CRI听力:Japan's Upper House to Vote on Controversial Security Bills This Week

Japan's upper house of parliament is set to vote on the controversial legislation this week, which will dramatically change the country's defense policy and allow its troops to fight abroad, despite significant public opposition to the move.

Those opposing the bill point out that Japan's military past is still a thorn in relations with its neighbors even after 70 years.

"Japan has a history of invasion, therefore, regardless of any reason, I do not want Japan to become capable of that again."

Despite big public protests, Abe's ruling bloc wants to pass the security bills before parliament ends its session on September 27.

A vote in the upper house is expected this week.

A poll carried out by one of Japan's leading private newspapers, the Asahi Shimbun showed that 54 percent of respondents opposed the legislation, while 29 percent backed it. 68 percent saw no need to enact the bills during the current Parliamentary session.

But those supporting the bill voiced fear of China's rise in power.

"I feel worried whenever I read about China's rising military strength, and I think we will have a hard time if we don't match their power."

Abe has vowed to pass the controversial legislation. In July his government pushed a group of bills through parliament's lower house that lets Japan's armed forces defend an ally under attack.

China and Japan have had long unresolved territorial disputes over the Diaoyu islands in the East China Sea, souring relations between the two countries.

The latest move by Abe could further strain the already frail Sino-Japan relations.

The United States, Japan's closest ally however, has welcomed Abe's move as vital to meet the so-called new security challenges in the region.

Christopher Hobson, assistant professor of International Politics at Tokyo's Waseda University, says part of the reason for the security bill is due to fears that the United States will not be as reliable a partner in future.

"The United States is declining in power following wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and also, economic problems. So, there is an increasing concern about whether the United States is as reliable an ally as it used to be."

But Hobson says the new security bills are unconstitutional, since Japan's current post-war pacifist constitution bans the use of military force.

"What the LDP (the ruling Liberal Democratic Party) has done is, they tried to reinterpret the constitution which is widely considered by most of the experts to be unconstitutional."

Last week, Japan's Defense Ministry submitted a request for a 2.2 percent increase in its military spending for the coming year. If approved, the new defense budget at just over 5 trillion yen or some 42 billion US Dollars would be Japan's biggest in 14 years.

For CRI I'm Poornima Weerasekara.