TOKYO: Major Japanese opposition parties on Friday morning decided to stop boycotting parliamentary deliberations after the ruling bloc offered an explanation over a tax-funded annual cherry blossom-viewing party hosted by the prime minister.

Earlier in the morning, the opposition parties refused to take part in debates at the Diet, the country's parliament, strongly protesting against the lack of reasonable explanations from the government side over the cherry blossom party issue.

Over a letter of invitation for the 2015 cherry blossom party sent to the then chairman of Japan Life Co., which was allegedly involved in an unlawful business, the opposition camp on Thursday urged the government and the Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling coalition to disclose whether the person was included in an invitation quota allotted to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

The letter had the number "60" on its "invitation section." It is suspected that the figure may have been used to indicate an invitation based on the recommendation by the prime minister or others.

The government and the ruling bloc refused to meet the demand, prompting the opposition side to decide on boycotting Diet business from Friday. Japan Life effectively went bankrupt in 2017 after collecting massive amounts of funds from customers. It was raided by police in April this year.

On Friday morning, secretaries-general and other officials of the opposition parties agreed to continue the boycott until the government side gives a reasonable explanation. Later, LDP Diet affairs chief Hiroshi Moriyama and his counterpart from the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Jun Azumi, held talks off and on.

Referring to an invitation letter draft for the 2015 party shown to a Japanese Communist Party lawmaker by the Cabinet Office, Moriyama explained to Azumi that the invitation section was for "sending invitation letters efficiently."

The opposition parties accepted the explanation and decided to return to Diet deliberations.

While opposition parties boycotted Friday's meeting of the Cabinet Committee of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Diet, lawmakers of the LDP and Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party) put questions to the government over the planned establishment of casino-featuring integrated resorts in Japan.

Following the Moriyama-Azumi meeting, an LDP executive said that the Lower House and the House of Councillors, the upper chamber, will hold plenary meetings within Friday.

The ruling camp plans to swiftly carry out deliberations on bills, including one to ratify a recently signed Japan-U.S. trade accord, toward the Dec. 9 end of the ongoing extraordinary Diet session. The ruling parties have decided not to extend the session.

JIJI Press