Japan Democratic Lawyer's Association (JDLA)

The Japan Democratic Lawyer’s Association (日本民主法律家協会, JDLA) was founded in 1961 by lawyers who joined the large-scale protests against the US-Japan Security Treaty from 1959 to 1960 (the Anpo protests). Nowadays, this association is composed of scholars, lawyers, and others who engage mainly in law-related professions.

In 2015, working with five other legal organizations, including he Japan Lawyers Association for Freedom (自由法曹団), the association released a stamen to call for cancelation of the security bills. In 2019, the same six legal organizations published a booklet to critically examine the LDP’s constitutional revision proposals, featuring the four topics that the LDP narrowed down to in 2018: (1) security, (2) national emergency, (3) vote disparity, and (4) enhancement of education. The booklet concluded that the LDP’s main focus is “security”: changing Article 9 and creating a new clause for national emergency with the aim to shift Japan from pacifism determined in Article 9 to militarism more strongly tied to the US-Japan Security Treaty. The booklet also pointed out the LDP uses other topics to involve the opposition parties in discussion to eventually lead to constitutional revision.

The “Liaison Group of Six Legal Organizations Against Constitutional Revision” mentioned above has consistently issued statements and appeals to the government and the public, opposing constitutional revision in response to various domestic and international developments. Upholding constitutionalism and democracy, the group addresses human rights issues from perspectives such as the protection of privacy and freedom of expression. Together with these legal groups, the JDLA has also advocated against the revision of Article 9 of the Constitution as part of the peace movement. Furthermore, maintaining a critical stance toward the LDP-Komeito coalition government, it has worked with other civil society organizations—particularly around national elections—to promote opposition party unity.

Most of the association's articles are published in its magazine "Law and Democracy (法と民主主義)."