Wartime legislation was conducive to war: JCP Togashi

Refuting Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro's argument that "Providing is preventing" to push enacting wartime bills, a Japanese Communist Party Dietmember recalled Japan's history in that enacting such laws induced wars.

Togashi Renzo, JCP House of Councilors Diet Policy Commission chair, in the house plenary session on February 8 took up the government plan to enact wartime legislation in the current Diet session, warning that they'll undermine constitutional principles of peace and democracy.

Quoting a former Defense Agency director general as saying "wartime legislation assumes situations in which a certain foreign power launches an attack on Japan and Japan becomes a battlefield," Togashi asked Koizumi if there is any country with such a potential and intention to send its army to Japan.

Togashi referred to wartime legislation under Imperialist Japan, such as the munitions industry mobilization law to carry out the interventionist war against Siberia, and the national mobilization war to push ahead with the war of aggression against China.

Advocating "Providing is preventing" will easily help stir up an argument that the more Japan builds up its preparedness, the better. This is the logic designed to intensify Japan's military buildup, said the JCP lawmaker.

The need now is for the Japanese government to learn the historic lesson that "after the intensification of war-preparedness comes the actual battle," Togashi stated.

Prime Minister Koizumi, however, declined to set forth a clear answer, just saying that Japan, for the time being, does not assume the existence of a specific country threatening Japan.

Stating that the U.S. Bush Administration is taking hostile attitudes against the Kyoto Declaration for Prevention of Global Warming, the anti-personnel mine ban treaty, and the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, Togashi demanded that the Japanese government squarely criticize the U.S. attitude, and shift its policy toward augmenting unity with global forces calling for the ratification of the CTBT.

His cabinet will maintain close ties with the Bush administration, Koizumi answered.

Explaining the JCP view and proposal on the "mystery ships" issue and the incident which took place last year, Togashi insisted that the government, in coping with such an incident, should clearly distinguish Japan's territorial waters from the exclusive economic zones.

In light of international and domestic laws, Japan's Coast Guard took an incorrect response to the case, Togashi said. The prime minister emphasized that it was done according to the law. (end)