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On September 4, DPJ President Katsuya Okada held his regular press conference at party headquarters.
Okada raised comments made by LDP Vice President Masahiko Komura in connection to the security legislation in an interview given to The Yomiuri Shimbun, in which Komura said of North Korea that “it would be difficult to prevent it from imploding with diplomatic efforts alone”. Okada said “I share the view that the situation in North Korea has become more tense with the change of leadership, but if that is the case why doesn’t the government hasten to improve relations with the Republic of Korea and China and work hard to convene the six-party talks. It is the Abe cabinet that has worsened relations with China and hindered convening of meeting regarding North Korea. I can’t understand comments that do anything but acknowledge this.”
Okada also touched on the debate over implementing a conscription system, saying, “As I also mentioned in Prime Minister’s Question Time, a single cabinet has totally changed the interpretation [of the Constitution] regarding the right to collective self-defense without an explanation to the public and without conducting serious debate in the Diet with the opposition parties. We should be thinking about the fact that this may creating a precedent for future cabinets to come along and change various interpretations of the Constitution. Introducing a conscription system is one possible example. The Prime Minister came up with no logical response to this at all.”
Okada also commented on remarks made by former a former chief justice of the Supreme Court, Shigeru Yamaguchi, about the security legislation, who told The Asahi Shimbun in an interview that “legislation to allow the exercise of the right to collective self-defense, at the very least, goes against the Constitution.” Okada stressed, “The government has been saying that the final decision traditionally rests with the Supreme Court. I would like them to take these comments made by a former chief justice very seriously.”
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