JAPAN-SECURITY/BILL REACTION Protesters decry Japan's move to expand Japan military role

Record ID: 146864

  • Title: JAPAN-SECURITY/BILL REACTION Protesters decry Japan's move to expand Japan military role
  • Date: 16th July 2015
  • Summary: TOKYO, JAPAN (JULY 16, 2015) (REUTERS) PROTESTERS IN FRONT OF PARLIAMENT PROTESTER HOLDING PLACARD READING (Japanese): "WE WON'T LET YOU GO TO WAR" (SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) 37-YEAR-OLD COMPANY EMPLOYEE, SHINGO MARUYAMA, SAYING: "I feel like parliament members haven't explained it (security bills) well enough. I also think the press reports on the security bill (are written)
  • Embargoed: 31st July 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Japan
  • Country: Japan
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVACAVC3168HPLQCP1I17Q0W1TP9
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Thousands of protesters gathered in front of parliament in downtown Tokyo on Thursday (July 16), as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pushed through lower house legislation that could see troops sent to fight abroad for the first time since World War Two.
    The protest, which also took place a day prior, consisted of people shouting anti-security bills chants and holding placards that read "We won't let you go to war."
    The bills will now go to the upper house, and if no vote is taken after 60 days they will be returned to the lower house, where Abe's coalition can enact them with a two-thirds majority.
    Away from the protest, a 37-year-old company employee, Shingo Maruyama, told Reuters that he feels generally uninformed about the bills.
    "I feel like parliament members haven't explained it (security bill) well enough. I also think the press reports on the security bill (are written) in a hard-to-understand manner. They should report on it so it's easier to understand the insides of the bill," Maruyama said.
    Another worker who was walking around the business district of downtown Tokyo said that the security bills may push everyone to become more conscious of international politics.
    "I think we won't be able to say that our country will stay uninvolved (in overseas conflicts), so I think we'll begin to think more about how to maintain relations with foreign countries," Saori Iwasaki said.
    Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says a bolder security stance, welcomed by ally Washington, is essential to meet new challenges, such as those from a rising China.
    Opponents say the revisions could entangle Japan in U.S.-led conflicts around the globe and violate pacifist Article Nine of the U.S.-drafted, post-war constitution.
    Abe, who returned to office in 2012 pledging to bolster Japan's defences and reboot the economy, has seen his support slip to around 40 percent on voter doubts about the legislation and other policies, such as a plan to restart nuclear reactors.
    Crowds of protesters - organisers said 100,000 people - had been gathering near the parliament since Wednesday (July 15). Many stayed well into the night, chanting and holding up placards reading "Abe, quit", "No War, No Killing" and "Scrap the War Bills".
    "I don't think the ruling party knew how big the opposition would get, but they probably predicted opposition would arise regarding the violation of the constitution. However, they may not have expected such a big opposition," Waseda University Associate Professor Shuhei Kurizaki said.
    "It's a self-motivated opposition movement, and considering how big it is and how there isn't any organisational backing, I think it's (the protests) unprecedented," he added.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register