Abrogate the law on procedures for constitutional change!

Japan Press Weekly

Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

Abrogate the law on procedures for constitutional change! - Akahata editorial (excerpts)

A law on procedures for revising the Constitution comes into effect on May 18, namely the National Referendum Law. With the enforcement date approaching, there has been an active move to increase the momentum for constitutional revision. However, its enforcement should be postponed or cancelled.

Makes no sense

Before actually embarking on works to revise Japan’s supreme code, the Constitution requires more than two thirds of parliamentarians to agree on the revision as stipulated in Article 96: “Amendments to this Constitution shall be initiated by the Diet, through a concurring vote of two-thirds or more of all the members of each House and shall thereupon be submitted to the people for ratification, which shall require the affirmative vote of a majority of all votes cast thereon, at a special referendum or at such election as the Diet shall specify.”

The present Constitution was proclaimed in 1946 and enacted in 1947. Since then, there has not been any law that sets specific procedures to revise the Constitution. This is because no one has felt a need for procedures for constitutional revision. The people do not want any amendments to the Constitution. Even discussion of the need to have the procedures was never put on the agenda.

In 2007, however, the Liberal Democratic-Komei government pushed through the enactment of the law on procedures for revising the Constitution on behalf of then Prime Minister Abe Shinzo who wanted to change the Constitution while in office. The law was made not because the public wanted it.

The National Referendum Law was forcibly passed with the influence of pro-constitutional revision forces. Despite their intentions, legislative preparations for the enforcement of the law, including the establishment of the Deliberative Councils on the Constitution, are still to be completed.

The law calls for the voting age for the referendum to be lowered from the current 20 to 18 years old. But the Public Offices Election Act stipulates that the voting age is from 20 years old. The law also allows public employees’ participation in the referendum while the Public Service Act prohibits public workers from taking part in any political activities.

Defend and utilize the Japanese Constitution

Several opinion polls published on May 3, Constitution Day, showed that the public do not want to change the Japanese Constitution. Even in a “pro-revision” Yomiuri Shimbun opinion poll, 42% of respondents disagreed to changing the constitution while 43% agreed. Asahi’s poll found that 67% of respondents opposed a revision of war-renouncing Article 9 of the Constitution.

At present in Japan, people are experiencing hardships which should be resolved in line with the constitutional principles of popular sovereignty, renunciation of war, and basic human rights. The important thing is not to allow the momentum toward constitutional revision by enforcing the National Referendum Law to increase, but act to protect and utilize the Constitution.

- Akahata, May 10, 2010