TOKYO, April 13 (UPI) -- Japan's pacifist constitution of 1947 moved closer Friday to being amended with the lower house approving a bill setting the procedures for such a move.
The Kyodo news service reported the House of Representatives passed the measure relating to the constitution, which has been in force since 1947 after Japan's defeat in World War II.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling coalition hopes the bill would now clear the upper house before it is sent for a public referendum.
The proposed amendment primarily concerns revising the constitution's Article 9, which says Japan forever renounces war as a sovereign right of the nation and rejects using threats of force or the use of force for settling disputes.
The government feels the constitution needs to be amended to allow Japan to have armed forces to defend itself amid growing security concerns.
