Free Republic

Japan’s re-elected prime minister, Shinzo Abe, has said he is determined to rewrite the country’s pacifist constitution—drawing an immediate sour response from China. A day after securing another four years in office with Sunday’s landslide election victory, Abe signaled he would pursue his long-cherished goal of changing the US-authored constitution. Abe, a conservative, has made no secret of his desire to remove what he regards as unfair constraints on Japan’s military, seven decades after its surrender at the end of a war that saw it occupy neighbors, including China, and attack countries further afield in the Pacific. …

Japan’s Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso has retracted remarks suggesting that the country could learn from Nazi Germany’s constitutional reform. Mr. Aso said on Monday Japan could “learn the technique” Nazi Germany used to change the Weimar constitution. The remarks come amid debate in Japan over its pacifist constitution, which restricts the military to a self-defense role. …