The Citizens’ No-War/War Dialogue Project was announced in Tokyo with the aim of drafting a new proposal for Article 9 of the Constitution. Approximately 60 people who joined through an open application process are taking the course, and an online mock national referendum is planned for the year-end and New Year period.
The project aims to draft a proposal, including proposed amendments to Article 9 of the Constitution, based on the views of citizens. The approximately 60 people who have taken the course will engage in a series of dialogues, ultimately holding an online mock vote with around 10,000 participants. The project aims to submit the results to the Commissions on the Constitution of both Houses of the Diet and request a preliminary national referendum under the supplementary provisions of the National Referendum Act.
The 6 initiators are film director Soda Kazuhiro (想田 和弘), attorneys Mizukami Takao (水上 貴央) and Yanai Hitofumi (楊井 人文), legal philosopher Inoue Tatsuo (井上 達夫), journalist Imai Hajime (今井 一), and political and economic commentator Koga Shigeaki (古賀 茂明). The 18 conveners include Motoyama Jinshiro (元山 仁士郎), who served as the representative of the petitioners for the “Henoko” prefectural referendum, while the author is also participating as the youngest member.
Amid a situation in which debate on constitutional revision has long been avoided, this movement is being positioned as an attempt to address issues including constitutional reinterpretation of Article 9 as a dialogue among citizens, against the backdrop of the LDP-Ishin administration’s governance and heightened international tensions.