Photo/Illutration Defense Minister Minoru Kihara meets reporters after his visit to the Maritime Self-Defense Force's base in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, on Oct. 16. (The Asahi Shimbun)

As Japan’s de-facto military, the Self-Defense Forces are required to maintain strict political neutrality.

Defense Minister Minoru Kihara, who controls and supervises the SDF, mentioned them when asking voters to support an election candidate from his party, the Liberal Democratic Party. What he did was nothing short of political exploitation of the SDF. It was extremely imprudent and irresponsible.

Kihara was in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, on Oct. 15 to campaign for an LDP candidate from the Nagasaki No. 4 district who is running for the Oct. 22 Lower House by-election.

Addressing a rally, Kihara mentioned the candidate by name and said, “Your support (for the candidate) will be tantamount to rewarding SDF personnel and their families for their hard work.”

The Lower House by-election in Nagasaki and the Upper House by-election in the Tokushima-Kochi electoral district, also scheduled for Oct. 22, represent LDP-opposition duels.

Their outcomes are presumed to affect the future of the Fumio Kishida administration and its strategy for dissolving the Lower House for a snap election.

Sasebo, which has the largest number of registered voters in the Nagasaki No. 4 district, is home to a Maritime Self-Defense Force base. It was quite clear that Kihara wanted to secure those votes by appealing to the public’s understanding of the SDF.

After explaining about the revision in December 2022 of the so-called three key national security documents and the LDP’s position on arms exports deregulation, Kihara pointed out opposition parties’ refusal to spend more money on defense.

“I do not want Sasebo to be represented by any of those opposition parties,” he said.

Public opinion is divided on the “doubling” of the nation’s defense outlay and changes in the national security policy that void the traditional defense-only principle.

But Kihara effectively dismissed the argument of anyone opposed to the government, thereby proving himself incapable of living up to the duty of government officials to heed dissenting opinions with respect and strive to attain a broad consensus.

Coming under harsh criticism from opposition parties and others, Kihara on Oct. 16 “retracted” his previous day’s remarks, saying, “I was trying to express my respect and gratitude for SDF personnel and their families, but my true intention was not properly conveyed.”

And typically, his retraction was prefaced by the all-too-predictable qualifier that politicians resort to: “If I have caused any misunderstandings … .”

In short, Kihara has not really faced the problem at all, and whatever contrition he pretended to show was purely formulaic at best.

Other defense chiefs have campaigned for fellow party members.

Tomomi Inada was defense minister at the time of the 2017 Tokyo metropolitan assembly election when she appealed to voters, “I would like to ask for your support on behalf of the Defense Ministry and the SDF, and as the defense minister and an LDP member.”

She came under fire for violating the political neutrality of her office and using the SDF for political purposes.

It is not rare for Cabinet ministers to campaign for fellow party members. But if Kihara had any sense to humbly learn from past mistakes, he would have acted and spoken more cautiously.

Asked by reporters to comment, Prime Minister Kishida on Oct. 16 said he was aware of Kihara's explanation and retraction, and added simply, “I would like him to continue serving in his current capacity.”

Kishida is the supreme commander of the SDF, and appointing ministers is his prerogative. But for the utter curtness with which he dismissed Kihara’s questionable conduct, the prime minister’s own judgment needs to be questioned.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Oct. 18

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