Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution Referendum is a referendum that was expected to take place in 2020. In May 2017, then Japanese Prime Minister

Shinzo Abe Shinzo Abe (21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020. ...

set a 2020 deadline for revising

Article 9 Article often refers to: * Article (grammar), a grammatical element used to indicate definiteness or indefiniteness * Article (publishing), a piece of nonfictional prose that is an independent part of a publication Article(s) may also refer to: ...

, which would legitimize the

Japan Self-Defense Forces The are the military forces of Japan. Established in 1954, the JSDF comprises the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, and the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. They are controlled by the Ministry of Defense ...

in the

Japanese constitution The Constitution of Japan is the supreme law of Japan. Written primarily by American civilian officials during the occupation of Japan after World War II, it was adopted on 3 November 1946 and came into effect on 3 May 1947, succeeding the Mei ...

. Abe and his Cabinet resigned in September 2020, due to Abe's health problems. Under his successor

Yoshihide Suga is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), LDP) from 2020 to 2021. He had served as Chief Cabinet Secretary during the second administration ...

, parliament revised referendum law in June 2021 to make it easier to vote by allowing temporary voting station. The move was considered as a step toward the possibility of the constitutional referendum taking place. Kishida renewed calls for the referendum in May 2023.

Public opinion

See also

References

Further reading