November 17, 2017

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in his first policy speech to Parliament yesterday since he was returned to power, said he intends to move forward on revising the nation's 70-year-old Constitution.

While Mr Abe has previously stressed that he will not ditch Japan's pacifist stance, critics fear that his intended change to the war-renouncing Article 9 will be the start of a slippery slope towards a remilitarised country.

"I'm convinced our discussions on constitutional revision can go forward in our collective wisdom as we strive to find answers to the difficult issues confronting Japan," he said at the tail end of his 20-minute speech in a direct address to opposition lawmakers - who broke their stony silence with a round of heckling.

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http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/abe-flags-plan-to-revise-japan-constitution