Japan Diet OKs Extension of Special Law for Okinawa

Tokyo, March 31 (Jiji Press)--The Diet, Japan's parliament, on Thursday enacted a bill to extend a special law for the development of Okinawa Prefecture, which had been scheduled to expire the same day, by an additional 10 years.

The bill to revise the law was approved unanimously at the day's plenary meeting of the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of the Diet. It cleared the House of Representative, the lower chamber, earlier.

While the period of extension was kept unchanged at the request of parties concerned including the Okinawa prefectural government, the law was given a new provision stipulating that its contents be reviewed within five years in response to changes in society.

The law newly requires efforts to be made for tackling challenges facing Okinawa, such as industry development in remote islands and the northern part of the southernmost Japan prefecture, and the eradication of child poverty.

Meanwhile, the tax cuts for beer and quasi-beer, and "awamori" distilled spirits produced in Okinawa will be scrapped in stages by 2032.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]