Japan moves to change 'pacifist' constitution

Hawkish Prime Minister Shinzo Abe yesterday told lawmakers he intends to change the post-WWII constitution that imposed pacifism on Japan, in a move likely to stir suspicion in China and beyond.
Abe, who thundered to general election victory in December, has long harboured ambitions to re-write a document critics say hampers effective self defence, but supporters say is a bulwark against the militarism that blighted Asia last century.
"I will start with amending Article 96 of the constitution," Abe told upper house lawmakers, referring to a clause stipulating that amendments require a two-thirds majority in parliament.
The well-funded and well-equipped military -- one of the world's most technologically-advanced -- is referred to as the Self-Defense Forces, and barred from taking aggressive action.
US occupying forces imposed the constitution on Japan in the aftermath of World War II, but its war-renouncing Article Nine became part of the fabric of national life, engendering a pacifism that remains dear to many Japanese.
Constitutional amendments in Japan require a two-thirds majority of lawmakers in both houses, and must be ratified by a referendum, where they can pass with a simple majority of those voting.