Peace Committee holds study meeting to discuss ways to end military alliance with the U.S.

As Japan and the United States were celebrating the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty in San Francisco, the Japan Peace Committee held a study meeting on September 8 in Tokyo to discuss ways to strengthen the movement for the abrogation of the treaty.

Asai Motofumi, professor at Meiji Gakuin University and former Foreign Ministry official, was one of two main speakers. His speech was devoted to an analysis of the Koizumi Cabinet's zeal for the right to collective self-defense and wartime legislation.

Noting that the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty has shifted its emphasis to asserting the right to collective self-defense without parliamentary discussions, he pointed out that it has nothing to do with Japan's self-defense.

He said that the United States, fed up with Japan's reluctance to put into practice military activities which the U.S. wants Japan to engage in in connection with the problem of Taiwan, has been increasing pressure on Japan to implement the right to collective self-defense based on U.S. military strategy.

Hanawa Shin'ichi, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)-Japan chief, another speaker, used slides to show Okinawa's rich natural environment.

Referring to the plan of the Japanese and U.S. governments to construct helipads in the U.S. Northern Training Area and a state-of-the-art U.S. Marine air base in Nago City, he warned that these plans will endanger a scarce species of dugong and destroy other rare animals and plants in Okinawa. (end)