In a rare show of desperation, Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura and Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba stood atop a van Dec. 9 in the crowded main intersection of Tokyo's Shibuya district, calling for public support to pass the special antiterrorism bill now stranded in the Upper House.

"We are giving everything we've got to resume the (Maritime Self-Defense Force's) refueling activities in the Indian Ocean," Machimura told the crowd outside JR Shibuya Station. "The refueling activities have been truly appreciated internationally."

Pundits say it is extremely rare for Cabinet ministers to give soapbox speeches except during election campaigns and shows how much the Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito ruling bloc wants to get the opposition-led Upper House to pass the bill.