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|August 2020 Issue |

|English version of the “Article 9 Association (A9A)”Bulletin and News |

|This is the translated version of the Japanese edition of the Bulletin and News published in August 2020. It is published by Katsuyuki Nara of the New |

|English Teachers Association (or Shin-Eiken, ) and Sarah Brock. The translation is on our own． |

Uploaded on August 16th 　 English version No.237

Japan’s Defense White Paper:

Vanished explanation “No objection against right to self-defense”

The Japan Defense Ministry White Paper for 2020, in the section “Constitution and the Right of Self-Defense” says that “The Japanese people desire lasting peace,” and, “the principle of pacifism is enshrined in the Constitution, Article 9 which prescribes the renunciation of war, the prohibition of war potential, and the denial of the right of the belligerency of the state.” The White Paper adds, “These provisions do not deny Japan’s inherent right of self-defense as a sovereign state,” and asserts that the government has a constitutional right to possess a minimum of armed forces.

This justification of the Japanese maintaining self-defense forces has changed little since first appearing in the 1982 Defense White Paper. However, while several later editions included an explanation of the right of self-defense, saying “The self-defense right has been acknowledged without any objection”, this has disappeared from the 2020 White Paper, Would it be because the environment for the self-defense forces has been changing radically?

Constitutional scholar Sugihara Yasuo disapproved on constitutional grounds of the way the government had been behaving with respect to the nation. In his book, The Constitution and Capitalism, he described the government as maintaining military forces called the self-defense forces and sending troops overseas, despite there being no explicit authorization from the Constitution. “Besides, they state that Japan is also allowed to exercise the right to collective self-defense,” added the scholar, severely criticizing the government for exercising “despotism against constitutionalism.”

(Translated by Izumi Toshikazu)

Movements concerning Article 9

On July 31st the four Opposition parties of the Japanese Diet demanded that the government convene Diet sessions in accordance with Article 53 of the Constitution. The sessions would enable questioning of Prime Minister Abe Shinzo on countermeasures against the COVID-19 pandemic and addressing issues related to the heavy rain damage across the country. The parties met with Lower House Speaker Tadamori Oshima and requested him to take action. Later at a press conference Jun Azumi, Diet Affairs Committee Chief of the Constitutional Democratic Party, emphasized that Japan has currently been in an unprecedented crisis, saying “It is neglectful of the government not to convene the Diet sessions. They should follow the public mandate.”

Oshima called Diet affairs Committee chiefs of the ruling Liberal Democratic (LDP) and Komei parties demanding that the ruling parties consider what to do amid the Corona pandemic crises. The LDP’s Diet Affairs Committee chief Hiroshi Moriyama replied that he would like to talk with Azumi on the matter on August 4th. Meanwhile, Chef Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a press conference that he would consult with the ruling parties about the issues, adding that the government has been grappling with Corona issues across the government agencies. Their priority is to include these issues in the main and supplementary budgets for fiscal 2020.　　　 (Translated by Nara Katsuyuki)

Activity reports from some provincial A9A groups

Kikugawa A9A group, Shizuoka Prefecture

Cafe Meeting to Discuss Japanese Constitution amid Coronavirus Pandemic:

The group held a “Constitution Cafe” on July 19th . This was the first time to hold such an event, and Kikugawa A9A used the theme “The Novel Coronavirus and Our Everyday Life.” The guest speaker was lawyer Rika Ogasawara, and there were 49 attendees, half of them women.

The event opened with the organizer’s welcoming speech, noting the fact that the Kikugawa City authorities had asked the group to submit a list of the day’s participants as a coronavirus countermeasure. The organizer said, “But thanks to our protest their demand was retracted after all.”

One after another, participants unfolded their doubts, anxieties, and angers concerning the government policies toward the COVID-19, saying what they felt at heart. Here are some of their voices:

(1) “Why are the hospitals fighting their way through the pandemic in the red, and those doctors and staff cannot get bonuses?”

(2) “Now that the financial deficits are worsening, I am afraid of our future economy. Is there a risk of hyperinflation?”

(3) “Because schools were closed so suddenly, both teachers and students are suffering as victims.”

(4) “As the coronavirus spreads, during the Obon season to visit ancestral communities, parents and grandparents in hometowns cannot receive traditional summer visits from their children and grandchildren living in metropolitan areas. Both sides are feeling intense sadness and loneliness.”

(5) “Why does the PCR testing go so slow here in Japan?”

To wrap up the question session, lawyer Rika Ogasawara said as follows:

“The Abe Administration says this is an unprecedented challenge to the nation and no effective measures are available, but that is not the case. If we citizens rack our brains, we may come up with smart solutions. That’s what democracy is all about.

“Amid the pandemic outbreak, the prime minister attempted to revise the public prosecutors bill and give more power to the government, which would temporarily nullify the validity of our Constitution at a time of emergency. If such emergency bills are legalized, we cannot pursue our freedom and may be penalized,” she commented.

(Translated by Hiroyama Sadao)

Haiku Poets group in Oita Pref.

Prizes Announced for Peace-Themed Haiku

On July 23, the group announced the prize-winning haiku poems from a competition the group sponsored, accepting haiku from ordinary citizens with themes of the Constitution, War and Peace.

Record-high numbers of 459 poems by 137 people came pouring in from all over the nation, including East Japan (where the East Japan Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear disaster happened). The top prize goes to:

人がみな右向く怖さ敗戦忌,

Fearful sight—they all

Face to the right together

Mourning defeat

“Haisenki” is an Autumn seasonal expression (though Japan is still hot) referring to people’s sadness, fear and confusion at the end of war, and indirectly to August 15, 1945, when the Emperor’s recorded voice announced Japan’s defeat to the nation and everyone listened to the broadcast.

Here are two haiku selected from the 12 runners-up:

爆心地子は陽炎となりて立つ

‘Little Boy’ ignites

A child below stands changed to

Shimmering heat-haze

同じ日の位牌が四つ長崎忌

Family altar

Four spirit plaques the same date

Nagasaki Day

Spirit plaques (Buddhist mortuary plaques) are set out on the family altar and venerated daily, in the August Obon season, or on the anniversary of death. Instead of having different dates as when people might have died naturally, all four plaques in this family have the same date, as the four relatives died in the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.

At the review session, group representative Taro Manyo introduced one of the special-mention works, composed by a mother and her elementary school age child:

幼き手指折り数えて平和の旬

Curl little fingers

Mum tells how many days till

The season of Peace

In Japan, peace projects and seminars center seasonally in August, when the bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and Japan accepted defeat. A mother is teaching her child about the coming of the ‘peace season’, like teaching how long it is to apple season.

Manyo commented, “I was especially impressed by first-time contributors. I enjoyed reading and selecting haiku poems.” He then added, “In every entry, I felt high-spirited emotions in pursuit of pacifism and peace.”

(Translated by Hiroyama Sadao)

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