SDP campaign to focus on inflation and opposing military expansion, leader says

Japan Times

03-07-2025

Social Democratic Party leader Mizuho Fukushima has said the Japanese opposition party will fight the upcoming House of Councilors election with an emphasis on combating inflation and opposing military expansion.
The SDP will put "livelihoods over missiles," she said in a recent interview ahead of the closely watched July 20 Upper House poll. Fukushima also said the SDP will aim to continue meeting the legal requirements to be a political party.
"The SDP has proposed a zero percent consumption tax rate on foodstuffs and raising the minimum wage to a uniform ¥1,500 per hour across the country," she said. "We are saying that tax revenue should be used not for military expansion but for people's livelihoods."
In the upcoming triennial election, the SDP aims to win three or more seats and is determined to obtain at least 2% of votes cast under the proportional representation format so that the party can maintain its status as a political party under law, Fukushima said.
"The Liberal Democratic Party does not (want to) change," Fukushima said, asked about her evaluation of the administration of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who heads the ruling party.
"Some changes occurred" after the ruling LDP and its Komeito ally lost their combined House of Representatives majority in the wake of their defeat in the October 2024 election for the all-important lower chamber, Fukushima said, noting that Diet debates were held on bills for introducing a selective dual surname system for married couples.
"However, the overall trend has not changed at all," she said. "For example, (the Ishiba administration) has failed to work on cutting consumption tax and banning political donations from corporations and other organizations."
Fukushima expressed disappointment over some opposition parties having offered cooperation to the ruling bloc for certain bills, including a draft government budget, saying, "Opposition parties should join forces to confront the unchanging LDP, as in the case of a bill to abolish the provisional add-on gasoline tax rate."
The SDP exists to prevent people from starving and the country from going into war, the leader said. "I am currently very concerned about the rise of xenophobia, and this isn't unrelated to preparations for war."
"One of my favorite phrases is 'Peace and equality go hand in hand,'" Fukushima said. "People are not at fault for their difficult lives, and I want to call for changing the unfair tax system, as well as the current politics and the use of tax revenue that favor large corporations and the wealthy."
She stressed the importance of creating peace at a time when Russia's aggression against Ukraine continues and instability is growing in the Middle East.
"I want to change the current global situation where violations of international law are occurring, with some countries expanding their military capabilities and adopting a stance of not hesitating to launch the first strike."
While Japan lodged a protest against Israel when it launched attacks on Iran last month, the Ishiba administration should react more harshly by calling the Israeli action "a violation of international law," Fukushima said. "Japan should not take the same position as the United States."