Most municipalities hit by 2011 disasters see no need for emergency clause in Constitution

An overwhelming majority of municipal governments in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures that were hard hit by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami and subsequent nuclear crisis do not see any need for an emergency response article as part of constitutional revision advocated by the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Only one local government out of 37 responding municipalities to questionnaires by the Mainichi Shimbun says it felt such a need in the aftermath of the triple disasters. Whether Japan should amend the postwar Constitution or not has emerged as a point of contention for the House of Councillors election this summer.

The Mainichi sent questionnaires to 12 cities, towns and villages in Iwate, 15 cities and towns in Miyagi and 15 cities, towns and villages in Fukushima earlier this month ahead of Constitution Day on May 3. Thirty-seven of the local governments responded.

When asked if there were circumstances in which they could have responded more appropriately in the initial stage of the disasters, 30 local governments said yes. In a multiple-answer question, 26 of the 30 governments said the 2011 disasters were much worse than conventional expectations. Five local governments cited deficiencies in the legal system, two identified the rights of the people in the postwar Constitution (concerning the freedom to choose and change their residence and engage in economic activities and the right to own or to hold property) as a stumbling block and three mentioned other reasons.

Many responding municipal governments lament their initial responses, citing a lack of preparations and failure to conduct system operations. The city of Iwaki's crisis management section in Fukushima Prefecture says, ''There were many employees who did not understand business operations during the disaster, the chain of command system was unclear, hampering smooth operations.''

The town of Onagawa in Miyagi Prefecture and the town of Iwaizumi in Iwate Prefecture referred to constitutional problems. Onagawa, host to the Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant, responded that it felt the need to have an emergency response clause in the Constitution, saying that property rights have become a hurdle to the initial and recovery phases. Iwaizumi says it has faced problems surrounding property rights in the recovery process but handled them with a special law.

The towns of Namie and Futaba and others in Fukushima Prefecture singled out legal defects which they say led to a loss of local government functions and underscored the need for support to long-term evacuees.

The city of Ofunato in Iwate Prefecture and two other local governments mentioned challenges associated with the unexpectedly high levels of the disasters.

During a meeting of the House of Representatives Commission on the Constitution in May 2013, Gen Nakatani, a lower house member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party who now serves as defense minister, emphasized the need for an emergency response article as part of constitutional revision, saying that current property rights require owners' confirmation even when cars and houses are scattered, wasting time to save people's lives.

But lawyers familiar with disaster responses maintain that the Disaster Countermeasures Basic Act and the Disaster Relief Act stipulate the strengthened hands of local governments in case of emergency and individuals' property rights do not impede disaster responses.