Editorials
Tuesday, November 25, 1997THE demise of Yamaichi Securities, Japan's biggest corporate collapse since World War II, is another blow to business confidence in the world's second largest economy. Although it does not appear to be directly related to the troubles in smaller Asian economies such as South Korea and Thailand, it leaves investors wondering whether these problems can be contained without further damage. Japanese brokerage's fall shakes confidence
As Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto pointed out, Japan's economic situation is different from the other Asian nations because Japan is a creditor nation, not a debtor. Its financial resources and its ability to deal with economic adversity are far greater. Japan is not about to collapse.
However, many Japanese banks and brokerages are in serious trouble because the bursting of the speculative bubble in real estate left them with billions of dollars in bad loans. Yamaichi Securities had $24 billion in debts. And even creditor nations can be hurt when debtors can't pay.
Japanese companies have also been hurt by scandals involving payoffs to gangsters to buy protection from harassment, forcing a wave of humiliating resignations by top executives.
Financial authorities pledged emergency action to maintain the stability of the financial system and appealed for calm. Officials said Yamaichi would be able to make good on its debts.
The failures of Yamaichi and two other major institutions, Hokkaido Takushoku, a nationwide bank, and Sanyo Securities, one of the 10 biggest brokers, will cost the jobs of more than 16,000 people.Thousands more will be laid off at other financial institutions, including some of the biggest banks, that have announced cutbacks.
The government has pledged that it will stop protecting weak banks and brokerages, and the Yamaichi failure shows that it meant business. It's part of the plan to let the market dictate winners and losers among financial companies, in contrast to the previous policy of shoring up weaknesses and condoning unsound practices. It seems essential to put the Japanese financial system on a sound footing and help it regain confidence in the international banking community.
But there is a price to pay. The failure of more companies will push up unemployment, already near a postwar-record high. That could depress consumer spending in an economy on the edge of recession. The government, which is already wrestling with huge deficits, may be forced to start priming the economic pump. U.S. officials have been urging Tokyo to do just that rather than try to export its way out of recession.
Hawaii is a concerned spectator to Asia's economic troubles, particularly Japan's. The fall of the yen's exchange value has made it more expensive for the Japanese to visit the islands, with the result that visitor arrivals have been shrinking for the last six months. But with the end to Asia's problems nowhere in sight, Hawaii could be in for more slow - or no - growth.
IN 1974 the University of Hawaii Board of Regents christened the new political science building Porteus Hall, after noted UH psychologist Stanley D. Porteus. A year later, students and faculty members objected, pointing out that his academic work contained racist and sexist references. The regents reviewed and upheld their decision. Rename Porteus Hall
Now, more than two decades later, the controversy has re-emerged. Leaders of the Associated Students of UH, the undergraduate student government, are urging that Porteus Hall be renamed. UH President Kenneth Mortimer concurs. Many graduate students and faculty representatives agree. So do we.
Although the views of Porteus may have been acceptable in his era, they elicit alarm today. Excerpts from his 1926 publication, "Temperament and Race," reflected racial stereotypes, including the belief that Caucasians were superior to other ethnic groups. Must a UH building continue to be named after someone who believed Hawaiians were devoid of planning capacity, that Japanese didn't honor their contracts and thus were undependable, and that people of Portuguese ancestry lacked self-control?
Not any more. This thinking is inappropriate for modern-day commemoration, especially on a campus of higher learning that is striving to promote diversity and enlightenment. The opinions of President Mortimer, student leaders and faculty members should be respected by renaming Porteus Hall.
AFTER a flurry of accusations and denials, the Hawaii Medical Service Association and the doctors it covers say they are making progress toward revision of a proposed contract. Among those protesting features of the proposal were the Hawaii Coalition for Health, a public health advocacy group; the Hawaii Federation of Physicians & Dentists; and the Hawaii Medical Association. HMSA's contract
Some doctors charged that new clauses in the proposed contract were offensive to the doctor-patient relationship and would hamper physicians from being advocates for patients. These are serious accusations. An HMSA spokesman responded that "Some of the more outrageous claims are simply not true." The association followed up with a full-page advertisement yesterday, declaring that HMSA has no intention of interfering with the physician-patient relationship.
As the state's largest medical insurance organization, HMSA affects many thousands of Hawaii residents. It's important that the contract with its doctors reflects their concerns and protects their patients. Whether the protests resulted from miscommunication or a real attempt to curtail physicians' activities, the problem has to be corrected and apparently it will be.
Rupert E. Phillips, CEO
John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher
David Shapiro, Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor
