Japan Press Weekly

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2013 April 17 - 23 [PEACE]

Majority of Japanese high schoolers support Article 9: poll

A large majority of Japanese high school students support the war-renouncing Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, announced a high school teachers’ union on April 19.

The Japan Senior High School Teachers and Staff Union (Nikkokyo) surveyed 12,480 senior high students at 144 schools nationwide.

The survey shows that 63% of respondents support Article 9, while 14.4% support revision. To the question whether the Constitution has contributed to establishing peace in postwar Japan, 68.2% answered in the affirmative.

As the reason that Japan has been able to enjoy peace after WWII, 42.6% students, the highest percentage, pointed to the Constitution. Meanwhile, 28.9% cited the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty.

As for military conscription, 72.5% are opposed to introducing the system. And 82.9% support the idea that Japan should hold fast to its three nonnuclear principles (not to make or possess nuclear weapons, and not to allow their entry into the country).

Nikkokyo General Secretary Fujita Shin’ichi said, “I’m encouraged by the result that senior high students have a healthy understanding of the Constitution. I want to make this a new starting point for talking with students about the importance of protecting the Constitution.”