About 500 women across Japan have now joined groups opposing the law.

More than 150 communities around the country have passed resolutions opposing the law.

Some Pentagon officials said they opposed the law because it would do little to fight the illegal use of drugs.

The institute usually first tries to find groups in the community that could be organized to oppose the law.

Yet lawmakers and others who opposed the new law insist that no changes are likely in the coming months - or even years.

There are also critics in that province who oppose such laws.

Congress had opposed the law since it was passed by the City Council in 1992.

Others who initially opposed the law, like the hospice group, say they have learned to live with it.

"We also oppose the law for family reasons," the legislator said.

The association, which opposed the law because it restricts private insurance companies, spent $283,394, according to the commission.