Japan Lower House Panel Discusses Emergency Clause Draft Outline

Tokyo, May 14 (Jiji Press)–A Japanese parliamentary panel on Thursday discussed a draft outline of an emergency clause that may be included in the Constitution as part of a planned amendment to the country’s fundamental law. The House of Representatives Commission on the Constitution took up the draft outline, compiled by the Legislative Bureau of the lower chamber of the Diet, Japan’s parliament, for the first time. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party, which advocates the addition of the emergency clause to the Constitution, said that the draft outline identifies areas of potential agreement and points requiring further discussions. But the opposition Centrist Reform Alliance said that related issues have been highlighted rather than resolved, seeking careful discussions. According to the draft outline, drawn up based on ideas compiled by five groups including the LDP, emergency situations include large-scale natural disasters, the spread of an infectious disease, social order disturbances such as civil wars, and armed attacks from foreign forces. If, as a result of these events, it becomes difficult to hold national elections across wide areas and for a considerable period of time, the cabinet may, with prior approval from the Diet, declare an election difficulty situation, allowing for the extension of Diet members’ terms within specified limits, according to the draft outline. The outline also sets out draft clauses including one allowing the cabinet to enact an emergency decree and notes points that could be subject to debate for each clause. At the commission meeting on Thursday, after receiving an explanation of the content of the draft outline from Lower House officials, each parliamentary group expressed its views. Former internal affairs minister Yoshitaka Shindo of the LDP said that there was no particular objection to the part of the outline that stipulates the criteria for declaring an election difficulty situation, suggesting that it could be finalized. Meanwhile, he said that the upper limit on extending lawmakers’ terms, an issue that has divided opinion, should be discussed further. Toru Kunishige of the CRA criticized the draft outline, saying, “It is nothing more than an attempt to sort out the discussions.” He stressed that related issues have not been fully addressed. Kunishige also emphasized the importance of maintaining the functions of the Diet in peacetime, which are closely related to people’s lives, calling for parallel discussions on issues such as limiting the prime minister’s power to dissolve the Lower House. “We no longer have time to be distracted,” Nobuyuki Baba, former leader of the Japan Innovation Party, the LDP’s coalition partner, said, arguing that work should begin on preparing draft clauses based on the outline. Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the opposition Democratic Party for the People, said, “If the goal is to submit a constitutional amendment proposal next spring, it would be wiser not to discuss emergency ordinances.” Masamune Wada of Sanseito, an opposition party, said, “As long as the spread of infectious diseases is included (in the definition of emergency situations), we oppose the draft outline.” Aoi Furukawa of Team Mirai called for a comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of constitutional revision. Kimie Hatano of the Japanese Communist Party criticized the creation of the draft outline as “a way of promoting the idea as if constitutional reform debates are progressing.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]