Concerns raised over Kishida’s move to push discussion on pacifist Constitution revision

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida boards the BRP Teresa Magbanua ship at the Philippine Coast Guard headquarters on November 4, 2023, in Manila, Philippines. Photo: VCG

In a bid to win support from conservative forces ahead of an upcoming party leadership election, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is looking to drag Japan into a dangerous abyss by urging the party to accelerate the discussion on revising Japan's pacifist Constitution, a move that many believe will instill fear into those who cherish peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific.

As the key clause of the pacifist Constitution, Article 9 renounces Japan's ability to wage war and forbids it from maintaining "land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential." However, Kishida, who is also the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) president, on Wednesday instructed his ruling party to accelerate discussions on the contentious issue of stipulating the Self-Defense Forces in the Constitution.

During a meeting of an LDP panel on constitutional reform, Kishida stressed the need to explicitly mention the Self-Defense Forces in the Constitution, as well as establish a clause allowing the extension of lawmakers' terms in the event of a national emergency - two of the four pillars of the party's reform plan, Japan Times reported Wednesday.

With the LDP marking the 70th anniversary of its founding in 2025, Kishida, during the gathering, stressed the need to further advance discussion on the constitutional reform.

Ahead of such a significant historical point, Kishida is eager to translate the political demands of the right-wing faction of the LDP into action, Lü Chao, director of the Institute of the US and East Asian Studies at Liaoning University, told the Global Times on Thursday.

This is also in preparation for the upcoming LDP leadership election, in which Kishida aims to maintain his position and secure the support of conservative factions pushing for progress in constitutional discussions, Lü said.

""If Japan successfully reforms the pacifist Constitution, it will allow the former aggressor and defeated country to potentially engage in wars against other countries or use the threat of war," Lü said, noting that this blatantly breaks the international order established after WWII

Asked to choose which topic they would like to see discussed in the LDP presidential vote, only 3 percent of respondents in a recent NHK poll mentioned constitutional revision. 

"With Japan continuing to expand its military capabilities beyond its self-defense needs, if the remnants of militarism are not properly addressed, Japan could once again become a center of uncertainty in the region," Lü warned.