Japan Press Weekly

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2011 April 27 - May 10 [POLITICS]

May 3 Constitution Day rallies held nationwide

More than 7,000 people on May 3, commemorating the 64th anniversary of the Constitution of Japan, participated in events taking place in many parts of the country.

At Hibiya Public Hall in central Tokyo, 2,800 people attended the rally and called for “Making full use of the Constitution to reconstruct areas devastated by the Great East Japan Disaster.” Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo and Social Democratic Party President Fukushima Mizuho made speeches. The participants also marched through the Ginza district.

In Kyoto, an event hosted by the Kyoto Article 9 Association brought together 2,400 people. Representing the Association, philosopher Umehara Takeshi and scholar of radiation protection Anzai Ikuro talked about Article 9 and the peace and security of Japan.

Umehara, a special advisor of the government panel on reconstruction from the Great East Japan Disaster, stated, “As long as I live, I will continue to talk about realizing an ideal philosophy that would enable people to survive without the threat of nuclear weapons or nuclear power plants.”

Anzai appealed, “The attempt by the state in league with big business to restrict freedom of speech is similar to moves that triggered WWII. We can protect the sovereignty of the people and establish peace only if we protect the Constitution centered on Article 9.”

In Aichi Prefecture, under the banner, “The situation threatening Okinawa and the Constitution,” about 2,000 people assembled in Nagoya Public Hall and listened to Douglas Lummis, a part-time lecturer at Okinawa International University.

Lummis called for a movement to resolve the discrepancy between Article 9 and the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty.