Order of Making Draft

As the President of Liberal Democratic Party, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ordered the LDP leader on discussion for the amendment of Constitution of Japan on Friday. Abe required making a draft of new Constitution along with his idea announced earlier this month, which proposed adding a section for defining Self-defense Force as constitutional. LDP is going to accelerate their discussion over constitutional amendment to meet Abe’s requirement to activate new Constitution in 2020.

Abe announced his idea of the amendment on May 3^rd, or Constitution’s Day, which would maintain Sections 1 and 2 of Article 9 for renouncing war and non-possession of force and add Section 3 that guarantee constitutionality of SDF. In the meeting with the Head of LDP Headquarters of Promoting Constitutional Amendment, Okiharu Yasuoka, Abe explained his proposal and ordered Yasuoka to make the draft. “I hope you to make efforts to build up the draft for submitting it to Commission of the Constitution in both Houses,” told Abe.

Yasuoka accepted the offer of Abe and promised to accelerate internal discussion in LDP. “I hope to accelerate making a draft for the discussion in Commission of the Constitution,” told Yasuoka to the reporters after the meeting. “I will coordinate the discussion and make it geared.” The Headquarters will hold a meeting for discussing security issues later this month.

Abe seems to take good care of LDP’s coalition partner, Komeito. An Adviser of Prime Minister, Masahiko Shibayama, requested the Headquarters to keep close communication with Komeito for submitting a draft acceptable for the party. Shibayama quoted the name of Masahiko Komura, Vice-President of LDP, and Kazuo Kitagawa, Vice-President of Komeito, both of whom had close discussion for reinterpreting Article 9 of the Constitution to enable SDF to exercise right of collective self-defense right.

There are two opinions on Article 9 inside Komeito. One is to add a clause for approving SDF in the provision and another is seeing no need to do that. While Komeito has been selling itself as “the party of peace,” it is swallowed by Constitution-hating LDP. Some young lawmakers with Komeito praised Abe’s proposal as acceptable. It looks like possible for Komeito to join the effort of changing Article 9, the symbol of post-war pacifism of Japan.

LDP expects some lawmakers in Japan Restoration Party to join their effort. Some LDP leaders who focus on cooperation with Democratic Party or other opposite powers are frustrated with unilateral advance of Abe. But, Abe does not show any attitude of returning back.