Did you know there have been numerous sizable demonstrations against Sanae Takaichi’s war policy throughout Japan since the beginning of 2026? Although they remain unreported in the West, the major demonstrations have drawn 10,000 to 36,000 people in Tokyo, with simultaneous demonstrations in up to 280 locations across the nation. The demonstrations’ grievances vary, but they are all against Takaichi’s policy of war: the revision of Article 9 of the Japanese constitution (which outlaws war and militarization), Takaichi’s “Taiwan contingency” claim, the buildup of the military, the new espionage law, the flag-desecration law, Japan’s stance on the Iran war, and the genocide in Palestine.

The number of participants in these demonstrations quickly grew from several hundred in February to 36,000 in April in response to Takaichi’s party-convention pledge to move toward constitutional revision for further militarization. But the origin of the protests goes back further. A petition posted by We Want Our Future, one of the main organizations hosting monthly demonstrations, calls for Prime Minister Takaichi to retract her so-called “Taiwan contingency,” a claim that an emergency situation in Taiwan constitutes a “survival-threatening situation” for Japan and therefore justifies a military intervention.