Verfassung Japans
The Asia-Pacific Journal, Vol. 11, Issue 28, No. 3, July 15, 2013.

Japan’s Democracy at Risk – The LDP’s Ten Most Dangerous Proposals for Constitutional Change
Lawrence Repeta

Is it time to bring Japan’s postwar experiment in liberal democracy to an end?  Prime Minister Abe Shinzo and his followers seem to think so.  In April 2012, the LDP published a clear blueprint for constitutional revision that would go a long way toward achieving this goal.

The Liberal Democratic Party has advocated fundamental revision of Japan’s Constitution since its founding in 1955. Nearly seven decades after the end of World War II, LDP leaders remain humiliated by the thought that the country is governed under a constitution largely drafted by a team of foreign military officers.1  Abe is working hard to build a coalition with the power to rip the “imposed constitution” out by its philosophical roots. He and his followers, who dominate the LDP, envision an “autonomous constitution” (jishu kenpō) that would radically adjust the balance between government power and individual rights.

This is a critical moment in Japan’s history.  In parliamentary elections held on Sunday, July 21, the LDP gained thirty seats, giving the Party a total of 115 in the 242-seat Upper House.  Following its sweeping victory in December 2012 Lower House elections, this means that together with its coalition partner Komeito, the Party holds secure majorities in both Houses of the Diet.  Although the LDP does not control the two-thirds parliamentary majorities required to pass resolutions for constitutional change, it does control Japan’s political agenda.  Abe and his followers are in a good position to continue their push to revise the constitution.
Under the present constitution, the Japanese people recovered from the unimaginable suffering of total war and have come to enjoy several generations of peace and prosperity.  That constitution has acted as a powerful restraint on the nation’s rulers.  It has never been amended.  The constitution is the “supreme law” of the land.  As we show below, the LDP seeks fundamental change that could have far-reaching effects.