 4,000 people in Hokkaido listen to lectures on Article 9 About 4,000 people attended a speech assembly held in Sapporo City, Hokkaido, on November 25 to heighten public awareness of the importance of defending the war-renouncing Article 9. Hundreds of people listened to the speeches outside of the civic hall due to its limited capacity. Constitutional scholar Okudaira Yasuhiro and writer Oda Makoto were the main speakers. Okudaira said, "What we see around us are the consequences of the policies of the present and past governments. We should not change the Constitution but the reality surrounding us." Oda said, "American democracy today has turned into a tool for domination," and called for defending the pacifist Constitution, as "this is not just for Japan but also for Asia and the rest of the world. Some participants came from a snowy region and it took them four hours to arrive in a chartered bus. (end) |