------------------------- Via Workers World News Service Reprinted from the June 23, 2003 issue of Workers World newspaper -------------------------
WORKERS PROTEST PRO-MILITARIST MOVES IN JAPAN
By Migiwa Kanazawa
This spring, the Japanese government has been trying to pass new laws to allow the expansion and aggressive use of the Japanese military. These attempts have aroused popular protest in Tokyo, on the island of Okinawa and elsewhere in Japan.
Japanese politicians in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and in the opposition Democratic Party of Japan have pushed for a more aggressive military posture. These politicians have used an alleged threat from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to press for changes in the Japanese Constitution.
After World War II, as part of the disarming of Japan, the U.S. occupying force imposed a constitution that allows only "defensive" use of Japan's armed forces. The Japanese military is even called the "Self- Defense Forces."
The Japanese working class, which has been strongly anti-war following the horrible experience of that inter-imperialist war, has often rallied to defend the pacifist clauses in the Constitution.
This spring, workers in Japan have been protesting new bills before the Diet--the Japanese parliament--that were passed by the lower house on May 14. While these "Emergency Bills" don't directly change the Constitution, they would allow the Japanese government to order offensive military actions, including a pre-emptive strike against North Korea.
The bills allow prompt government action in case of a so-called military emergency. The government could mobilize not only the Self-Defense Forces, but also all ministries, railroad and airline companies, and any sort of public institution. The definition of "military emergency" is vague and allows a broad interpretation.
Should the bills become law, people in Japan would be expected in the event of war to give up their own property, including land, houses, vehicles and even food if the government asked. If they refused, they could be fined or imprisoned up to six months. Demonstrations, strikes and rallies would also be prohibited.
The law would be the first legal framework for Japan to launch a military attack on another country since World War II. This could certainly create tension with other East Asian countries; its immediate relevance is to try to intimidate North Korea.
SERIES OF ANTI-WAR ACTIONS
After the lower house passed the bills, on May 17 some 5,000 people met at an open-air stadium in Okinawa to ratify resolutions of protest.
On May 21, another 1,000 workers in labor unions demonstrated in front of the Diet building in Tokyo. They held sit-ins all day.
The biggest meeting was on May 23. Thirty thousand workers gathered in a mass rally organized by 20 different labor unions of land, sea and air transportation and longshore workers, plus more than 100 prominent individuals. Some marched into the Diet building. Others went to downtown Tokyo to get out the word.
Since May 29, workers have been protesting a public hearing on the bills. The hearing is one of the procedures required to put the bills into effect.
Despite these protests, the Japanese government is pressing on with its pro-military policy. It has scheduled the first-ever joint exercise involving Japanese F-15s and AWACS aircraft in the United States. Using in-air refueling would allow the F-15s to fly much further from Japan-- for example, to attack North Korea. The drills will train Japanese F-15 pilots to fly combat missions and be integrated into electronically guided warfare.
On May 28 a citizens' group opposed to the AWACS training mission rallied in protest in front of the AWACS home base in Hamamatsu.
Interviewed on NHK television in Japan on May 31, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz urged the Japanese to send medical and engineering units into Iraq, calling them "peacekeepers." He also asked Japan to cooperate with the United States to isolate and threaten North Korea.
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