Opposition parties submit bills aimed at scrapping Shinzo Abe’s security laws

Five opposition parties on Friday submitted two bills that aim to scrap controversial security laws enacted last year in a challenge to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s stance on the role of Japan’s armed forces.

The Democratic Party of Japan, the Japanese Communist Party and three other opposition parties claim the government’s approval to exercise the right to collective self-defence in the legislation is unconstitutional.

The parties filed the bills to the House of Representatives ahead of the government putting the security laws into effect on March 29. By jointly presenting the bills to the Diet, the five parties aim to make this a campaign issue for a House of Councillors election in the summer.

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The three other parties who co-authored the bills are the Japan Innovation Party, the Social Democratic Party and the People’s Life Party.

Before presenting the bills, leaders of the five parties agreed to cooperate in Diet activities and national elections with the goal of scrapping the security laws and eventually toppling the Abe government.

“The five parties will cooperate so we can force the ruling parties into a minority,” DPJ President Katsuya Okada told reporters after holding talks with four other opposition leaders.

Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party forms the ruling coalition with the Komeito party.