A recent survey found that more than 40% of Japanese adults favour revising Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, which contains the “no war” clause and instead advocates for a defence-oriented policy.
Constitutional Amendment
In the survey by US-based business intelligence company Morning Consult, 41% of the respondents said they are at least somewhat in favour of revising Article 9.
Although the figure falls short of achieving the majority needed to enact reforms in the event of a referendum, the share of those in favour significantly outweighs the 29% who say they somewhat or strongly oppose revision.
To reach a majority, only a third of the 30%, whose stance is undecided, would need to be swayed.
Notably, the survey saw “limited differences in support” among different age groups. However, the survey said that the country’s oldest voters “are slightly more likely to oppose revision, given their closer historical proximity to Japan’s militaristic past.”
“Support for revision may increase as older voters age out, and the issue will likely continue to animate Japanese politics for years to come,” it said.
41% of Japanese adults are at least somewhat in favor of revising Article 9, the so-called peace clause in which the state renounced the right to make/threaten war, falling short of the majority needed to enact reforms if they reach the referendum stage. https://t.co/PFvQA8aL3g pic.twitter.com/5j94O8CY6J
— Morning Consult (@MorningConsult) June 1, 2023
Security concerns were the main reason among those who support constitutional changes.
Around 56% of participating adults cited the threat of an increasingly aggressive China, while 50% cited North Korea. Moreover, these threats polled 26 and 20 percentage points, respectively, higher than the next most commonly cited reasons: “the need for Japan to better protect its interests and to play a larger role in regional security.”
Those opposing constitutional revision mostly cited a commitment to pacifism (50%) as compared to any other reason, which the survey said illustrated “the strong moral convictions underlying public support for the current constitution.”
The next big reason (48%) to oppose constitutional revision was that “change will beget change and compromise the political and social stability Japan’s constitution has provided in the postwar era.”
Defence Expenditure
Apart from attempting to alter its Constitution, the Asian power has also been trying to expand its defence budget.
In its new national security strategy released in December, Japan announced its biggest military buildup in decades, including doubling its defence expenditure, firmly signalling that it is moving away from its pacifist constitution.
In a televised address, PM Fumio Kishida said that his government had approved three security documents — the National Security Strategy (NSS), the National Defense Strategy, and the Defense Force Development Plan — to bolster Japan’s defence capabilities amid an increasingly unstable security environment.
The NSS asserted that Japan must adapt to “historical changes in power balances, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region,” where it said the security environment is “as severe and complex as it has ever been since the end of World War II.”