October 2, 2014

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo, during the House of Representatives plenary session on October 1, used his question time on behalf of the JCP to urge Prime Minister Abe Shinzo to retract the Cabinet decision to lift the ban on Japan’s use of the collective self-defense right.

Shii criticized Abe’s recent statement that the Japanese Self-Defense Forces located in war zones may resort to weapons if attacked. It could drag the SDF into combat operations, Shii said.

Pointing out that Abe’s true intent is to build a war-capable Japan so that the SDF can take part in wars like the Afghan War and the Iraq War together with U.S. forces, Shii demanded that the Cabinet, in addition to retracting the decision, halt the ongoing moves to create new security-related laws for putting the decision into effect.

Prime Minister Abe in response to the JCP representative stated that the government will push ahead with lawmaking processes in line with the policy the Cabinet decided on.

As a way to peacefully resolve various issues affecting Northeast Asia, Shii pointed to the importance of employing diplomatic strategies based on the war-renouncing Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution in order to not rely on confrontational means.

The JCP chair proposed that a friendly and cooperative treaty setting rules for a peaceful resolution to regional conflicts be concluded in Northeast Asia, and that issues involving North Korea be addressed and settled in the Six-Party Talks.

He suggested expanding this multilateral framework to a framework for peace and stability in the region and creating a code of conduct in order to prevent territorial disputes from escalating in the region.

This, however, is premised on Japan’s sincere acknowledgment of and remorse over its past war of aggression and colonial rule over other Asian countries, he added.

In response to Shii, the prime minister said, “I believe Japan should have necessary defense and deterrent capabilities, and your implication that I’m making our country ready to resort to force is completely false.”