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Ghibli's Suzuki Opposes Repealing Japan's Anti-War Clause

Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki expressed his disapproval toward Prime Minister Shinzō Abe's proposal to remove Article 9 from Japan's constitution in an extended interview last week. Article 9 forbids the country from participating in acts of war, and was implemented after World War II.

Suzuki spoke his support for the clause, saying, ”We should be proclaiming Article 9, which has brought peace to Japan, to the rest of the world.” He added, “I doubt most people outside of Japan even know that we have Article 9. After all, we have a self-defense force. They probably know about that. That's why we have to spread the word about the clause to the world. This peace that Japan has wouldn't have been possible without it."

Suzuki came to know the future Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki after Suzuki co-founded the magazine Animage for the publisher Tokuma Shoten. Miyazaki serialized his Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind manga in Animage, and Suzuki participated in the production of Miyazaki's film version in 1984. When Ghibli separated from Tokuma Shoten in 2005, Suzuki was appointed to head the studio. Suzuki stepped down as the head of Ghibli in 2008, but he has remained an active producer on all of its films.

Miyazaki will present his next film, Kaze Tachinu (The Wind Is Rising), on July 20. The protagonist of the film and Miyazaki's earlier manga is Jirō Horikoshi, the designer of Japan's famed Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter plane of World War II. Evangelion director Hideaki Anno will make his feature anime voice-acting debut as Horikoshi in the film.

Source: Tokyo Shimbun