Increasing calls by some politicians for defense policy reform in Japan run counter to the principle of pursuing peaceful development enshrined in the country's Pacifist Constitution, according to Takayuki Kodera, secretary general of the Japanese Coalition Against Military Research in Academia.
The Japanese government plans to revise its three national security documents this year and to hold discussions on defense budgets, the Three Non-Nuclear Principles, and nuclear-powered submarines.
Japan's Three Non-Nuclear Principles refer to not possessing, not producing, and not permitting the introduction of nuclear weapons into the country.
The three national security documents refer to the National Security Strategy, the National Defense Strategy, and the Defense Buildup Program.
In an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) in Nagoya on Sunday, Kodera said that pursuing defense policy reform is "ridiculous" and, according to Article 9 in Japan's postwar constitution, the country should not possess the capability to wage war.
"If Japan continues along this path, its military budget will increase further; it may also revise its three national security documents, even reconsider its Three Non-Nuclear Principles, or develop nuclear-powered submarines. Such ridiculous things must not be allowed to happen. Japan, at least nominally, still has Article 9 in its Constitution. Under the terms of this Constitution, Japan should not possess the capability to wage war," said Kodera.
The Japanese government has recently pushed for deeper integration between the Ministry of Defense and university researchers so that academic research could serve military needs. Kodera said that this will distort the nature of academic research.
"This will change not only the attitudes of researchers but also the way academic research is conducted, causing it to gradually degenerate. Furthermore, once we pursue the militarization of academic research, the research will be kept secret, and the so-called principle of openness will no longer exist," said Kodera.
He also said that it is Japan's obligation to face up to its history of aggression and to properly resolve war legacy.
"Simply put, although the war waged by Japan now becomes history, the harms it inflicted linger to this day. The Japanese government has not taken measures in a full and proper way to address these issues. We, as Japanese people, should also bear the responsibility of addressing these issues," he said.
Kodera also criticized the deliberate attempts by some in Japan to downplay the history of aggression by, for example, calling the Nanjing Massacre the "Nanjing Incident."
The massacre followed the Japanese army's capture of Nanjing, the then Chinese capital, on Dec 13, 1937, leaving more than 300,000 Chinese civilians and unarmed soldiers dead.
"To call the massacre the 'Nanjing Incident' makes it sound as if one is speaking in a supposedly neutral tone about something that happened in Nanjing. But that is not the case, because the Japanese military carried out a massacre. Any attempt to cover up this fact must not be allowed," said Kodera.
Defense policy reform runs counter to Japan's Pacifist Constitution: observer
Defense policy reform runs counter to Japan's Pacifist Constitution: observer
