December 22, 2021

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on December 21, the closing day of the extraordinary Diet session, said to the press in the Diet building that the Kishida government is more dangerous than the Abe/Suga governments in terms of moves toward a huge military buildup and Japan’s use of force abroad.

Shii pointed out that on the first day of the extraordinary Diet session, Prime Minister Kishida in his policy speech expressed his intent to promote discussions on Japan’s possession of the “capability to attack enemy bases”. He went on to point out that the supplementary budget and the initial budget combined allocate over six trillion yen for military spending. He added that the Kishida government indicated that it will press onward to implementing a revision of the war-renouncing Article 9 of the Constitution. He expressed his determination to squarely confront the Kishida administration’s aggressive move to turn Japan into a nation which is willing to fight wars abroad, and said, “The JCP will work hard to protect Article 9 and will push the government to adopt foreign policies that will realize a peaceful Japan and East Asia through engaging in diplomacy utilizing Article 9.”

Asked about the focal points in future Diet discussions, Shii pointed out that while repeatedly claiming a shift from neoliberal policies, PM Kishida, in reality, intends to maintain and promote labor deregulation, cutbacks in social welfare, and the current unfair tax system which benefits the wealthy and large corporations through tax breaks. Shii said, “In the next Diet session, the JCP will conduct Diet deliberations aimed at putting an end once and for all to neoliberal policies and creating a people-oriented and genuinely strong economy.”

Furthermore, Shii said that in the latest Diet session, JCP questioning on gender equality and the fight against climate change underscored the fact that it is necessary to work to enact reforms in every field of society by 2030 in order to seriously address the dangers associated with climate change and that it is also important to discuss domestic and foreign policies from the viewpoint of gender equality. He added that in the upcoming Diet session, the JCP will continue focusing on these issues.