About 76 percent of voters said Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi failed to adequately explain why he extended the mission of the Self-Defense Forces in Iraq for another year, an Asahi Shimbun survey showed.

Fifty-eight percent said they were opposed to the extension of the humanitarian mission, while only 31 percent said they approve, according to the weekend survey.

Public attitudes toward the SDF extension have not changed much since the Cabinet on Dec. 9 endorsed the decision to keep the troops in the Iraqi city of Samawah until Dec. 14 next year. In the November poll, 62 percent had opposed such a move, while 29 percent approved it.

The latest telephone survey was conducted Saturday and Sunday. A total of 1,868 eligible voters gave valid answers.

Opposition to the extension was particularly strong among women and people in their 40s.

Among supporters of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, less than 40 percent opposed the extended dispatch. But nearly half of the supporters of coalition partner New Komeito indicated that the troops should come home.

Support for the Koizumi Cabinet was 37 percent, down slightly from 39 percent in November. Those who said they did not support the Cabinet stood at 47 percent, up from 43 percent in November.

The results represent the third straight month that the disapproval rate has exceeded the support rate.

The Koizumi administration had 54 percent support in a survey taken just after his May 22 visit to Pyongyang that resulted in the reunion of family members of five repatriated abductees. That rating was the highest this year.(IHT/Asahi: December 21,2004)