About 4,000 people took part in a rally at Hibiya Amphitheater in Tokyo on April 9, calling for an immediate withdrawal of Self-Defense Force troops from Iraq, where 3 Japanese civilians are held hostage.
Speaking on behalf of organizers, Takeda Takao of the Religious Network for Peace stated that the government is responsible for this hostage incident. "The government must immediately withdraw SDF units from Iraq and ensure that those Japanese citizens are safe," he stressed.
Japanese Communist Party House of Representatives member Akamine Seiken said, "We must not allow the government to insist on the continued deployment of SDF units in Iraq that could lead to the sacrifice of the lives of Japanese citizens, for it has already lost justification and reason."
The rally was organized by a group of 20 ground, maritime, air, and harbor transport workers' unions, the Religious Network for Peace, and other citizens' organizations. (end)
