Ruling parties are desperate for carrying over contingency bills to next Diet session

In a desperate move to get wartime legislation enacted during the first half of next year, the ruling parties used a House of Representatives committee meeting on December 12 to explain their amendments to the government bills, which were not put to the vote in the last session that ended on December 13.

The Lower House committee decided to continue the discussion on the government bills in the next Diet session that will open in January. The Japanese Communist Party, the Democratic Party of Japan, the Liberal Party, and the Social Democratic Party, voted against demanding that the contingency bills be scrapped.

Kyuma Fumio (LDP), who chairs the board of the special committee, on behalf of the ruling parties explained changes they proposed to make in the government bills.

The ruling parties propose changing the definition of "an armed attack against Japan" which will allow Japan to invoke the contingency laws, the most controversial part of the bills. They also want to include government responses to suspicious foreign ships that may appear in the sea near Japan and to acts of terrorism and guerrilla activities.

The ruling parties also propose establishing a task force to prepare legislation that will allow the government to mobilize the people for war. (end)