Japan Press Weekly

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2014 March 26 - April 1 [POLITICS]

National university president criticizes state secrets protection law

Wakayama University President Yamamoto Kenji on March 25 in his speech at the graduation ceremony criticized the state secrets protection law which the Abe Cabinet forced through the Diet last December.

The president of the national university corporation said that academic freedom is under attack and the secrecy law stifles the intellectual curiosity of the youth. Yamamoto stressed that he, as the person in charge of the academic institution, cannot tolerate this situation.

He quoted Martin Niemoller, a pastor, as saying, “When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent; I was not a communist,” which referred to the Nazis gradually taking away all freedoms in society.

Saying, “The freedom of learning is vital to futures of young people, universities, and the society at large, and is the very basis of the democracy,” he called on the graduating students to raise their voices against the move to undermine freedom.