The final report of Monbu-Kagaku-sho (formerly Monbusho, the Ministry of Education) on reform of state-run universities has been released on March 26th, which is nothing different from the scheme of the so-called IAI. But to everybody's surprize, it has introduced a plan to change the status of personnels, namely the personnels of new universities are employed not as public servants but as employees of the private sector. It will give the management much power and the post of the university professors will become very unstable.
The Japan Association of National Universities (Kokudaikyo) has held an unscheduled meeting on April 19th, and formally approved this final report. Presidents of several universities expressed their objection, but they were defeated by voting. The Monbu-Kagaku-sho seems to have started to prepare the bill to practize this plan. The submission of the bill to the Diet will be more than a half year behind.
The People's Network has just released a long statement which analyzes the present situation and proposes some measures to oppose the plan, with some phrases to encourage the people in universities. It is available on our webpage in Japanese. We have no plan to translate it for the moment.
http://pegasus.phys.saga-u.ac.jp/znet.html
http://pegasus.phys.saga-u.ac.jp/znet/seimei020509.html
This article emphasizes the effort to persuade the MPs and to continue to speak out in every means or on every occasion. Manifestos by the faculties will be very powerful.
I wrote a review article on this issue which has been published on a weekly magazine "SYUKAN-KIN'YOBI", April 19th issue. English version will be available on June 4th on our English webpage.
http://pegasus.phys.saga-u.ac.jp/znete.html
http://www03.u-page.so-net.ne.jp/ta2/toyosima/daigaku/znete.html