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掲載記事
Abe’s legacy of expanded police power
2023/8/23
EAST ASIA FORUM
Shinzo Abe’s long tenure as prime minister of Japan is notable for many reasons, but perhaps his most enduring achievements were made in the Diet where he led colleagues in passing several highly controversial bills sure to have an impact for many years to come.
Long Shadow : Supreme court support for ban on small political rally an alarm bell for freedom of expression
2023/7/1
FCCJ (日本外国特派員協会)
In its more than 70-year history, Japan’s supreme court has never ruled that the police or any other agency of government has violated the constitutionally protected right to free speech. In a case decided recently, the court had the opportunity to break with precedent but once again sided with the government.

世界6月号:表現の自由をめぐる「時をこえた闘争」
2023/5/5
岩波書店
なぜ私は「立川反戦ビラ事件」について本を書いたか。
誰かが本にしなければ、この事件は忘れられてしまうだろう。
COVID-19 is a weak excuse for changing Japan’s Constitution
2021/9/27
イースト アジア フォーラム
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, while governments in many countries issued mandatory lockdown orders backed by penalties for non-compliance, Japan’s did not. International news organisations reported that Japan’s Constitution ‘would need to be amended to impose and enforce a lockdown’.
The suggestion that effective action required constitutional change was no surprise. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has been calling for change to the democratic Constitution since it was founded in 1955. One key proposal is the creation of an ‘emergency powers’ provision. But while the pandemic is a crisis that calls for emergency action, an effective response does not require constitutional change.
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