Caught under a net of scandal, the Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, still aims to reform the post-war, pacifist constitution. (Image via Euronews)

Abe eyes to amend the Japanese Constitution in next Diet session

Alfonsus Adi Putra
Politics & Economic
News Flash Japan
Dec 10, 2019
6269
At the end of the 67-day Diet session, the Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, really aims to fulfill his mission to reform the Japanese Constitution so that it matches the Reiwa era. Bearing the backlash due to the state-funded cherry-blossom viewing party scandal, Abe said on Monday to take the initiative in changing the post-war pacifist constitution.

In the upcoming regular Diet session in January, Abe said that he would continue to take the gradual measure for laying the groundwork for the Constitution amendment. Recently, the Diet approved the trade deal between Japan and the U.S.

The 67-day Diet session begins in October. While in these sessions, Abe was trying to get the Diet member to agree with him regarding the Constitution amendment, the sessions were instead overshadowed by scandals that befell Abe’s reign.

First, the sudden resignation of two Ministers hand-picked by Abe, Isshu Sugawara and Katsuyuki Kawai, over financial misconduct and gift-giving. Second, an allegation by the opposition that Abe embezzled the fund for the cherry-blossom viewing party.

Moreover, the guest list was also included in the consideration. For years, the guest list was filled with recommendations from politicians, including Abe. However, when the opposition demanded the list to be revealed, it was already thrown away. Soon, it was found out that the backup data for the list had existed for a while.

Therefore, a 40-day extraordinary Diet session was requested to review the embezzlement allegations against the Japanese PM. However, the two ruling parties, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Komeito, rejected the request. The opposition forces were dissatisfied by how the cabinet handled the scandals.

Regarding the cherry-blossom viewing party scandal, Abe said that he would review once more how the event should have been held.

Besides the Constitution amendment, Abe also said that to smooth things up, he would be more than willing to disband the Lower House. But, for that, Abe said that he wanted to wait until a ritual for the Crown Prince Fumihito to finish in April 2020. He said that all enthronement ceremonies related to Emperor Naruhito must be finished completely.

Source: https://bit.ly/2LClXUE

Politics , Law , Constitution , Asia , Japan , Shinzo-Abe , Pacifist