A 1991 Diet remark by then Prime Minister Toshiki Kaifu may be standing in the way of a looser law that would allow military commanders to order defensive fire while engaged in U.N. peacekeeping operations.

In September 1991, when the Diet was debating the peacekeeping operation bill, Kaifu said commanders of Self-Defense Forces units should not be allowed to give the order, saying the decision to use weapons falls under the judgment of each unit member when the life of that soldier or officer is threatened.

In this case, the Diet comment by the prime minister carries legal weight. At the time, Social Democratic Party members were questioning the government out of concern that the use of weapons as ordered by superiors may be regarded as sanctioning the use of force to resolve international conflicts, which is banned by the Constitution.

The government hopes the revision will be approved at a Cabinet meeting on Friday, before being submitted to the Diet.

On Friday, during a meeting of the SDP's foreign and defense affairs committee, some SDP members asked if the latest revision means the remarks made by Kaifu should be withdrawn. Hiroshi Shigeta of the Prime Minister's Office, who is in charge of peacekeeping operations, agreed the remarks should be stricken, according to Hideo Den of the SDP.

Den also said it would be a serious matter if the remarks, which have legal ramifications, are hastily retracted. Although the current law limits the use of weapons to individual judgment, SDF officers who have participated in peacekeeping missions have complained that this burdens individuals with too much responsibility.

In light of this concern, the government is trying to revise the law by allowing senior officers to order the use of force. The SDP, however, is demanding a clear explanation of the change in the government's stance.