Japanese people have held a fresh protest to voice their opposition to the controversial security bills that would give the country’s military greater roles overseas.

The protesters on Thursday took to the streets in the capital, Tokyo, and assembled in front of the parliament to denounce the new defense and security bills.

The bills, which were passed in the lower house of Japan's parliament on July 16, could pave the way for Japanese troops to go to war abroad for the first time since World War II.

Opponents to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s administration are concerned that the new bills would undermine seventy years of pacifism as Japan has been bound by a pacifist constitution since the end of World War II in 1945.

Abe and his supporters, however, say Japan should increase the extent and power of its army in the face of potential threats from other countries like China and North Korea that are expanding their military and nuclear capabilities.

"The security situation surrounding Japan is becoming increasingly challenging. With this in mind, it is an absolutely necessary legislation to protect the lives of the Japanese and also to prevent the country from going to war," the premier said about the new security measures.

Under the controversial security bills, 10 existing laws would be revised and the army would be given more powers to defend its people and interests and to take part in collective self-defense and defend allies like the United States.

This is while many in Japan back Article 9 of their postwar constitution that rejects the use of offensive force to wage war or resolve international disputes.

Meanwhile, China and South Korea have criticized the new security bills, with Seoul urging Japan to "contribute to regional peace and security" and calling for transparency in Japan's defense policy discussions.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Hua Chunying has also urged Tokyo to "stick to the path of peaceful development" and avoid harming the region's stability.

The bills now must be passed in the upper house of parliament and Abe's Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition has the two-thirds majority required for its adoption.