Japan Press Weekly

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2014 March 5 - 11 [POLITICS]

Masuzoe: Japan can use collective self-defense right

Tokyo Governor Masuzoe Yoichi on March 4 at the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly plenary meeting said that Japan can use the right to collective self-defense by changing the interpretation of the Constitution.

He made this remark in his reply to Japanese Communist Party representative Ueki Koji.

Ueki in his question-answer time took up Prime Minister Abe Shinzo’s attempt to authorize Japan to exercise the controversial right.

Citing the PM’s remark in the Diet that as the executive branch of the Japanese government, the Cabinet can revise the interpretation of the Constitution to one in line with its policies, Ueki criticized Abe for denying constitutionalism.

The JCP assemblyman asked the governor if he felt there is a problem with the PM’s statement.

Masuzoe replied, “I believe that revising the war-renouncing Article 9 is preferable. But, without the revision, it is still possible for Japan to use the collective self-defense right by re-evaluating the current constitutional interpretation.”