Japan Press Weekly

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2016 December 7 - 13 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Lawyers urge Japan to vote for UN declaration on ‘the right to peace’

A Japanese committee composed of Japanese lawyers and scholars for the international campaign for “the right to peace” has demanded that the government in the UNGA vote in support of the draft declaration of the Right to Peace.

The Japan Committee for the Human Right to Peace on December 10 held a press conference and reported that this declaration defines a peaceful life as a fundamental human right of individuals. The draft is expected to be adopted in the upcoming UNGA, according to their report.

However, they explained, the Japanese government has taken a negative stance opposing codification.

Lawyer Sasamoto Jun, the secretary-general of the Japan Committee said, “Japan is the only country in the world whose constitution declares the right to live in peace. On top of that, our Constitution recognizes ‘all peoples of the world’ have this right. So, it should be a matter of course for Japan to support the new UN declaration.”

Sasamoto continued to say, “Properly defining ‘the right to peace’ as a fundamental human right will make it difficult for any country to deprive any people of this right. The declaration is epoch-making since it does not leave the issue of peace to the world’s governments but focuses on this issue as the right of individuals.

The campaign for the Right to Peace started after the 2003 Iraq War and spread rapidly throughout the world. Issues related to the Right to Peace often come under UN discussion. The resolution states that “everyone has the right to enjoy peace”. It requires each government to guarantee “freedom from fear and want”. It also states that the United Nations and its specialized agencies “shall take appropriate sustainable measures to implement this Declaration.”