A national referendum is an important procedure for the people to indicate their decision whether the Constitution, the supreme law of the nation, will be revised. It is necessary to facilitate an environment to ensure every person can express their will.
At an executive meeting of the House of Representatives Commission on the Constitution, the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito have presented a draft for amending the National Referendum Law, and they have called on opposition parties to jointly submit the bill to the Diet.
The amendment draft would make it possible to set up community polling stations at such places as large-scale commercial facilities, while also expanding the list of voters eligible for on-the-sea voting to include such persons as maritime student trainees. It also contains a plan to broaden the scope of voting by mail from people with level-5 care needs to people at levels 3, 4 and 5.
Both schemes are akin to those already introduced or scheduled to be adopted for national and other elections, aiming to increase voting opportunities. There is every reason to apply them to a national referendum.
Unlike elections held to choose representatives, a national referendum is designed to enable voters to express their positions on the Constitution. To encourage people to freely and actively express their opinions and debate issues, referendum-linked campaigns are in principle unrestrained, with restrictions kept to the minimum necessary.
While organized vote-buying is banned, no restrictions are imposed on campaign expenditures or the use of posters and publicity cars.
Apart from measures to improve the voting environment, the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan has insisted on tightening restrictions on paid TV, radio and other spot commercials. The CDPJ is said to be considering setting upper-limit restrictions on expenditures. Its assertion seems to be incompatible with the referendum law's principle, which seeks freedom.
Opposition must present ideas
There is a possibility that TV commercials will appeal to the emotions of people through sight and sound, thereby hindering them from making a calm judgment -- an observation that was also made at the time of the current law's establishment. In light of experts' opinions and other factors, it was decided to ban TV commercials from being broadcast, effective 14 days prior to the voting date. This is the same length of time as that set for early voting.
It is desirable to leave the task of securing fairness to voluntary efforts by broadcasting stations. Given the spread of the internet, singling out TV commercials as targets for reinforced restrictions lacks balance.
It is no wonder if CDPJ is suspected of rehashing arguments about restrictions on spot commercials just to gain time, hoping to refuse discussions on constitutional amendment.
The lower house Commission on the Constitution has never held substantive discussions in the current Diet session. The CDPJ has said it will not agree to join LDP-led debates on constitutional amendment. Doubts should be raised about its stance, acting like an opposition party that only seeks to oppose the ruling camp.
A new opposition party, the Democratic Party for the People, has started discussions at its constitutional research committee. The party should make swift efforts to consider a concrete draft for constitutional amendment.
Each political party should express its views regarding constitutional revision, followed by efforts to devise an amendment draft after constructive debates. Doing so is the fundamental role of the commissions on the Constitution.
It is vital to ensure a bill on amendment to the national referendum law is passed through the Diet at an early date, thereby making sure deliberations on constitutional amendment get into full swing.
(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, May 23, 2018)
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