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2024 September 18 - 24 TOP3 [POLITICS]

JCP Koike comments on CDPJ’s new leader Noda

The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan on September 23 elected former Prime Minister Noda Yoshihiko as its new president.

In reaction to Noda’s presidency, Japanese Communist Party Secretariat Head Koike Akira at a press conference held in the JCP head office criticized Noda for asserting during the CDPJ presidential election campaign that “the national security-related legislation (aka. war laws) cannot be repealed immediately.”

Koike pointed out that the abolition of the war laws is the starting point of the joint struggle between concerned citizens and opposition parties. He, furthermore, pointed out that the huge arms buildup promoted by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party government based on the “three key national security documents” practically embodies the war laws in violation of the Constitution. He said, “Without the abolition of such laws, the current major military expansion cannot be stopped. In that sense, it is serious that Noda declared that he has no intent to work immediately to have the security legislation repealed.”

Koike also stated, “I cannot overlook the fact that Noda during the election campaign categorically stated that his party wouldn’t form a government with the inclusion of the JCP.”

Koike went on to say, “Without establishing a new government, we won’t be able to repeal the security legislation or withdraw the relevant Cabinet decisions. That’s why we agreed to ‘JCP cooperation in a CDPJ-led government as a non-Cabinet partner’ in the 2021 general election. However, Noda is abandoning the agreed-upon cooperation from the beginning. This is not a sincere attitude and is breaking the CDPJ promise made to voters to address the pressing agreed-upon task: the abolition of the war laws.”

Noting that Noda during the campaign implied that his party may cooperate with the “Nippon Ishin no Kai” party, Koike said, “The ‘Ishin’ party is the worst supplementary force to the LDP. It displays its eagerness for constitutional amendments and waves the flag of economic neoliberalism. Working with this party is incompatible with the purpose of the joint struggle between concerned citizens and opposition parties.”