inose, who also chairs the Tokyo bid committee, was quoted as saying during an interview with a U.S. newspaper.
　「イスラム諸国が唯一、共有するのはアラーだけだ。互いに争い事をしているし、階級もある」。２０２０年東京五輪の招致委員会会長である猪瀬直樹都知事が、米紙とのインタビューで語ったとされる発言だ。

He apparently was referring to Tokyo's rival bidder--Istanbul, Turkey's capital. We think his remark lacked respect for a different culture.
　招致のライバルであるイスタンブール（トルコ）を念頭に置いたことは明らかで、異文化への敬意が感じられない。

We also believe Inose violated the IOC's Rules of Conduct forbidding bid committee members from directly criticizing rival cities or comparing their own cities with other bidders.
　招致活動に関し、他の立候補都市の批判や比較を禁じた国際オリンピック委員会（ＩＯＣ）の行動規範に違反していると言える。

Abe apologizes to Turkey

When he visited Turkey last week, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe apologized to his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Abe told Erdogan he was afraid Turkey was offended by Inose's remarks and that he hoped the two countries would do their best to win their bids in a spirit of fair play.
　トルコを訪問した安倍首相は、エルドアン首相との会談で「トルコ側として不快に感じたのでないか」と陳謝し、「フェアプレーの精神にのっとり、お互いベストを尽くしていきたい」と述べた。

The Turkish prime minister thanked Abe for his remarks. We praise Abe for calming the situation in a very friendly manner.
　エルドアン首相は「（安倍首相の）発言に感謝する」と応じた。安倍首相が友好的に問題を沈静化させたことを評価したい。

Turkey is a country friendly to Japan and is an important economic partner. Inose is deeply responsible for causing a situation that forced the prime minister to apologize to Turkey.
　トルコは親日国であり、経済的にも重要なパートナーだ。安倍首相が陳謝する事態を招いた猪瀬知事の責任は重い。

We notice Inose has done and said many things unfit for the head of the 7.5 billion yen bidding campaign.
　それにしても、猪瀬知事には、７５億円をかけた招致活動のトップとは思えない言動が多い。

In addition to Tokyo and Istanbul, Madrid is also bidding for the 2020 Games.
　２０２０年五輪には東京、イスタンブールのほか、マドリード（スペイン）が立候補している。

Inose was also quoted as saying in the interview: "Compare the two countries where they have yet to build infrastructure, very sophisticated facilities." This remark apparently violated the rules of conduct, too.
　知事はインタビューで「インフラが未整備で、非常に洗練された施設もない二つの国と比較してほしい」とも語ったという。これも行動規範に反しているだろう。

Inose initially claimed several of his remarks quoted in the interview "failed to express my true intentions." But he later changed his mind and said he wanted to "apologize for making some inappropriate remarks."
　知事は一連の発言について、「真意が正しく伝わっていない」とのコメントを出し、一転して「不適切な発言があり、おわびしたい」と謝罪した。

Responses questionable

We think Inose's response was questionable in terms of settling the problem quickly.
事態の早期収拾には疑問が残る対応だった。

We also cannot understand why he wrote on Twitter after the apology that the latest incident taught him a good lesson about who his friends and enemies were. This might make one suspect Inose may not really regret what he said.
　謝罪後、ツイッターに「今回の件で誰が味方か敵か、よくわかったのは収穫」と書き込んだのも不可解だ。反省しているのか、疑われかねない。

We wonder if winning a record 4.34 million votes in the Tokyo gubernatorial election at the end of last year has made Inose arrogant.
　昨年末の都知事選で、史上最多の４３４万票を獲得したおごりはないのだろうか。

It is now important to figure out how Tokyo can recoup its lost ground before the committee decides on a host city for the 2020 Games on Sept. 7. We are very concerned how the Tokyo governor's remarks will affect the voting behavior of IOC members of other countries, particularly those from Islamic countries.
　今後の課題は、９月７日の開催地決定に向け、東京がどう巻き返すかである。知事発言がイスラム諸国などのＩＯＣ委員の投票行動に影響を及ぼすことが心配だ。

The Tokyo bid committee must overcome the negative impact caused by Inose's gaffe and carefully explain Tokyo's plan for the Olympics to bolster support for the city.
　招致委としては、今回の舌禍問題を乗り越え、東京の開催計画を丁寧に説明して、支持を拡大していくことが大切である。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, May 5, 2013)
（2013年5月5日01時00分 読売新聞）