TOKYO—Japanese Communist Party lawmaker Kami Tomoko is demanding that the Japanese government take concrete action to pressure Israel to end its blockade of humanitarian supplies into Gaza.
Instead of working to cut an economic deal with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the country should instead be imposing sanctions on Israel and upping its own supply of aid to Palestinians, Kami says.
She blasted the government on May 23 at a House of Councillors special committee meeting in the Diet, Japan’s parliament.
The Israeli military on May 16 expanded its military operations in Gaza, killing more than 600 Palestinians. Three days later, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement in which he expressed his intention to “control all of the Gaza Strip.”
In reaction, the U.K., France, and Canada on May 19 released a joint statement in which they claimed that Israel’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza “risks breaching International Humanitarian Law,” adding that they will “not hesitate to take further action, including targeted sanctions,” against Israel.
Since then, Israeli military forces have repeatedly fired on and killed Palestinians seeking to access aid at stations run by U.S. corporate contractors—a tactic many are calling “death traps.”
Kami said that while even more must be done to stop the killing in Gaza and end the aid blockade, at minimum Japan should follow the three countries threatening sanctions.
The Communist Party parliamentarian also urged the government to take concrete measures, including the suspension of negotiations on a Japan-Israel Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and calls on Tokyo’s U.S. ally to terminate its military support to Israel.
Japanese Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi in reply said that it is “regrettable” that civilian casualties in Gaza have reached a high number, but he gave no response to Kami’s demands.
Kami pointed out that Gaza’s humanitarian crisis continues to worsen, and stressed that the government should also be providing direct humanitarian assistance far beyond what has so far been offered through Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) department.
This is an edited and expanded version of an article that originally appeared in Shimbun Akahata.
We hope you appreciated this article. At People’s World, we believe news and information should be free and accessible to all, but we need your help. Our journalism is free of corporate influence and paywalls because we are totally reader-supported. Only you, our readers and supporters, make this possible. If you enjoy reading People’s World and the stories we bring you, please support our work by donating or becoming a monthly sustainer today. Thank you!
CONTRIBUTOR
