More than 200 legal experts in Japan have demanded the government withdraw its security bills, saying they go against the country's pacifist constitution.
In a declaration issued Tuesday, the group of experts said the security bills were simply unconstitutional. They added that the lower house's ratification process failed to confirm Prime Minister Abe's claimed basis for Japan's collective defense. The declaration also said the ratification process was too hasty and stopped short of actually debating many issues.
The experts said the bills' definition of key terms—such as who Japan could act to defend and how serious a threat they had to face—were all extremely vague. They said it undermined democracy and was intolerable for the lower house to pass the bills with so many question marks.
This is the second time Japanese legal scholars voiced their opposition toward the bills. Last month, 230 experts issued a statement calling for a withdrawal of the bills.