WTF? Simple possession of child porn unpunishable in Japan
Third World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents: Viewing child porn, manga depicting such to be criminalized; Simple possession of child porn unpunishable in Japan
It has been seven years since the Yokohama congress, and Japan has yet to regulate the simple possession of child porn. This is a problem. I want Japan to seriously consider placing a ban on child porn, including viewing such as well.It has been seven years since the Yokohama congress, and Japan has yet to regulate the simple possession of child porn. This is a problem. I want Japan to seriously consider placing a ban on child porn, including viewing such as well.
The Third World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents was held in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil from November 25 through 28. Participants compiled a strict action plan that regulates access to child porn and obtaining such as well as viewing child porn and materials that depict explicit images of sexually abused children, including manga and anime. In Japan, the simple possession of child porn and materials depicting such is not punishable. The delay in Japan’s approach was visible at the congress. (さらに…)
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Withdrawal Agreement Between USA and Iraq
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Agreement Between the United States of America and the Republic of Iraq On the Withdrawal of United States Forces from Iraq and the Organization of Their Activities during Their Temporary Presence in Iraq
Preamble
The United States of America and the Republic of Iraq, referred to hereafter as “the
Parties”:
Recognizing the importance of: strengthening their joint security, contributing to world
peace and stability, combating terrorism in Iraq, and cooperating in the security and
defense spheres, thereby deterring aggression and threats against the sovereignty,
security, and territorial integrity of Iraq and against its democratic, federal, and
constitutional system;
Affirming that such cooperation is based on full respect for the sovereignty of each of
them in accordance with the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter;
Out of a desire to reach a common understanding that strengthens cooperation between
them;
Without prejudice to Iraqi sovereignty over its territory, waters, and airspace; and
Pursuant to joint undertakings as two sovereign, independent, and coequal countries;
Have agreed to the following:
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Japinos & Japayukis
I learned two new terms today, “Japinos and Japayuki.” Thank goodness that I will never use them! Here is a follow-up to a few stories that I previously blogged on abandoned families in Japan…
Some 70,000 Filipinos live in Japan, most working as entertainers. An estimated 50,000 (some groups put the number as high as 100,000) Japanese-Filipino children — known as “Japinos” — live in the Philippines, often abandoned or orphaned by their fathers after liaisons with Filipino women, who in most cases worked as entertainers in Japan, said Akira Oka, head of the Shin-Nikkeijin Network or SNN.
While some in Japan have probably heard of stories similar to the one above most have not heard of the families abandoned in Japan by USFJ servicemen. This was reported by Stars & Stripes.
…on the land of the rising half-breeds (not my term)…
J-cast includes data to support its observations. According to the ministry, the number of infants born in 2006 with at least one foreign parent came to 3.2 percent, or one child out of 30. This means that about one child in every school class will be of either non-Japanese ancestry or part Japanese.
International marriages are increasing, the site says. The ministry noted that 6.6 percent of couples wed had at least one foreign partner, which makes one couple out of every 15. This is the highest level in the past 10 years. In the central wards of Tokyo and in Osaka and Nagoya, the rate [of intermarriage] has reached the high figure of one couple out of 10.
…and on a revision to the Nationality Law:
The government plans to revise the Nationality Law to remove a provision requiring parents to be married for their children to obtain Japanese citizenship, according to government sources.
The decision came after the Supreme Court ruled in June that denying Japanese citizenship to children born out of wedlock to Japanese fathers and foreign mothers is unconstitutional, the sources said.
Well it seems that the stars are starting to align and progress is being made in the fight to help biracial children and their mothers find a better life, and most probably citizenship, in Japan. Read the Japan Times article below for the rest of the story: (さらに…)
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Japinos & Japayukis
I learned two new terms today, “Japinos and Japayuki.” Thank goodness that I will never use them! Here is a follow-up to a few stories that I previously blogged on abandoned families in Japan…
Some 70,000 Filipinos live in Japan, most working as entertainers. An estimated 50,000 (some groups put the number as high as 100,000) Japanese-Filipino children — known as “Japinos” — live in the Philippines, often abandoned or orphaned by their fathers after liaisons with Filipino women, who in most cases worked as entertainers in Japan, said Akira Oka, head of the Shin-Nikkeijin Network or SNN.
While some in Japan have probably heard of stories similar to the one above most have not heard of the families abandoned in Japan by USFJ servicemen. This was reported by Stars & Stripes.
…on the land of the rising half-breeds (not my term)…
J-cast includes data to support its observations. According to the ministry, the number of infants born in 2006 with at least one foreign parent came to 3.2 percent, or one child out of 30. This means that about one child in every school class will be of either non-Japanese ancestry or part Japanese.
International marriages are increasing, the site says. The ministry noted that 6.6 percent of couples wed had at least one foreign partner, which makes one couple out of every 15. This is the highest level in the past 10 years. In the central wards of Tokyo and in Osaka and Nagoya, the rate [of intermarriage] has reached the high figure of one couple out of 10.
…and on a revision to the Nationality Law:
The government plans to revise the Nationality Law to remove a provision requiring parents to be married for their children to obtain Japanese citizenship, according to government sources.
The decision came after the Supreme Court ruled in June that denying Japanese citizenship to children born out of wedlock to Japanese fathers and foreign mothers is unconstitutional, the sources said.
Well it seems that the stars are starting to align and progress is being made in the fight to help biracial children and their mothers find a better life, and most probably citizenship, in Japan. Read the Japan Times article below for the rest of the story: (さらに…)
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Be warned! Drink-drive Passenger fined
Under Japan’s new drink-driving laws which permit the police to fine passengers, not just the driver, the first passenger to be so charged was sentenced to a JPY250,000 in Sendai District Court.
The passenger was fined on the basis that he asked his drunk friend to drive him home while knowing that the driver was drunk. As a result, the driver slammed into a walking group of high schoolers, and killed three of them. The driver has already been sentenced to 20 years in prison.
BTW, Japanese law applies to all of those who fall under the Status of Forces Agreement–military, civilian employees, contractors and family members, said the major.“The SOFA requires that we obey the law,” he said. “If a SOFA-status person is caught driving under the influence off-base, that person will be prosecuted by Japanese authorities.”
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Highlights of new Japanese traffic laws:
1. Driving Under the Influence, BAC .08 or higherPrevious maximum sentence: Imprisonment with hard labor not to exceed 3 years or a fine not exceeding 500,000 yen
New maximum: Imprisonment with hard labor not to exceed 5 years or fine not exceeding 1,000,000 yen.
2. Driving While Impaired, BAC .03 to .79
Previous maximum sentence: Imprisonment with hard labor not to exceed 1 year or a fine not exceeding 300,000 yen
New maximum: Imprisonment with hard labor not to exceed 3 years or a fine not exceeding 500,000 yen
3. Providing an intoxicated person with a vehicle (new law)
Maximum sentence: Same punishment as a drunken driver receives shall be applied.
4. Providing a person with alcohol who subsequently gets a DUI or DWI (new law)
Maximum sentence: Imprisonment with hard labor not exceeding 3 years or a fine not exceeding 500,000 yen for DUI; 2 years imprisonment, 300,000 yen fine for DWI
5. Riding as passengers in a vehicle operated by an intoxicated person (new law)
Maximum sentence: Imprisonment with hard labor not exceeding 3 years or a fine not exceeding 500,000 yen for DUI; 2 years imprisonment, 300,000 yen fine for DWI
6. Rejecting balloon (sobriety) test
Previous maximum punishment: Fine not exceeding 300,000 yenNew maximum: Confinement not exceeding 3 months or fine not exceeding 500,000 yen
7. Hit and run
Previous maximum sentence: Confinement not exceeding 5 years or fine not exceeding 500,000 yen
New maximum: Confinement not exceeding 10 years or fine not exceeding 1,000,000 yen
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Secret Pact to Protect USFJ Personnel That Commit Crimes?
I need to further research the article below (considering the source of information, the Akahata Shimbun) and provide my analysis. Please feel free to comment!
[Akata Shimbun] It has been revealed that Japan and the U.S. concluded a secret treaty that specifies Japan’s waiver of primary jurisdiction over crimes committed by U.S. soldiers off duty in cases deemed of “no special importance.” A paper issued in 2001 by persons including a USFJ legal advisor notes that Japan continues to faithfully observe the pact.
It has become known through U.S. government declassified documents and other means that the two countries concluded the secret accord when the administrative agreement governing the legal status of U.S. troops in Japan was revised (in 1953). But it has been found for the first time that the agreement is still effective.
The paper, titled “An agreement on the status of foreign troops in Japan,” was written jointly by Lieutenant Colonel Dale Sonnenberg, chief of international law at the office of the judge advocate at U.S. Forces Japan, and Donald A. Timm, special advisor to the Judge Advocate Headquarters. The paper is in The Handbook of the Law of Visiting Forces, published by Oxford University in Britain in 2001.
The paper specifies the existence of the secret pact, noting: “Japan has concluded an unofficial agreement under which it abandons its primary right to exercise jurisdiction, excluding cases of ‘special importance.’ The paper emphasizes that the pact is still effective, saying: “Japan has been faithful in upholding this agreement.”
The paper also points out that the U.S. policy goal is to exercise its jurisdiction over crimes by U.S. service members overseas to the maximum extent. To that end, the paper says that various measures have been
taken in Japan, such as:
- having Japan drop cases;
- giving Japan no time for it to notify (the U.S.) of its intent to bring an accusation; and
- having Japan abandon jurisdiction over cases under indictment.
The paper reveals that the U.S. military is trying to insulate U.S. service members who commit crimes from trials in Japan by every possible means.
It has also been learned that the Justice Ministry issued a notice that included the same provisions as those in the Japan-U.S. secret pact in 1953. Asked by Akahata about the validity of the notice at the present point of time, the Justice Ministry did not rule it out, just saying: “We have no comment.”
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Citizens Fight Yakuza
A very interesting case. I am surprised that the citizens stepped up. Will others across Japan follow suit?
FUKUOKA–About 600 residents in Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture, filed a petition for a temporary injunction Monday at the Kurume branch of the Fukuoka District Court that will stop the Dojin-kai crime syndicate from using its headquarters in the city.
According to the lawyers of the residents, this is the first such case in the country in which residents have filed for a temporary injunction requiring a designated crime syndicate to move its headquarters.
Since 2006, the Dojin-kai has been involved in a bloody confrontation with the Kyushu Seido-kai based in Omuta of the prefecture, a group that broke away from the Dojin-kai.
The rival syndicates have been involved in several violent exchanges and leading members of both groups have been killed.
According to the petition for the injunction, residents are running the risk of becoming involved in the bloodshed because the crime syndicate’s headquarters is one of the targets of attacks. The residents claim that their right to live a peaceful life–as guaranteed by the Constitution–is being infringed upon by the existence of the headquarters.
The petition also calls for the court to take over the building. If the court approves the request it can take compulsory measures to execute the order such as excluding group members from the building by blocking its entrance.
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Kids born out of wedlock to gain Japanese citizenship?!
The government plans to revise the Nationality Law to remove a provision requiring parents to be married for their children to obtain Japanese citizenship, according to government sources.
The decision came after the Supreme Court ruled in June that denying Japanese citizenship to children born out of wedlock to Japanese fathers and foreign mothers is unconstitutional, the sources said.
The revision bill is expected to center on the following two points:
- Japanese fathers’ acknowledgement of paternity will be the sole requirement for children to obtain Japanese citizenship, removing the requirement for parents’ marital status from the provision.
- Those who have falsely claimed paternity will face imprisonment or a fine of up to 200,000 yen.
The government plans to submit a bill to revise the law in the next extraordinary Diet session after obtaining approval from the ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito, according to the sources. (さらに…)
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Child Prostitution & Child Porn in Japan
The Mainichi Shimbun reported that “the ruling coalition and the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) have decided to start talks in the next extraordinary Diet session in the fall on revising the Child Prostitution and Child Pornography Prevention Law to strengthen restrictions on child pornography, with the aim of enacting legislation in November. The focus of attention is on the question of to what extent Japan will criminalize the individual possession of child pornography. The ruling camp calls for banning even simple possession of child pornography currently held by individuals, while the DPJ insists on prohibiting the possession of materials acquired only after a revision bill is enacted into law. The two sides have yet to find common ground.”
It disappoints me that politicians are still trying to find common ground. During earlier debates, the DPJ and other political party members came to the conclusion that the relation between child pornography and “the freedom of expression” or “the right to privacy” guaranteed by the Constitution was a very thorny issue. Give me a break! What about the kids?! (さらに…)
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Child Prostitution & Child Porn in Japan
The Mainichi Shimbun reported that “the ruling coalition and the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) have decided to start talks in the next extraordinary Diet session in the fall on revising the Child Prostitution and Child Pornography Prevention Law to strengthen restrictions on child pornography, with the aim of enacting legislation in November. The focus of attention is on the question of to what extent Japan will criminalize the individual possession of child pornography. The ruling camp calls for banning even simple possession of child pornography currently held by individuals, while the DPJ insists on prohibiting the possession of materials acquired only after a revision bill is enacted into law. The two sides have yet to find common ground.”
It disappoints me that politicians are still trying to find common ground. During earlier debates, the DPJ and other political party members came to the conclusion that the relation between child pornography and “the freedom of expression” or “the right to privacy” guaranteed by the Constitution was a very thorny issue. Give me a break! What about the kids?! (さらに…)
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