Japan’s ruling coalition won the upper house election by securing a majority of seats contested on Sunday. The results showed prime minister Kishida’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior coalition partner Komeito raising their number of seats to 146.
However, the mood among the victors was somber as the elections were held under the shadow of the assassination of the former LDP chief and Japan’s longest-serving prime minister Shinzo Abe.
The LDP won the seat in Nara where Shinzo Abe was assassinated while delivering a speech supporting the LDP candidate Kei Sato near the Yamato-Saidaiji Station.
In the elections, the LDP led by Kishida won 63 seats and the Komeito won 13 seats of the 125 seats that were up for grabs.
The opposition secured 49 seats taking its tally to 102 in the Upper House.
Following the election victory, Kishida said that he plans to revitalize the economy and boost income as Japanese citizens reel from inflation and rising food prices.
“We will also tackle diplomacy, security and constitutional reform one by one,” Kishida was quoted as saying by news agency Nikkei Asia.
The victory of the coalition government also suggests that the public backs their policies.
Opposition parties Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP) and Nippon Ishin (the Japan Innovation Party) continued to struggle with the latter making minor gains in the polls.
‘Constitutional Reform’
The victory in the election will allow Japan PM Fumio Kishida to make a first-ever amendment to Japan’s pacifist constitution. “I want to concentrate efforts on putting together a specific proposal [that Parliament could submit for the national referendum],” Kishida said.
The victory will allow Kishida and the ruling LDP-led coalition to increase military spending – a longtime goal of former prime minister Shinzo Abe.
“Today’s Ukraine may be tomorrow’s East Asia,” Kishida recently said.
The revision would also mean that Japan’s military forces are legal since Japan’s pacifist constitution says Japan will never maintain war potential such as land, sea and air forces but since it maintains Self-Defense Forces, critics say it is unconstitutional.
The ruling LDP set up a panel which suggested raising the defense spending to 2% of GDP within five years.
If Kishida and the LDP are allowed to make the amendment in the constitution then Japanese forces will receive funding for weapons which will destroy enemy missile bases and their command-and-control centers if there are chances of an imminent attack on Japan.
The demand for such an amendment grows as China takes routine steps to undermine sovereignty of its neighbors and North Korea continues to saber-rattle with its missile tests. There was also a minute push from the US asking Japan to support its military operations in East Asia.
(with inputs from Nikkei Asia and the Washington Post)
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