Japanese citizens gathered in Tokyo on Sunday to protest Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's attempts to amend the pacifist constitution, accelerate military expansion, and introduce nuclear weapons into Japanese territory.
Holding anti-war placards, demonstrators voiced strong opposition to the government's push to revise Japan's three security documents and its Three Non-Nuclear Principles, as well as other provocative measures that threats regional peace and stability.
"Overturning the Three Non-Nuclear Principles is absolutely unacceptable. They are trying to get rid of the Three Principles because they want to profit from the military industry. This is something that cannot be tolerated. It is especially so since Japan is an atomic-bombed country," said a protester.
The rally came just over a week after the 81st anniversary of Japan's unconditional surrender at the end of World War II on August 15. Participants also criticized Takaichi for showing no repentance for Japan's wartime aggression.
"We bear a very heavy responsibility for allowing a person who shows no remorse for past wars of aggression to occupy the position of prime minister. In her remarks, far from expressing repentance, she seemed ready to take the country to war again. That must never be allowed," a protester said.
"I do not want Japan to become a country that exports weapons for profit. There are voices in the government calling for a re-examination of the Three Non-Nuclear Principles, and we want them to stop doing this immediately," another protester added.
Protesters rally in Tokyo against military expansion, nuclear policy revisions
