By short-circuiting the democratic process, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is abusing the trust put in him by the people. His initiative to reinterpret Article 9 of the Constitution to lift constraints on the Japanese military and permit collective self-defense is the most recent example of how Abe is trampling on Japanese democracy. He and his supporters both in Japan and the U.S. assert that Article 9 is outdated and it is essential that Japan take on a more assertive military role to deal with rising regional threats. These advocates of a more muscular Japanese security posture point out that Japan lives in a dangerous neighborhood and that the limits on Japan's military actions will undermine the U.S.-Japan alliance. Thus in their view there is an urgent need to allow Japan to participate in military action involving collective self-defense.

Fine. If Abe has such a strong case then by all means make it and work toward revising the Constitution. The procedures to do so are laid out in the Constitution, requiring two-thirds approval in both houses of the Diet and a majority of voters in a nationwide referendum. The hurdles are high as they should be so that the fundamental ground rules of Japan's democratic system are not unduly politicized or changed capriciously; this is serious business.

Instead, Abe is ramming through a reinterpretation of the Constitution, cynically undermining the rule of law and the Constitution by sneaking in the back door like a thief in the night. This is undemocratic, setting a dangerous precedent in bypassing and making a mockery of constitutional procedures. Abe seeks to overturn the interpretation of Article 9 barring collective self-defense that numerous Liberal Democratic Party-led Cabinets have supported for more than three decades. He and his supporters believe the ends justify the means and seek to avoid the time-consuming procedures of revising the constitution. They have found a devious way to circumvent the Constitution, an artful ploy to tweak its meaning in the name of being a responsible ally of the United States.