Yuki Honda on Human Dignity and Criticism of Japan’s LDP Government

My name is Yuki Honda.

I study education, work, and families in Japan and other countries, collecting various kinds of data as part of my work.

I collect data and, so to speak, inspect how society functions.

That is the kind of checking work I do, but for that, a benchmark is needed.

What serves as that benchmark is something that has already come up many times in today's speeches: something very obvious, an obvious principle.

It is whether the society we seek is one in which all people's lives and livelihoods, and dignity are protected, or not. That is the perspective from which I check current conditions in my work.

If we abandon the principle of a society protecting lives, livelihoods, and dignity, what remains is where people's existence is denied and they are told to die—a hellish society.

War is its ultimate form.

It is destruction that tramples lives, livelihoods, and dignity.

What is happening now in Gaza and elsewhere is precisely that.

And upholding the principle of protecting lives, livelihoods, and dignity requires several conditions.

First, substantive fairness, meaning not harming or discriminating against others, second, procedural fairness, meaning compliance with rules, and third, rational, intelligent social system management.

All three are indispensable. And these matters, as I have just said, are almost all written in Japan's Constitution.

However, these principles have yet to be realized, and all of us must inch our way toward their realization.

That is the situation we are in. So far, this has been obvious.

And next, a situation that is anything but ordinary is what I would like to discuss.

The principle of protecting people's lives, livelihoods, and dignity— far from seeking to uphold it, the exact opposite kind of conduct has been continually carried out by the LDP, and its ugliness…

A prime minister who seemed to stare at that part was Shinzo Abe, and now it is Sanae Takaichi.

First, regarding substantive fairness, externally, they have used the LDP as a puppet to serve the United States, which has continued to fawn over, flatter, link arms with, and be leashed by it.

Domestically, they pander to the deeply biased cults and far right that cling to gender roles and family values.

Conversely, toward neighboring Asian countries, they behave in an extremely arrogant and rude manner, while domestically, they recognize neither optional separate surnames for married couples, same-sex marriage, nor female emperors,

and they continue to trample on people who wish to live as themselves.

That is the LDP, and Sanae Takaichi.

As a result of this continuing for so long, this country has maintained a nauseatingly enormous gen- der gap.

It continues in this country.

Regarding the second, procedural fairness, there was the sudden dissolution of the House of Representatives, the mass distribution of illegal videos, which is being discussed now, as well as accepting illegal donations, all of which are unjust and evil acts.

They desperately seek to protect their own positions, and while they hold power, they are rushing to pass outrageous bills enabling the repression of people and war, and to alter the Constitution itself, which ought to be an immutable principle.

The same is true of Ishin and Sanseito, which trail along behind the LDP.

And regarding rational, functional system management, most recently, an utterly needless gaffe cut off resources from China, and then they fawned over Trump without even properly negotiating with Iran.

They have even depleted crude oil and naphtha, both essential to daily life.

Moreover, they insist it is not depletion, but merely a bottleneck, and make scarcely any diplomatic effort.

This country is dotted with nuclear plants and fault lines.

Its food self-sufficiency rate is extremely low.

As the population declines and ages, there is no way this country has the capacity to wage war.

And yet, and yet, in part, from the United States In order to meet demands, while diverting shortcomings in governing and people’s discontent toward fabricated emergencies and threats from abroad, they are only transforming Japan into a nation that wages war,

zealously and single-mindedly.

A National Intelligence Agency, the existence of a national flag, emergency provisions, all of these lead to outright repression and control.

The LDP is trying to push forward policies solely to suppress anger at their own foolishness.

That is what they are doing.

To begin with, long before Takaichi became prime minister, this country’s number of children kept falling, and its economy, science, and technology kept declining.

That kind of situation has continued over the long term.

People’s lives only keep getting harder, yet rather than correcting this, they cut welfare benefits so unfairly that the Supreme Court ruled the cuts were illegal, while further increasing taxes and social security contributions,

and fomenting division and hatred among the people.

Even toward those who come from abroad to support Japan’s declining population and workforce, they impose policies that literally take lives through immigration administration and sharply raising the requirements for business visas,

treating them in ways that could be called abuse and bullying.

What I want to say about all of this is, what on earth are you trying to do?

Nothing works properly.

It is the LDP that is doing things that destroy the very foundations of this country, and it is Takaichi, along with Ishin and Sanseito, which cling to them, and now at the center of it all is Sanae Takaichi.

They cannot protect lives, livelihoods, or dignity, and do not intend to protect them.

Why should we let people like them run rampant any longer?

We, the sovereign people, have the right to say, “Get out of there.”

You keep doing things that harm countless people.

You keep doing them. You have no right to be there.

Much less will we allow you to tamper with the Constitution with those filthy hands.

Get out of there, we will keep saying from now on at the top of our voices, and and take action.

Everyone, please join in this action.

That's all.