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LDP Proposes Drafting Constitutional Amendments

TOKYO - Japan’s House of Representatives Commission on the Constitution convened on April 9th for its first round of deliberations since the ruling party’s landslide victory in the February lower house election, with lawmakers beginning discussions on potential constitutional revisions.

The session marked the first constitutional debate following the election, in which the Liberal Democratic Party secured a decisive win. Shindo Yoshitaka of the LDP outlined four key areas included in the party’s proposed constitutional amendments, such as explicitly recognizing the Self-Defense Forces in the Constitution, and proposed beginning work on drafting amendment clauses for issues where points of contention have already been clarified.

Meanwhile, Kunishige Toru of the centrist Reform Alliance stated that his party does not view constitutional revision as an end in itself, but emphasized that it would engage sincerely in discussions should revisions be deemed necessary.

Source: Kyodo

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