The Yomiuri Shimbun
The ruling parties have begun examining the introduction of permanent legislation that would stipulate the functions of Self-Defense Forces personnel when dispatched on missions overseas.
A joint Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito project team held its first meeting on the issue Friday, with the parties adopting differing stances.
With the new Antiterrorism Law, which provides the legal basis for the Maritime Self-Defense Force's refueling mission in the Indian Ocean, to expire in January, the LDP hopes to continue the MSDF's operations through enactment of a permanent law during an extraordinary Diet session expected to convene in autumn.
New Komeito favors a more cautious approach, as the party believes the timing and environment are not right following the collision between an MSDF Aegis-equipped destroyer and a fishing boat, and a bribery scandal at the Defense Ministry.
At the extraordinary Diet session, therefore, it is highly likely that the current Antiterrorism Law will be revised to extend the MSDF deployment to the Indian Ocean.
The project team decided on three main points of basic policy at the meeting:
-- Maintaining the government's interpretation of the Constitution, which prohibits exercising the right to collective self-defense.
-- Maintaining civilian control over the MSDF mission on the basis of approval from the Diet or similar authority.
-- Submission of the bill by the government.
The above points were decided after taking into account New Komeito's cautious stance over expanding the role of the SDF in overseas missions.
Former LDP Deputy President Taku Yamasaki, the project team leader, made the party's position clear following the team's meeting. "We hope to create an environment in which the government can submit a bill during the extraordinary Diet session," Yamasaki told reporters.
However, Natsuo Yamaguchi, deputy chairman of New Komeito's Policy Research Council, illustrated the differences in stances between the two ruling parties on the issue. "We shouldn't assume that a bill [for a permanent law] will be submitted to the Diet, nor passed into law," Yamaguchi said.
The project team will hold meetings twice weekly until mid-June to draw up an outline of the bill.
A number of contentious points need to be ironed out before a draft bill is drawn up. These include:
-- Whether to permit participation in activities not in accordance with U.N. resolutions.
-- Whether to incorporate details of activities such as escort operations, security enforcement or ship inspections.
-- Whether to relax the right to use weapons.
-- When to require Diet approval.
(May. 25, 2008)
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