welcome to "newsline." i'm michio kijima in tokyo. for the first time in a year, residents of three out of 11 municipalities near the crippled tuck sheem daiichi nuclear power plant will soon be allowed to visit their homes freely. the easing of the restrictions will begin next month. the prospect emidtermed friday night as a task force led by yoshihiko noda decided to review the no entry areas of three municipalities. the no entry zone will be split into two evacuation zones as a result of the review.

there are about 300 residents whose homes are in the no entry zone. they will be able to visit the area without permission from the central or local governments. work including radiation decontamination will begin ahead of their return. >> translator: we must return home as my child will start going to school next year. i hope the decontamination will make progress. >> this is temporary housing for people from tamura city. it will be reclassified as an area where residents can prepare to eventually return home. >> translator: this is a step forward for the recovery and rebuilding. i will work together with the residents to find ways to restore their area. >> the government has also decided to review the zoning of minami soma city, a part of which is inside the no entry zone. the city will likely be split into three areas including one where there will be long-term

restrictions on people who want to move back to live. the mayor of the city welcomed the decision, but he also expressed concern about the slow pace of decontamination. >> translator: many residents still feel anxious, especially about decontamination. the central government needs to provide a guideline. >> the zoning of the other eight municipalities will likely be reviewed next month or later due to concerns about splitting the communities into two or more zones. residents are also concerned about differences in compensation among the different zones and are dissatisfied with the government over its rebuilding plans. japan's energy policy is at a crossroads. its leaders once considered nuclear power a stable, clean supply of electricity. but more and more people say it is dangerous after last year's accidents at fukushima daiichi. reactor after reactor has gone

off line for regular maintenance since march 11th, 2011. none has gone back online, so now only one out of 54 is running. the government is looking at firing up two of the idled reactors. they passed new more stringent safety checks but the idea of restarting them has not won public approval just yet. opponents say results of the test are not proof the reactors are safe. we're taking a look at this issue on tonight's "nuclear watch." the stress tests use computer simulations to predict a reactor's ability to withstand powerful earthquakes and towering tsunamis. nuclear and industrial safety agency officials concluded last month the results show the protective measures in place for reactors three and four at the ohi plant are sufficient. and they say they could withstand a earthquake and tsunami similar to those that hit fukushima daiichi. the nuclear safety commission

assembled a panel of experts to scrutinize the evaluation. the panel endorsed the results of a stress test earlier this month at a meeting. but some observers expressed opposition. the chair of the nuclear safety commission would only approve the stress test results and refused to say whether the reactors should be restarted. >> translator: i don't think the commission is required to confirm the reactors' safety. it is up to the government whether they decide to restart reactors. the commission members have nothing to say about the decision. >> that decision now rests with prime minister yoshihiko noda and three of his cabinet ministers. and they have the power to give utilities e green light to fire up idled reactors but they vow to first get local approval.

nhk world covers nuclear power issues for us. we're going to speak in japanese, but provide simultaneous interpretation. >> translator: the chairman of the nuclear safety commission didn't comment on the safety of the reactors. but what did the extras find after going through the stress tests. >> translator: stress tests were developed in europe to find out the weakness of nuclear power plants and make improvements. so they are not meant to authorize the restart of reactors like in japan. the nuclear safety commission says it cannot confirm the safety of reactors with stress test results and it is up to the government to decide how to use the test results. that's why at the news conference the commissioner refused to say whether the reactors should be restarted and reiterated that it is up to nisa to make a decision. meanwhile, nisa says the stress tests confirmed the ohi plant will not cause meltdown even if it is hit by earthquake and tsunami as large as the ones that crippled fukushima daiichi

nuclear power plants. but experts have conflicting reviews on that. >> translator: we found the risks facing reactors have been reduced to an acceptable level thanks to the stress tests. now it is up to the politicians to reach a decision by comparing the risk of operating the reactors with the risk of keeping them off line. >> my concern is we can't be certain other plants are safe from tsunami higher than the ones that swaum pd fukushima daiichi. the results of the stress tests are only the beginning of discussions about safety. >> translator: the government aims to use the stress tests to prove the reactors are safe enough to restart. will showing the results help it win the consent of municipalities that host reactors? >> translator: it will be extremely difficult. local authorities are concerned that stress tests alone are not enough to restart reactors.

according to an nhk survey this month, when local authorities were asked about the precondition for restarting reactor, 66% said local approval, and 48% said the verification of the fukushima daiichi nuclear accident and only 21% said stress tests. local authorities are urging the government to come up with a safety standard based on the analysis of the fukushima daiichi nuclear accident and check the safety of other nuclear plants acording to that. but so far the government has only come up with the 30-point safety measures, derived from the fukushima accident and has yet to develop any specific safety standard. the government is trying to convince the local authorities of the safety of reactors, but the only reference material it has is stress test results, therefore it is facing a tough

resistance. >> that was nhk world's yasuhiro cann kando reporting for us tonight. japanese prime minister yoshihiko noda and his cabinet approved a bill that would have doubled the consumption tax to 10% by 2015. in doing so, noda put his job on the line. >> translator: i think the people understand the necessity in the consumption tax increase. we can work together to change the policy, if we look at the big picture, not just the politics of this. >> the legislation would increase the consumption tax in two stages. it would rise to 8% in april 2014, then to 10% in october 2015. the bill would ease the burden

on low income earners by giving them tax waivers and cash handouts. those in the main opposition party, the liberal democrats, could not wait to step in with their complaints. they're demanding a general election before the diet votes on the bill. >> translator: dissolving the lower house before general election will naturally lead to resolving the problems we now face. we'll discuss the bill when it is submitted to the diet. >> members of the ruling party don't support the idea. some of them have already handed in their notices of resignation. nhk world's senior commentator masayo nakajima is here to give us some perspective on this story. so how necessary is this extra tax revenue? >> well, noda wants to reduce the government's spending deficit. but the extra tax revenue still won't be enough to balance the budget. you know, japan's fiscal standing is the worst among developed nations. its debt is twice its gross

domestic product and it's facing rising social security costs, too. some economists are concerned that it could face a similar fate as greece and italy. but noda's plan is facing strong criticism from opposition parties and even among members of the ruling democratic party. they insist noda has not fulfilled his promises of maintaining fiscal discipline and making social security system more sustainable. japanese voters are critical, too. they want more cuts to wasteful government spending before ising ta >>ranstoefe ch, usment raises the tax te more difficult.needs the opposi

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r . d s. . reptehio central bangkok ahead of the bielections in myanmar. its photograph depicts the flight of a muslim minorit originally from western myanmar. rohingya of the knights of citizenship in myanmar. they say their land is confiscated and they suffer extortion and forced labor. their persecution is made worse by their different racial back

muslims in the buddhist country. >> translator: i felt sad, a ul its citizens equally and fairly. >> translator: i hope the hingya can return to their homeland and live their lives e. estimated more than 600,000 ons rohingya have fled persecution. th he struggled to live their lives in bangladesh, thla pisn. ♪ here in thailand, there are an estimated 20,000 displaced rohingya. at this mosque in western ngk,o pray. ong them is abu karian. he left myanmar 31 years ago with no legal protection, he keeps a low profile with his

family in the busy city. in myanmar he claims he was persecuted, forced to work and beaten by the military. feinfohis li, fled to thailand. >> translator: at least five villagers were gunned down by the military in front of me because they became too weak to cay in. after my escape the military tore down my village where 2,000 people lived. i don't ow what haened to everyone. >> reporter: the hardship 't end, when kariam went to thailand. he sls fdocre living, but he said he's routinely arrested and he's also worried about his two children who have no legal access to education. aung san suu kyi is a beacon of hope for karian. he said she's the only pso who can improve his situation.

he and other displaced ringya have often demonstrated in support of aung san suu kyi, especially calling for her freedom during years of house arrest. >> yes, i support, i support. >> translator: i support aung san suu kyi and admire her. we are like her children. shs e mb of our fight, and i respect her for her long struggle. >> reporter: when he and other hiyaetogether, the upcoming elections in myanmar are all they talk about. they are concern whether aung san suu kyi will really be able to help the rohingya issue if elteto parliament. >> translator: if she really wins and proposes some improvements for rohingya, a grouofpsayayo. shwill not be able to do anything. >> translator: we can only wait for her to win and work in the parliament, and that one day the an wl ppen.

>> translator: i wonder if there will ever be a place on earth where we are truly accepted. w m mptely disheartened. my biggest hope is that we be recognized as people of myanmar so rohingya can be educated and receive health care. >> reporter: with no homeland of their own, the rohingya are en wchg e eltis and in particular aung san suu kyi. but whether she can offer them y angf cnge remains to be seen. satomi aso, nhk world, bangkok. that's going to wrap up our bulletin. i'm patchari raksawong in bangkok. finance minister of the eurozone countriesetn copenhagen and discussed measures to prevent the spread of credit anxiety.

eurozone members have been using a temporary fund capped at 500 billion euros tel gecend other countries weather debt crisis. they're about to launch in july a permanent fund called eurean stily mechanism. its rule will be to reinforce the eurozone's ability to fend off another crisis. the finance ministers agreed on inbothnds, capped at 700 billion euros or about $934 billion. the gus cle200 billion euros to rescuing greece, portugal and ireland. investors may question whether the funds willenoho hp bigger troubled economies like spain or italy. japan's self-defense forces have been ordered to shoot down any part of a rocket that enters japanese territory. north korean leaderses say they'll fire off a rocket next month to put a satellite into space. officials from japan, south korea and elsewhere say the launch is a cover to test

technology for a ballistic missile. nhworld repos. >> reporter: japan's defense minister naoki tanaka issued the order on friday after meeting withinistry and sdf officials. the plan was then approved by the government's security council. the sdf will deploy patriot antiballistic missiles that will be set up on islands in okinawa prefecture and in the tokyo metropolitan area. the sdf will also position aegis destroyers in waters around okinawa. the destroyers are fitted with sm-3 interceptors. the north korean rocket is expected to fly over the southern island chain of sakishima southwest of okinawa's main island. the government says there is little possibility the rocket or parts of the rocket will fall on

japanese territory. it says the shootdown order is meant to deal with any contingency. japan introduced a missile defense system in 2003. it was to prepare for the possibility of a ballistic missile launch by north korea. in 2009, the government issued its first intercept order ahead of a missile launched by the north. but the rocket posed no threat as it flew high over japan and there was no need to fire the missiles. the self-defense forces will also deploy rescue teams on the southern islands. this is in case ere are any injuries caused by the falling debris. takeshi kurihara, nhk world, tokyo. let's get a check of the weather from mai shoji. mai, it seems that tropical storm over the south china sea is nearing cities in vietnam. what's the latest? >> yes, michio, that's absolutely right. over the south china sea, you can see the symmetrical circulation. this is the tropical storm pakhar, it is moving slowly

toward the southeastern coast of vietnam and it will be making landfall possibly overnight to sunday. as it does so, because the water is very warm, above 28 degrees, it will be intensifying as it does so. and after making landfall, it will be weakening as it moves inland. now, already, gusts are reaching 108 kilometers per hour and once the primary threat from this storm is that in the next 72 hours the amount of rainfall accumulation is going to be staggering, about 300 millimeters in the coastal areas, already picking up waves too. so a lot is going to be happening in the next few days and it is very slow moving one, so the prolonged accumulation could lead to some flooding and also landslides, mud slides. also, very staggering amounts of accumulation is detected here in luzon, in the philippines, eastern seaboards are picking up waves as well because the moisture is all the way surged toward this. so as long as this stays over water, philippines will be targeted with very heavy rain as well.

talking about wet and windy condition here in japan also. we had a very nice day here in tokyo with temperatures reaching up to about 19 degrees and lots of sunshine, but tomorrow, things are looking very different and kanto region we may see winds up to about 72 kilometers per hour and the wet condition we're talking about, 80 millimeters in the next 24 hours, just in the kanto region. in tohoku, we're seeing some wet weather already, accumulating there, but gusts will be remaining here in northern japan. the wintry pattern will be left behind. so sunday we may even see some blowing snow up here in hokkaido. temperaturewise, tokyo, looking at 16 degrees. then beijing at 17, reaching up there. meanwhile, in the tropics we're looking at chances of thunderstorms in manila at 30 degrees. let's head over to the americas, the pacific northwest will be battered with very gusty and also coastally heavy rains yet

again, targeting the oregon and northern california coasts in the next few hours. accumulation could be as much as 120 millimeters in some areas. and winter storm after winter storm these areas have been battered by very heavy rain. so avalanche risk, also mud slide, landslides, rock slides. these are all going to be very high concern here and accumulation of snow could be staggering amounts as well in the cascades and blowing snow, gusts reaching up to 100 kilometers per hour. these are all going to be very huge concern. gusts are very, very strong ahead of this system as well. and denver reaching up to 25 degrees. both combined, here in and around these regions, well, there is -- alert against fire danger weather. now, let's head over to europe, talk about a lot of low pressure system covering much of eastern european continent. that will bring a lot of gusty conditions here as well as wet weather and gusts will be very strong here in germany as well

as poland. out towards the iberian peninsula, things are going to be looking wet with scattered thundershowers. but it is not going to be enough to ease off the drought condition. lisbon at 20 degrees. looking at athens reaching up to 21 degrees, but with wintry mix precipitation here in moscow at 3 degrees. here is your extended forecast.

and that's our broadcast for this hour on "newsline." we'll be back with more news in half an hour. i'm michio kijima in tokyo. thank you so much for watching. bye-bye.