Expansion of Defense

Legislators hurled a lot of questions at Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, in the concentrated discussion over collective self-defense in committees of both Houses of the Diet. Abe, however, swayed and ducked without directly answering them, threatening status of the highest organ of state power. Instead, he revealed unlimited ambition for unleashing Japan’s military power. Politics in Japan looks to be losing control.

In the Cabinet decision to reinterpret the Constitution for exercising collective self-defense force, Abe offered new three conditions to exercise right of self-defense. Before the reinterpretation, they had been existence of imminent and unlawful infringement, no other appropriate measures to remove, and limiting for minimum necessity. New three conditions changed the expression of the first one into “not only when an armed attack against Japan but also when an armed attack against a foreign country that is in a close relationship with Japan occurs and as a result threatens Japan’s survival and poses a clear danger to fundamentally overturn people’s right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.”

Although Abe and his staffs insisted on that new conditions would work for limiting use of force, discussion in the Diet revealed unlimited reinterpretation of the Constitution. On possibility of dispatching troops for clearance of floating mines in Persian Gulf, Abe did not rule out applying concept of collective self-defense, when disturbance of oil export to Japan would “threaten Japan’s survival and pose a clear danger to fundamentally overturn people’s right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.” In other words, Japan can use its force, even as a mater of mine sweeping, when its leader recognize threat for Japan’s survival.

The opposite parties criticized Abe’s explanation as violating the Constitution, which determined that use of force in foreign country was prohibited. While promising that he would keep a principle of defense-oriented security policy, Abe regarded that sea-lane defense as an exception. It is hard for the public, anyway, to realize danger of Japanese tanker in Hormuz Strait as equivalent to direct missile attack on their homeland.

Abe also revealed his intention to make Japanese Self-defense Force join international collective security measures, the concept which he avoided writing on Cabinet decision not to invite further criticism from political coalition partner, New Komeito. If Japanese government makes it possible, restriction against use of force in overseas will lose its fundamental reason.