Japan Press Weekly

Tweet

2016 April 27 - May 10 [PEACE]

Over 70% of secondary school students feel Article 9 has contributed to Japan’s peace

A survey of nearly 20,000 students in junior and senior high schools has indicated that more than 70% of the respondents said that Article 9 of the Constitution has contributed to Japan’s peace.

Asked if they think that Article 9 has played a role in maintaining the peace in postwar Japan, the percentage of the respondents who answered “yes” stood at 72.8% among senior high school students, up from 64.7% in the previous survey in 2008, and at 76.2% among junior high school students.

According to the survey results, 60.3% of the high school student respondents and 68.1% of the junior high school respondents answered that the Constitution should not be revised.

Regarding a multiple-answer question about why no Self-Defense Force personnel has killed anybody or been killed in overseas missions, the most common answer was “Because Japan has the pacifist Constitution” (45.2%). The percentage of those who said, “Because there is the Japan-U.S. security treaty” was 25.3%.

In the survey, 61.9% of the senior high school students and 66.7% of the junior high school students said that they will vote in elections when they turn 18.

Sakamoto Tsugio, a survey organizer, said that with the first vote by 18-year olds approaching, the youth want their opinions to be reflected in politics.

Past related articles:
> LDP panel proposes imposing punishments on teachers engaging in political activities [July 4, 2015]
> Minimum voting age changed to 18 [June 18, 2015]