Professor Minamino is an up-and-coming constitutional scholar, who adopts a unique perspective as he dissects modern society with surgical precision. The clarity of his commentaries and his approachable nature have led to frequent media appearances which include his enthusiastic posts on Twitter and other social media sites. As a highly influential person, he seems set to become one of Japan＇s leading jurists. At heart, he is an avid reader who adores Paris, the City of Flowers.
Professor Minamino was born in Kyoto Prefecture. He grew up surrounded by history books and novels and developed an interest in reading newspapers while he was still at elementary school. Prof. Minamino entered Junior division of the Humanities and Social Sciences I of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Tokyo in 1989, a year of great transformation across the globe: the era name in Japan changed from Showa to Heisei, the Tiananmen Square protests took place, and the Berlin Wall fell. He had a firsthand experience of the Revolutions of 1989 while traveling in Europe which led him to question the concepts of state, power and human rights. He then joined the Faculty of Law in the hope of becoming a constitutional scholar. While enrolled in the second part of the doctoral course at the University of Tokyo's Graduate Schools for Law and Politics, he spent three years as a postgraduate student at the University of Paris X-Nanterre (now known as Paris Nanterre University) starting from 1997 and was appointed an associate professor at Kyushu University's School of Law in 2002. He became a professor in August 2014. Prof. Minamino is also enthusiastic about activities that contribute to society, such as appearing in the media and serving on various advisory bodies. His books include “The World of Law” (2013, Nihon HyoronSha; in Japanese; author and editor), "The World of Constitutiona Law" (2013, Nihon HyoronSha; in Japanese; author and editor), "A Realist Theory of the Interpretation of Law" (2013, KeisoShobo; in Japanese; editor and translator; authored by Michel Troper), "Constitutionalism" (2014, PHP Institute; co-authored with Natsuki Uchiyama) and "The Constitution of Japan Made Simple for Kids Aged 10 and Up" (2017, Tokyo Shoten; editor-in-chief).
Prof. Minamino talked frankly in a way that was easy to understand, quite unlike law's stuffy, dry image. His father is a film director while his older sister is a novelist.
Prof. Minamino is a prolific writer due to his desire to help a wide range of people understand the Constitution. He writes in a wide range of genres, from introductory books that even children can understand to specialist academic texts.
Every year, he takes the students in his seminar group on a five-day field trip to Tokyo to participate in debates with students from other universities. Featuring opportunities to interact with students from other universities and also visit the Supreme Court and various companies, this event is very popular with his students. In this photograph, Prof. Minamino is seen with then Supreme Court Justice Ryuko Sakurai.
Prof. Minamino talked frankly in a way that was easy to understand, quite unlike law's stuffy, dry image. His father is a film director while his older sister is a novelist.
How does a constitution differ from other laws? To put it simply, a constitution is the basic law that sets out the overall nature of a country and its politics. Unlike the Civil Code and Penal Code, which stipulate the rights and obligations of the people, the Constitution focuses on the power of the state: it's a set of rules restricting the temporal power of the state. Today, Japan has almost 2,000 laws that routinely undergo minute amendments. The Constitution of Japan is comprehensive and hasn't been altered even once in the 70 years since it entered into force. By its very nature, the Constitution of Japan has strong elements that make it impossible to rapidly introduce changes (a rigid constitution). If a constitution could be amended easily, those in power would probably do whatever they like. To ensure that this doesn't happen, we constitutional scholars undertake comparative studies of the history and practical effect of constitutions in Japan and other countries, constantly discussing what kind of mechanisms should be created and what proposals should be offered to society in order to help Japan become a better country in 50 or 100 years from now.
Prof. Minamino is a prolific writer due to his desire to help a wide range of people understand the Constitution. He writes in a wide range of genres, from introductory books that even children can understand to specialist academic texts.
One of my areas of research is fundamental theory of constitutional law which focuses on French constitutional law and philosophy of law. My research involves looking at the ideas and history behind constitutions, reading a lot of literature and thinking about such fundamental questions as "Why is a constitution necessary?," "What is a constitution in the first place?," and "What is constitutionalism?" The goal of constitutionalism to constrain the power of the state by means of a constitution isn't easy to achieve. After all, you're up against the power of the state and the fact is that it's easy to ignore the arguments of an academic. You could liken it to a battle between an enormous lion and a single ant.
Every year, he takes the students in his seminar group on a five-day field trip to Tokyo to participate in debates with students from other universities. Featuring opportunities to interact with students from other universities and also visit the Supreme Court and various companies, this event is very popular with his students. In this photograph, Prof. Minamino is seen with then Supreme Court Justice Ryuko Sakurai.
For example, in June 2017, Japan's four opposition parties demanded that an extraordinary session of the Diet be held in accordance with Article 53(*) of the Constitution of Japan. However, it was actually held at the end of September. After the calls to convene had been ignored for three months, it was finally convened, but the House of Representatives was dissolved almost immediately, after just 100 seconds, without a policy speech by the Prime Minister or any kind of debate. This is clearly in violation of the Constitution, as you can't say that a session of the Diet was actually convened. However, there are no penalties whatsoever when it comes to the Constitution. A constitution is the supreme legal code setting out the basic order of the state. If the people in power obey the constitution, there's no problem; but if they don't, there's actually nothing ordinary people can do. There are real-life examples of this in various other countries.
So right now, I'm researching the effectiveness of the Constitution. Is it acceptable to overlook the power of the state when the Constitution is violated? Does the system of constitutional review by the Supreme Court have democratic legitimacy? Might not it be the case that the last bastion isn't the Supreme Court but is, in fact, we the people? The amendment of the Constitution is climbing up the political agenda right now, so I think that not only constitutional scholars, but also each and every citizen of Japan needs to think seriously about the Constitution — now more than ever. To achieve this, I believe that it's vital for constitutional scholars to explain the Constitution to all levels of society in a way that's easy to understand.
*Article 53 of the Constitution of Japan states, "The Cabinet may determine to convoke extraordinary sessions of the Diet. When a quarter or more of the total members of either House makes the demand, the Cabinet must determine on such convocation."
The biggest attraction for me is the fact that my field is directly relevant to society. Although my research into principles and theory doesn't itself have a great direct impact on society, it's a very profound field because it involves reading between the lines of the text of the Constitution to identify its essence and then considering that in the context of history and philosophy. This research provides a base, which I think enables me to adopt different perspectives and interpretations from other constitutional scholars when considering rulings and legal provisions or even real-life politics, and then offer my suggestions to society. The whole point of law is to make society a better place, so you might say that legal scholars are the doctors of society. A constitution focuses on "society writ large," in the form of the shape of a nation and its politics. What I find really rewarding is telling people about my ideas for creating a better society — in however small a way — in my own way, based on my own research.
Once the world is at peace, everyone is happy, and we live in a society in which debate about amending the Constitution no longer raises its head, I'll probably immerse myself in the study of French constitutional law and legal philosophy. However, one of the duties of university academics is to meet the needs of modern society, so I want to do my bit to fulfill my social responsibility in areas that relate to my field of research. Right now, I get the distinct feeling that both the general public and politicians have a particular need for expert knowledge. I'm always delighted when people tell me that they've understood something that they didn't previously understand or realized the importance of the Constitution as a result of my speeches or appearances in the media. I'm happy that I can serve as a bridge between academic and society.
Prof. Minamino has bought apps enabling him to access books that would be thick and heavy in paper form, such as the Compendium of Laws and a French dictionary. He has recently abandoned his digital camera and now only uses his smartphone to keep a record of his business trips. Naturally, this is what he uses for his many tweets, too.
The next essential after his smartphone is a computer. In fact, the professor has both notebook and desktop PCs. "I'm really not a complete Internet addict (laughs)!" He says that he strikes a balance by reading newspapers as analogue media.
Containing what is more or less a verbatim record of the two-day intensive lecture that Prof. Minamino gave to AKB48 idol Natsuki Uchiyama, this primer on the Constitution of Japan contains "the essence of the Constitution of Japan from reading between the lines of its text," which is the key selling point of the professor's research. "I keep it in my bag and carry it around with me as a form of advertising (laughs)."
Read newspapers and encounter things in which you have no interest. Learn about aspects of society with which you're unfamiliar!
Right now, calls to amend the Constitution are stronger than ever before. That's precisely why I want people to develop a serious interest in the Constitution of Japan and in our politics and society. Before amending the Constitution, we need to discuss the Constitution; and before we discuss the Constitution, we have to know the Constitution. If the Constitution is amended, our future could change significantly depending on the text. Depending on the thinking behind its provisions, we might see the emergence of a prime minister of a kind that we'd never imagined, who might seek to exploit the text of the Constitution. That's why it's vital for each and every one of us to think about it carefully and reach our own opinions. The first step to becoming a person who's interested in the society in which they live and capable of always thinking about a variety of things that will result in the betterment of society is, quite simply, to read the newspapers. The internet only brings you into contact with information that interests you, but when you open up a print newspaper, an array of different headlines leap out at you. That's a good thing. Things you weren't interested in and information that you didn't previously know appear. In other words, what print newspapers offer you is encounters with the news. Another major point in their favor is that newspaper articles are written by professional reporters and have gone through several rounds of checks, so they're more credible than information on the net. I want you to get into the habit of reading a print newspaper every day, even if you just skim-read it. You'll find that you develop new interests and concerns which will help you to acquire judgment and the ability to take action. It's the populace who make the final decision on the amendment of the Constitution. Changing the Constitution on a vague whim is dangerous. To develop your own opinions, the first thing you need to do is to get a morning paper — start tomorrow! (Don't get me wrong — I'm not getting kickbacks from newspaper companies!)
This interview was conducted in October 2017.
