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Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

Special committee on Constitution to consider plebiscite is pushed through

The Liberal Democratic, Komei, and Democratic parties used their force of majority in the House of Representatives plenary session on September 22 to establish a special committee in the Lower House to discuss calling a national referendum necessary for constitutional revision. The Japanese Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party voted against.

At the Lower House steering committee meeting earlier in the day, the Democratic Party of Japan criticized the ruling parties for their hasty method of dealing with the issue, adding however that his party is not opposed to the establishment of the special committee.

Initially, the ruling parties proposed establishing a parliamentary standing committee based on Diet Law, but they switched to call for a special committee that can be established without amending the Diet Law and with just a plenary session resolution at every Diet session. This change was aimed at deflecting criticism from the JCP and even from within the ruling parties.

Later in the day, JCP Chair Shii Kazuo criticized the decision at a news conference.

Pointing out that the special committee is tasked with discussing a national referendum law, Shii said, "This is a move toward amending (the war renouncing) Article 9 to enable Japan to fight wars abroad. The JCP will argue against the national referendum law in the special committee."

Shii said, "The Liberal Democratic and Democratic parties are now in agreement regarding the need to rewrite paragraph two of Article 9 to legalize the Self-Defense Forces. The pro-constitutional revision politicians argue that this does not mean Japan will take part in military actions abroad. This is a deceptive argument."

Shii cited the statement of the director-general of the Cabinet Legislation Bureau in 1990 that the government is not allowed to send the SDF abroad for military action, that the SDF cannot exercise the right of collective self-defense, and that the SDF is not allowed to take part in United Nations forces that involve military action.

Shii said, "It is important to form a popular majority agreed on the single point of opposing constitutional revision." -- Akahata, September 24, 2005