The case of junior Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers close to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe blaming the media for the low public support of the government-proposed security legislation and talking of "punishing the media" at a party gathering last Thursday says much about their appalling disregard of freedom of the press. While the party leadership sought to quell the controversy by quickly disciplining the lawmakers involved, their remarks appear to illustrate their arrogant belief that they can silence the opposition by the sheer force of the party's grip on Diet majority.

Abe, who was initially reluctant to punish the lawmakers on the grounds that they made the statements at a "private study session" of the party, says that freedom of the press must be respected since it constitutes a major pillar of democracy. Still, the junior lawmakers, even as they say they accept the punishment and apologize for "causing misunderstanding and confusion" over their remarks, do not seem to truly understand what was wrong with what they said.

The LDP gathering was attended by about 40 junior members of the party, supposedly to exchange views with people in the field of culture and art. Naoki Hyakuta, a popular novelist who is close to Abe, was invited to the session as the featured speaker. Abe's close aides, such as Katsunobu Kato, deputy chief Cabinet secretary, and Koichi Hagiuda, a special assistant to the LDP president, also participated in the gathering, which was closed to the media except for the initial part.