Japan Press Weekly

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2016 June 22 - 28 TOP3 [POLITICS]

Abe intends to change Constitution but says nothing about it in kickoff speech

Akahata editorial (excerpts)

The House of Councilors election campaign officially started on June 22. All the candidates and political party leaders took to the streets to appeal to voters.

Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, who is also the president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, before the official start of the campaign said at several political debates that he hopes to begin discussing constitutional issues in the Commission on the Constitution in both chambers of the Diet in order to compile a proposal to change the present Constitution. Whether to make changes in the Constitution has emerged as the major point at issue along with the controversy regarding the so-called war laws and pressing economic issues.

However, Abe in his kick-off speech made no reference to constitutional revisions by stating that this cannot even be an election issue because the specific items that need to be deleted or modified in the Constitution have not been decided upon yet. He has expressed his strong intent to alter the Constitution. On the other hand, he seems to be employing the tactic of keeping silent about it during the election campaign.

Before the election, people should know what kind of constitutional revisions Abe and his party have in mind. Without letting people know this, the LDP most probably will bring up the issue regarding constitutional amendments in the Diet after the election. What exactly the LDP will propose and initiate then is all unknown to voters as of yet. However, it is crystal clear that the Abe government aspires to undermine Japan’s post-war constitutional commitment to pacifism.

Apparently, Abe will say nothing about constitutional revisions in the election campaign, but the LDP’s draft constitution has already been made public and is considered by many to be very threatening to peace and democracy. In advance of the inauguration of the Abe government, the LDP compiled a draft constitution which waters down the war-renouncing Article 9, lifts all restrictions on the use of the collective self-defense right, reorganizes the current Self-Defense Forces into national military forces, and pushes ahead with an effort to rebuild Japan into “a country capable of fighting wars abroad”. On top of that, their draft constitution erases the existing constitutional principle that fundamental human rights are “eternal and inviolate” and instead incorporates a provision that these rights can be subject to restraints under the guise of maintaining the “public good and public order”. Their draft includes a plethora of dangerous clauses. It is far from what can be accepted as the nation’s supreme law.

The other day, in a face-to-face debate, Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo grilled Abe concerning his intent to impose constitutional change. Shii asked, “Can you promise that you will keep Article 9 intact?” As Abe is trying to not mention anything about constitutional reform, he offered no response to Shii.

Abe insistently says that economic issues are the focal point of the election, but it will be impermissible if he shifts the issue from the economy to constitutional amendments after the election is over, just as he did following the last election regarding the state secrets law and the national security legislation.

The House of Councilors election will be an excellent opportunity for the general public to press the prime minister and the ruling party to comply with the Constitution.