JCP statement on 58th anniversary of the war's end

On the 58th anniversary of the end of World War II for Japan on August 15, the Japanese Communist Party published the following statement by JCP Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi:

At the 58th anniversary of the end of WWII for Japan, the JCP expresses its deep condolences to all those who fell victim in Japan and abroad to the Japanese war of aggression. We also take this occasion to reaffirm the contemporary significance of the constitutional principles of peace and democracy based on bitter lessons of history and renew our determination to always be in the forefront of the struggle in Asia and the rest of the world to defend peace under U.N. rules against lawless and unjust war.

It is increasingly obvious that the U.S.-led war against Iraq was a lawless war without any great cause. Nevertheless, the U.S. and British forces occupy Iraq with their tanks and bayonets, undermining Iraq's sovereignty and its people's human rights.

It stands to reason U.S. unilateralism seeking hegemony is facing strong protests from the greater part of the world, including U.S. allies.

The task now is for international politics and opinion to oppose the arbitrary global military strategy of the United States and build an international order under U.N. rules established to avoid the recurrence of the tragedy humanity experienced in two world wars: the peaceful resolution of international disputes and the prohibition of the use of the threat to use military force.

Japan's Koizumi Cabinet is totally going against Japanese and world opinion which calls for peace. It was the world's first government to express support for the U.S. invasion of Iraq. It railroaded the recent Diet session into enacting the contingency legislation that will allow the Self-Defense Forces to take active part in U.S. wars anywhere in the world and force the whole nation into assisting in war and a law to send SDF units for the first time since the end of World War II with the aim of supporting the illegal U.S.-British military occupation of Iraq.

International opinion, in Asia and the rest of the world, is increasingly critical of the Koizumi Cabinet's historical outrage, saying that Japan's present course is in contravention of the Constitution which pledged that Japan will not go to war. Critics see Japan's policy overlap the history of Japanese militarism's war of aggression and colonization.

The Koizumi Cabinet is following in steps with the United States to force Japan to become more subservient to U.S. unilateralism seeking hegemony. This is how Japan and the United States are taking the road of isolation from the world.

Since its founding 81 years ago, the JCP has been consistent in opposing war of aggression and calling for people's sovereignty. We are firmly committed to struggling against all forms of activities that go against historical lessons and determined to do all we can to use the constitutional principles of peace and democracy for achieving peace in Asia and the world. (end)