Japanese civic groups gathered on Sunday evening in Tokyo, voicing opposition to the government's efforts to expand military power and revise the country's pacifist constitution.
Japan's Constitution, which took effect in 1947, is often referred to as the pacifist Constitution because Article 9 states that the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of a nation which will not threaten or use force to settle international disputes.
After her party won by a landslide in general elections in mid February, Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, a long-time advocate of amending Article 9, reiterated her commitment to revising the constitution, raising widespread concern across Japanese society.
"Because Sanae Takaichi's remarks and actions are very dangerous. I believe it is very important that Japan does not wage war and does not possess military force. I want people to realize that the idea of holding weapons for peace is completely self-contradictory," said a protester.
"We must continue to keep the promise of never repeating the devastation of war. I believe the Japanese Constitution must not be revised," said another protester.
Japanese opposition party figures also gave speeches at the gathering, expressing concerns over constitutional revision and military expansion.
"Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution is extremely important. No matter what happens, we must use the power of everyone to stop attempts to revise the constitution," said Mizuho Fukushima, leader of the Social Democratic Party.
"Politics that do not address the hardships of people's livelihoods and are detached from public opinion. In other words, politics that ignore the constitution, which will inevitably head in the wrong direction," said Harada Hiromi, mayor of Kiyose City.
"Sanae Takaichi is now trying to put constitutional revision on the agenda. She wants to change Article 9 of the Constitution in the Diet, to change the pacifist constitution into a constitution that allows waging war. Japanese people do not want to fight. They want to live in friendship with people from all countries. For this reason, we call on Takaichi to step down. In any case, we must never revise the constitution," said another protester.
Japanese rally against PM Takaichi's attempt to revise constitution
Japanese rally against PM Takaichi's attempt to revise constitution
