Joint action held in Diet against wartime legislation

About 300 people from 29 organizations throughout Japan gathered in the Diet Building on June 28 for a joint action to get the contingency legislation foiled.

After lobbying about 500 House of Representatives members to oppose the wartime bills, the participants at a rally held in the Diet members' Hall reported on their struggles against the bills spreading all over the nation.

A man from Osaka reported that, by inserting a postcard and a signature form in the newspaper, his organization received more than 3,000 replies with about 9,200 signatures.

A participant from Nagano Prefecture stated that 80 percent of all local assemblies in his prefecture adopted a resolution either opposing the wartime bills or calling for more careful discussion in the Diet.

The rally adopted an appeal proposing to continue actions until the end of the extended Diet session. The actions are: 1. collecting signatures and holding rallies or demonstrations against the bills; 2. lobbying Dietmembers who are from the local area; 3. requesting all local assemblies to adopt a resolution against the bills; 4. establishing an organization to jointly promote struggles in each community. (end)