December 10, 2003	Wednesday	Shawwal 15, 1424

TOKYO, Dec 9: Japanese protesters on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to change his mind about sending troops to Iraq, saying the plan was a violation of the country’s pacifist constitution.

Mr Koizumi announced on Tuesday that the cabinet had approved a basic plan to send up to 600 ground troops to Iraq on a humanitarian mission — the first time since World War II that Japan has sent troops to a country where fighting is continuing.

“Don’t kill!” said a banner held by about 20 members of the anti-war group Peaceboat, as they gathered across a street from the prime minister’s official residence.

“Dispatching the Self Defence Forces to Iraq violates our constitution, which forbids the use of military forces,” Peaceboat director Tatsuya Yoshioka said through a loud-hailer.

“If Japan cannot follow its own laws, how can it be a protector of democracy in Iraq?” he added.

Protesters held placards denouncing Mr Koizumi and his allies as “war criminals”.

Japan’s post-war pacifist constitution bans the use of Japanese force as a means of settling international disputes.

The dispatch has prompted deep unease among the Japanese public, with the latest survey by the national broadcaster NHK showing only 17 percent of voters supported sending the troops as soon as possible, while 28 percent opposed the plan outright.

MAJOR MISSION ABROAD: Japan on Tuesday approved a plan to send ground troops to Iraq to provide humanitarian aid despite strong public opposition heightened by the killing of two Japanese diplomats there last month.

Following is the list of major Japanese military missions abroad since the end of World War II.

April-October, 1991: the Persian Gulf

After the end of the 1991 War, some 500 Maritime Self-Defence Force (navy) personnel were sent to the Gulf to clear sea mines. It was the first time since 1945 that Japan dispatched its military for a major overseas operation.

Sept 1992 - Sept 1993: Cambodia

A team of 600 troops was sent to Cambodia as part of UN peacekeeping operations to pave roads, fix bridges and supply water.

May 1993 - Jan 1995: Mozambique

A 48-strong army team was sent to the southeastern African country to supply UN peacekeepers.

Feb 1996 - present: the Golan Heights

Also part of UN peacekeeping operations, a team of 43 ground troops have helped supply food and water. A total of 645 people have so far served tours of duty. The Golan Heights was seized by Israel from Syria in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war and annexed in 1981.

Dec 2001 - present: the Indian Ocean

Following the Sept 11, 2001, attacks in the United States, Japan’s parliament passed a law allowing its military to provide medical and logistical support in the Indian Ocean for US forces in Afghanistan.

At one point, Japan had some 1,200 Maritime Self-Defence Force personnel on board three destroyers and two fuel supply ships in the Indian Ocean.

March 2002 - present: East Timor

A team of 680 ground troops has built bridges and roads in East Timor which became independent in May 2002 with the help of UN stewardship after its invasion by Indonesia. —AFP