Cabinet establishes advisory council to pave the way for exercising collective self-defense right

   The Abe Cabinet on April 25 established an advisory council to conduct case studies aimed at making it possible for Japan to exercise the right of collective self-defense that the government has long said the Constitution forbids.

   Prime Minister Abe Shinzo is seeking to open the way for using the right of collective self-defense by reversing the government’s interpretation of the Constitution so that Japan can use force abroad.

   The United States is also putting pressures on Japan to revise the Constitution to enable Japan to exercise the right of collective self-defense.

   The council consists of 13 members, including former Ambassador to the United States Yanai Shunji and former Ambassador to Thailand Okazaki Hisahiko.

   The panel will study the following four scenarios: The Self-Defense Forces intercept missiles heading for the United States; the SDF fights back when foreign troops are attacked with which the SDF is conducting joint operations in U.N. peacekeeping activities; the Maritime SDF fights back when U.S. warships are attacked on high seas; and the SDF provides logistic support to the U.S. forces in military conflicts.

   Japanese Communist Party Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi at a press conference in the Diet Building on the same day criticized the Abe Cabinet for gutting Article 9 by changing the constitutional interpretation.

   “The government has officially stated that the Constitution prohibits Japan from exercising the right of collective self-defense. While pursuing constitutional revision, Prime Minister Abe wants to change this government view because he cannot wait until the Constitution is revised. So he has asked the panel to formulate theories justifying Japan’s use of force abroad,” said Ichida.

   Ichida pointed out that Abe in his policy speech called for revision of Article 9 and for the use of the right of collective self-defense to break away from “the post-war regime.”

   “‘Self-defense’ sounds like it refers to the case of being attacked. After WWII, the United States invaded Vietnam and Nicaragua, and the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan under the pretext of exercising the right of collective self-defense. The right of collective self-defense is an argument to justify aggressions,” Ichida said.

   Stressing that relying on military alliances and military forces is outdated but that the Constitution is not, Ichida expressed his determination to make efforts both inside and outside of the Diet in defense of Article 9 and in opposition to the exercise of the right of collective self-defense.    - Akahata, April 26, 2007