Japan Press Weekly

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2018 July 11 - 17 [SDF]

Armed GSDF in camouflage fatigue uniforms marches through downtown Nagoya City

Fifty-six Ground Self-Defense Force personnel in camouflage fatigues marched carrying rifles and bayonets through downtown Nagoya City in Aichi Prefecture on July 10.

The local GSDF explained that it was march training aimed at "enhancing basic physical strength" of the troops. They walked about 27km from their garrison and paraded past a group of civic protesters in downtown Nagoya.

A man in his 60s who happened to come across the "training" said, "If the improvement of physical fitness is the purpose, there would be no need to carry weapons." A woman said in bewilderment, "I appreciate the SDF for its disaster relief activities but not for things like this."

When the GSDF personnel were passing by, JCP Nagoya City assemblypersons said to them, "Prime Minister Abe intends to constitutionalize the SDF only because he wants to send you into overseas battles which have nothing to do with maintaining our country's state of peace."

Past related articles:
> SDF hold military parade in shopping area despite local opposition [June 14, 2015]
> Peace groups protest against SDF’s military parade in Nagasaki [June 15, 2014]