Japan Press Weekly

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2022 January 12 - 18 [JCP]

JCP Dietmembers talk directly with young people

A "meet-up" event hosted jointly by the Japanese Communist Party and a JCP supporters' club took place on January 16 near Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. JCP Vice Chair Tamura Tomoko (House of Councilors) and JCP member of the House of Councilors Kira Yoshiko talked on the street with teenagers and people in their 20s and 30s and responded to their questions.

The two Dietmembers also answered questions and shared ideas collected beforehand through social media.

In answer to the question, "What is the JCP's position on the climate issue?" Kira said, "Economic activities in pursuit of large profits will only accelerate global warming. The JCP argues for the need to take a scalpel into the present course of the economy."

A high school student said, "I want the freedom to choose between going to school in a school uniform or in plain clothes." Kira in response said, "Schools should respect the individuality of students based on the Constitution and not restrict them with too many school regulations."

Responding to the question, "Why does the Liberal Democratic Party want to change Article 9 of the Constitution?" Tamura said, "The LDP is seeking to remove constitutional restrictions on the use of arms so that Japan's Self-Defense Forces can engage in wars abroad which the war-renouncing Article 9 prohibits. We must not allow this to happen."

Around a makeshift stage made of beer boxes, members of the JCP supporters' club held conversations with young people gathering for the event. A collage student said, "I live by myself and I'm barely able to survive. It would be extremely helpful if the tuition fee is cut in half." A non-regular worker in his 20s said, "An hourly wage of 1,500 yen will help to make ends meet."

A man in his 20s who asked Tamura a question about the urban-rural wage gap said, "It was good having conversation face-to-face with a Dietmember."