Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Monday defended his decision to block six scholars from joining a government advisory body, saying the unprecedented move was an appropriate use of his authority and had "nothing to do with academic freedom."Suga is under fire for not approving nominees to the Science Council of Japan who have been critical of his predecessor Shinzo Abe's policies, such as his push to reinterpret the pacifist Constitution to allow the country to come to the aid of allies under armed attack in certain circumstances.In his first group interview since taking office in mid-Septe…READ FULL ARTICLE
