 Mr. Dion and Mr. Kishida at the bilateral meeting in Ottawa, February 12, 2016 |
An Open Letter to:
Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada
Stéphane Dion, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada
February 24, 2016
We urge Mr. Dion to withdraw his support for the unconstitutional “peace and security” legislation of Japan.
Dear Mr. Trudeau and Mr. Dion,
We are groups of citizens in Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver who support Article 9, the war-renunciation clause of Japan’s post-war constitution.
Article 9. Aspiring sincerely to an international peace based on justice and order, the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes.
In order to accomplish the aim of the preceding paragraph, land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained. The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized.
On February 12, Mr. Dion met with Japanese Foreign Minister Mr. Fumio Kishida in Ottawa, and issued the “Joint Statement by the Foreign Minister of Japan and the Foreign Minister of Canada.” It says:
Minister Dion welcomed Japan playing a more proactive role in support of global peace, stability and prosperity based on the policy of “Proactive Contribution to Peace” including Legislation for Peace and Security.
We were surprised to hear that the Canadian government officially welcomed the highly controversial “Legislation for Peace and Security” of Japan, which passed the Japanese Parliament last September in an opaque and undemocratic process that opposition lawmakers claim was unlawful. The legislation would expand the role of the Japanese Self-Defense Forces to the extent that Japan would contravene the “defense-only” policy that the country is constitutionally obliged to uphold under Article 9. The majority of the people of Japan oppose the legislation. Constitutional scholars surveyed in July 2015 almost unanimously found the legislation unconstitutional. Thousands of people protested daily at the Parliament Building during weeks leading up to the legislation, and rallies still continue. On February 19, five opposition parties submitted bills aimed at scrapping the legislation.
It is unconscionable that the new Liberal administration, to which Canadian voters entrusted more diplomatic and non-militaristic approaches to international conflicts and tensions, publicly endorsed this contentious legislation that fundamentally challenges one of the key principles of another country’s constitution. An equivalent of it would be Japan praising the much-debated Bill C-51 of Canada.
In the spirit of democracy and peace, we ask Mr. Dion to:
· Withdraw his “welcome” of Japan’s “Legislation for Peace and Security.”
· Revise the February 12 Joint Statement with Foreign Minister Kishida accordingly.
Sincerely,
Montreal Save Article 9/Sauvons l’article 9
Toronto Article 9
Vancouver Save Article 9 (http://vsa9.org)
Contact: Satoko Oka Norimatsu, Vancouver Save Article 9
(info@vsa9.org or info@peacephilosophy.com )
初出：「ピースフィロソフィー」2016.02.24より許可を得て転載
http://peacephilosophy.blogspot.jp/2016/02/an-open-letter-we-urge-mr-dion-canadas.html
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