March 24, 2013

Akahata Sunday edition

Aiming at revising the war-renouncing Article 9 of the Constitution, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party is calling for changing Article 96 first, which provides the requirements for constitutional revision. Regarding the issue, Akahata interviewed Ozawa Ryuichi, a Constitutional scholar. Ozawa said as follows:

At present, to initiate a revision of the Constitution, it is necessary for more than two-thirds of all members of both Houses to support the amendment. According to the LDP’s draft constitution, just a majority support in the Diet is enough to do so. It aims to have it possible to change the Constitution as easily as ordinary laws.

Is it right for the supreme law to be treated so lightly? Constitutional revisionists complain that the Japanese Constitution is too difficult to revise compared to other nations, but that is false accusation.

In the United States, amending the Constitution requires the approval of more than three-fourths of all state legislatures, along with support from more than two-thirds of all members of the Upper and Lower Houses. In France and Germany, changing their constitutions is more difficult than revising other laws as well. Setting strict requisites for constitutional revision is the norm in constitutional law.

Modern constitutions are based on the idea that power should be held by the general public. Thomas Jefferson, the drafter of the Declaration of Independence, said, “Confidence is everywhere the parent of despotism.” He stressed the need to watch power holders because giving them a free hand would lead to autocracy. This is the reason why the Japanese Constitution requires the separation of powers and imposes stringent conditions on constitutional revision.

Article 99 of the Constitution requires that the prime minister and other cabinet members respect and protect the Constitution. PM Abe Shinzo, who advocates constitutional revision repeatedly, should take the time to fully comprehend this.