The role of government and the effects it has on our day to day lives is immeasurably important. The second holiday of Japan’s April 29th to May 5th Golden Week holiday period is devoted to making people aware of this fact. Constitution Memorial Day, or “Kenpokinenbi” in Japanese, marks the promulgation of Japan’s post-War constitution in 1947 and encourages reflection upon the roles the government has played and the consequences its actions have had throughout Japan’s history.
Japan put its first constitution into effect in November of 1890, establishing the first parliamentary democracy in Asia. The Meiji Constitution, named for the Emperor under whom it was promulgated, guaranteed Japanese citizens many of the rights enjoyed by those in the developed world today, including the right to freedom of speech, assembly and association; the freedom of movement; and protection from unwarranted search and seizures. The Meiji Constitution also established a popularly elected House of Representatives, an independent judiciary and placed limits on the power of both the executive branch and the Emperor. It’s wording was however vague and several of its articles contradictory. The incongruity left political leaders struggling to establish whether the constitution justified an authoritarian or a liberal-democratic form of rule. Japan’s post-war constitution, promulgated on May 3rd 1947, built upon Japan’s first attempts at democracy. It took into consideration the needs of Japan, the requests of Japanese legal scholars and the Meiji Constitution itself. The new constitution placed Japan’s sovereignty and the power of its government in the hands of the people, instead of in the Emperor, and ensconced the nation’s commitment to world peace with the much lauded Article 9. The new constitution also granted women the right to vote and replaced Japan’s House of Peers, a body similar to Great Britain’s House of Lords, with the popularly elected House of Councillors. Mighty accomplishments for a document whose first draft was written in less than a week by just 2 people. The promulgation of the post-War Constitution did not violate or replace the Meiji Constitution, it was adopted as an amendment through article 73. The legal continuity of the Meiji Constitution is maintained to this day. Come May 3rd one is invited to reflect upon the roles and importance of government and how our lives are effected by our involvement in or our indifference toward it. One may also reflect upon the wonder that is Japan, a nation with two constitutions.
The constitution can be read in its entirety online here on the Cabinet's website. A public domain audiobook of the Japanese Constitution is also available at LibriVox.