ニュース 2015/06/08 Edano comments that security legislation whose constitutionality cannot be properly explained” should naturally “be withdrawn” On June 8, DPJ Secretary General Yukio Edano responded to reporters’ questions regarding security legislation and other matters. Edano commented on the fact that all the constitutional experts who attended a session of the House of Representatives Commission on the Constitution as unsworn witnesses had stated the government’s proposed security legislation, which includes use of the right to collective self-defense, is unconstitutional. He said, “Ruling party sources have made repeated statements that seem to dismiss these opinions. LDP Secretary-General Sadakazu Tanigaki and Vice-President Masahiko Komura [who have criticized the scholars’ arguments] should go back and retake their university classes on the Constitution before making such comments.” He pointed out, “It is only natural from the perspective of constitutionalism that legislation whose constitutionality cannot be properly explained by the government should be withdrawn.” Edano also commented on the birthrate for 2014, which was announced by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Labor in May, saying, “1.42 is the lowest figure in 9 years. I have no intention of blaming this entirely on government policy. However, I am sad to say that these figures bear out the DPJ’s accusation that policies to combat the decreasing birthrate have clearly been in retreat under the Abe administration. We have reached a situation where the survival of Japan is threatened from within. Rather than security legislation, the government should be prioritizing such issues.”