An Army by Any Other Name

by Paul Cipywnyk

This column ran in the March 10, 1991, Asahi Evening News.

Japan must amend its Constitution to legalize the Self-Defense Forces (SDF). The present situation where the Japanese military exists in a shadowy, quasi-legal limbo is damaging Japanese democracy and tainting Japan's international relations. Japan will never be accepted as a world leader until it clearly states that the SDF is a military force.

Japan's Asian neighbors and Japanese citizens rightly fear a remilitarized Japan. The imbroglio over sending Air Self-Defense Force planes to the Middle East and the annual Yasukuni Shrine fiascoes are ample evidence of this. But Japan is a military power. And herein lies the problem.

Ask the average Japanese about the army and the likely response is a blank look and the refrain, "Army? What army?" This is followed by a proud explanation of the "peace constitution" which prohibits Japan from maintaining a military force. Why then, is Japan the sixth-largest military spender in the world? How can a country that twists its own Constitution be trusted?

Like it or not, the so-called SDF is an army. No amount of semantical contortion can disguise the squadrons of F-15s, the fleets of destroyers or the batteries of artillery pounding the slopes of Mount Fuji. It's not the Japanese army that makes people nervous. It's the lack of responsibility evident in this national "what army?" schizophrenia that raises fears.

Japan complains that it is not truly accepted as a world power. That it's still scorned for the "error" of its "expansion" in the first half of this century. That its international influence is not commensurate to its economic strength.

That as a modern democracy it should have a greater voice in world leadership. But to lead, one must set a good example. What kind of example is Japan setting? What is Japan doing to gain the world's trust?

During the recent months of conflict in the Gulf, Japan sat on the fence, incapable of making decisions. An economic superpower that was always a step behind other nations, whose politicians endlessly bickered and "reinterpreted" laws. A Japan that extended its notorious money politics to the international arena, trading yen for blood, hoping money would substitute for action. Even now, when thankfully the war is over, Japan is still dithering over whether or not it can send a peacekeeping force to the Gulf. Is this ongoing SDF controversy an example of democratic leadership? This behavior doesn't gain respect or trust. Japan can lead, but it must clean its own house first.

Sanctimonious appeals for peace are hard to swallow when they come from a country that maintains a secret army that shirks its international United Nations duties. Japan could prove it is a responsible nation by living up to its own Constitution. Ideally, the SDF should be abolished, its soldiers retired, and its weapons destroyed. With no army, Japan could really be a leader for peace. Ideal, but highly unlikely. The reality of our crazed world would not allow such a power vacuum. The only recourse is to legalize the SDF.

The Japanese government should introduce legislation to amend the Constitution. The ensuing uproar would lead to a nationwide debate. Old ghosts would be confronted, and a malingering nightmare cleansed. Hopefully the process would lead to a true assessment and acceptance of Japan's militaristic past. A new Constitution with strong civilian control of a recognized military would reinforce Japanese democracy, and help Japan gain the respect of other nations.

Japan must prove that it is a democracy in action, and that it can accept the responsibility of controlling its military. To gain the trust of others, Japan must learn to trust itself.