Japanese residents gathered in front of the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Friday to protest against the government's moves to revise constitution and accelerate military expansion.
Japan's Constitution, which took effect in 1947, is often referred to as the pacifist Constitution because its Article 9 renounces war as a sovereign right and prohibits Japan from possessing "war potential."
Chanting anti-war, anti-constitutional revision and military expansion slogans and holding placards, the protesters demanded Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to step down.
The Japanese government has accelerated the implementation of several policies that are seen as breaking the framework of the pacifist constitution, which has drawn concern and dissatisfaction from some of the Japanese public.
On April 23, Japan's House of Representatives passed a bill to set up the national intelligence council and the national intelligence bureau, seeking to create the country's first centralized national-level intelligence system since World War II.
Driven by Takaichi, the overhaul consolidates power across government, military and private sectors under tight prime ministerial control.
"For the past 80 years, Japan has maintained peace thanks to Article 9 of its Constitution. However, the Japanese government now intends to advance policies such as enacting an anti-spy law and establishing a 'national intelligence bureau.' Through these actions, Japan is continuously strengthening its militarization. I believe this is actually a march towards war step by step," said a protester.
"Even though we must abide by the Constitution, and the Constitution itself has not yet been revised, the current movements (of the Takaichi government) seem to imply that Japan has already become a 'country capable of waging war,' and at a very rapid pace. I am very uneasy about this. Therefore, I believe we must continue to speak out and let people know that the will of the government does not equate to the will of the people," said another protester.
"There is absolutely no need to revise the constitution. I simply could not understand the intentions of the Takaichi regime. I oppose lifting the ban on arms exports and enacting an anti-spy law. I think these are essentially part of a series of actions taken by the ruling party to strengthen its military arms and turn Japan into a country capable of waging war. So as citizens, we must resolutely oppose these moves," said a protester.
Tokyo rally protests constitutional revision, military expansion
