Japan may alter its no-war policy

TOKYO -- Japanese lawmakers received a parliamentary report Friday that raised the traditionally taboo issue of scrapping a clause in the constitution that renounces war.

The supreme law, written by U.S. occupation forces after World War II, is a cornerstone of Japanese democracy and has not been amended since its 1947 adoption.

But after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, a growing number of Japanese lawmakers have expressed interest in changing Article 9, the section that renounces Japan's right to wage war.

Lawmakers in the current special session of Parliament may consider a bill to outline the role of the military, in case of invasion.

A March poll of Parliament's upper and lower houses by the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper showed 55 percent of lawmakers favor amending Article 9.