A large rally in Tokyo on Tuesday drew protesters opposing Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her administration's push to revise the Constitution and expand the military, amid growing concern over its security policies and possible changes to Japan's three nonnuclear principles.
Similar rallies and marches were held in Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima and other cities, with participants defending the pacifist Constitution and opposing constitutional revision and military expansion.
The rallies coincided with the 80th anniversary of the Constitution's announcement on Nov 3,1946. About 14,000 people gathered in Tokyo, holding placards reading "No to war" and "The Constitution is the foundation of peace".
Article 9 of the Constitution renounced war as a sovereign right and the threat or use of force as a means of settling international disputes. It also stipulates that Japan will not maintain land, sea or air forces or other war potential, or recognize the state's right of belligerency. These provisions have earned it the name "pacifist Constitution".
Tomoko Tamura, chairwoman of the Japanese Communist Party, told the rally that Article 9 had been central to constitutional debates 80 years ago, reflecting the determination of those who had experienced war never to repeat its tragedies and their hope for a world without war.
Japan waged wars of aggression in Asia, costing countless innocent lives, Tamura said, adding that the postwar Constitution reflected remorse for the country's wartime actions. She criticized Takaichi for refusing to confront Japan's history of aggression or the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Tamura said she was concerned that a prime minister who had failed to learn the lessons of war was now seeking to revise the Constitution.
Takaichi's views on wartime history have long drawn concern. On Aug 15, the 81st anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II, she made no mention of Japan's responsibility for its aggression against Asian countries and used neither the words "remorse" nor "apology".
In a television program in 2002, she described Japan's wartime aggression as a "war of self-defense and national survival", drawing sharp criticism. In 1994, she publicly questioned then-prime minister Tomiichi Murayama's expressions of remorse and apology for Japan's wartime aggression, arguing in parliament that a prime minister should not apologize on behalf of the Japanese people without their consent.
The administration's security policies have also drawn criticism, particularly over the possibility of revising Japan's long-standing three nonnuclear principles.
At a seminar in Tokyo on Tuesday, Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi renewed his call for discussions on revising the principles and voiced support for considering nuclear-powered submarines. He has repeatedly called for both issues to be discussed without treating any option as taboo.
Former Okinawa governor Denny Tamaki, who attended the Tokyo rally, voiced concern over the possible revision.
United States military bases have remained in Okinawa since its reversion to Japan, Tamaki said, adding that incidents involving US military personnel have continued and the return of land used for military facilities has made slow progress.
Recalling the history of the US deploying nuclear weapons in Okinawa, he warned that revising the nonnuclear principles would bring the fear of war back to Japan and Okinawa.
"We must unite our voices and build strong momentum. We must never create an opportunity for war to break out," he said.
Last month, Japan and the US held the Keen Sword 27 joint military exercise at multiple locations across Japan, involving about 45,000 Japanese Self-Defense Forces personnel and 12,000 US troops.
Japan also deployed its Type 25 surface-to-ship guided missile, with a range of about 1,000 kilometers, during the exercise, raising concerns over its ability to strike targets far beyond Japanese territory.
Also last month, a US Marine stationed in Okinawa was arrested on suspicion of killing a Japanese woman and later indicted on robbery and murder charges. The case has fueled further criticism of the US military presence in Okinawa.
Masatoshi Uchida, a lawyer and secretary-general of a Japanese anti-war civic group, said the Constitution would remain an "unfinished constitution" as long as issues such as Japan's wartime responsibility and Okinawa's burden of hosting US military bases remained unresolved.
