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CCPR/C/79/Add.102
19 November 1998

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ENGLISHHUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE
Sixty-fourth session

CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATESPARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 40 OF THE COVENANT
Concluding observations of the Human Rights Committee
Japan
1.
The Committee considered the fourth periodic report of Japan(CCPR/C/115/Add.13 and Corr. 1) at its 1714th to 1717th meetings(CCPR/SR.1714-1717), held on 28 and 29 October 1998, and adopted thefollowing concluding observations at its 1726th and 1727th meetings(CCPR/C/SR.1726-1727), held on 5 November 1998.
A.

Introduction

2.
The Committee expresses its appreciation for the frank and forthright
replies given by the delegation to the issues raised by the Committee and theclarifications and explanations given in answer to the oral questions put by
the members of the Committee. The Committee is also appreciative of thepresence of the large delegation representing various branches of theGovernment, which demonstrates the seriousness of the State party in meeting
its obligations under the Covenant. The Committee also commends the State
party for having given wide publicity to its report and to the work of theCommittee. It welcomes the large number of lawyers and non-governmentalorganizations present during the discussion of the report.
B.

Positive aspects

3.
The Committee commends the Government for the ongoing process ofbringing its legislation into line with the provisions of the Covenant. Itwelcomes the enactment of the Law on the Promotion of Measures for HumanRights Protection, as well as amendments to other laws such as the Equal

GE.98-19729(E)

CCPR/C/79/Add.102
page 2

Employment Opportunities Law, the Standard Labour Law, the Immigration Controland Refugee Recognition Act, the Penal Code, the Child Welfare Law, theElection Law and the Entertainment Business Law, and the draft bill aimed atpunishing Japanese nationals involved in child prostitution and childpornography.
4.
The Committee notes with satisfaction the establishment, atCabinet level, of the Council for the Promotion of Gender Equality,
aimed at investigating and developing policies for the achievement of agender-equal society and its adoption of the Plan for Gender Equality 2000.
The Committee also notes the measures being taken by the human rights organsof the Ministry of Justice to deal with the elimination of discrimination andprejudice against students at Korean schools in Japan, children born out of
wedlock and children of the Ainu minority.
5.
The Committee welcomes the abolition of restrictions on women’seligibility to take the national public service examination, the abolition ofdiscriminatory compulsory retirement, and of dismissals on grounds ofmarriage, pregnancy or childbirth.
C.

Principal subjects of concern and recommendations

6.
The Committee regrets that its recommendations issued after theconsideration of the third periodic report have largely not been implemented.
7.
The Committee stresses that protection of human rights and human rights
standards are not determined by popularity polls. It is concerned by therepeated use of popularity statistics to justify attitudes of the State party
that may violate its obligations under the Covenant.
8.
The Committee reiterates its concern about the restrictions which can beplaced on the rights guaranteed in the Covenant on the grounds of “publicwelfare”, a concept which is vague and open-ended and which may permit
restrictions exceeding those permissible under the Covenant. Following uponits previous observations, the Committee once again strongly recommends to theState party to bring its internal law into conformity with the Covenant.
9.
The Committee is concerned about the lack of institutional mechanisms
available for investigating violations of human rights and for providing
redress to the complainants. Effective institutional mechanisms are required
to ensure that the authorities do not abuse their power and that they respect
the rights of individuals in practice. The Committee is of the view that theCivil Liberties Commission is not such a mechanism, since it is supervised by
the Ministry of Justice and its powers are strictly limited to issuingrecommendations. The Committee strongly recommends to the State party to set
up an independent mechanism for investigating complaints of violations ofhuman rights.
10.
More particularly, the Committee is concerned that there is noindependent authority to which complaints of ill-treatment by the police andimmigration officials can be addressed for investigation and redress. TheCommittee recommends that such an independent body or authority be set up bythe State party without delay.

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page 3

11.
The Committee is concerned about the vagueness of the concept of“reasonable discrimination”, which, in the absence of objective criteria, isincompatible with article 26 of the Covenant. The Committee finds that thearguments advanced by the State party in support of this concept are the sameas had been advanced during the consideration of the third periodic report,and which the Committee found to be unacceptable.
12.
The Committee continues to be concerned about discrimination againstchildren born out of wedlock, particularly with regard to the issues ofnationality, family registers and inheritance rights. It reaffirms its
position that pursuant to article 26 of the Covenant, all children areentitled to equal protection, and recommends that the State party take thenecessary measures to amend its legislation, including article 900,
paragraph 4, of the Civil Code.
13.
The Committee is concerned about instances of discrimination against
members of the Japanese-Korean minority who are not Japanese citizens,including the non-recognition of Korean schools. The Committee draws theattention of the State party to General Comment No. 23 (1994) which stresses
that protection under article 27 may not be restricted to citizens.
14.
The Committee is concerned about the discrimination against members of
the Ainu indigenous minority in regard to language and higher education, as
well as about non-recognition of their land rights.
15.
With regard to the Dowa problem, the Committee acknowledges theacceptance by the State party of the fact that discrimination persists
vis-à-vis members of the Buraku minority with regard to education, income
and the system of effective remedies. The Committee recommends that theState party take measures to put an end to such discrimination.
16.
The Committee is concerned that there still remain in the domestic legal
order of the State party discriminatory laws against women, such as theprohibition for women to remarry within six months following the date of thedissolution or annulment of their marriage and the different age of marriage
for men and women. The Committee recalls that all legal provisions that
discriminate against women are incompatible with articles 2, 3 and 26 of theCovenant and should be repealed.
17.
The Committee reiterates the comment made in its concluding observations
at the end of the consideration of Japan’s third periodic report that theAlien Registration Law, which makes it a penal offence for alien permanent
residents not to carry certificates of registration at all times and imposes
criminal sanctions, is incompatible with article 26 of the Covenant. It once
again recommends that such discriminatory laws be abolished.
18.
Article 26 of the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Actprovides that only those foreigners who leave the country with a permit tore-enter are allowed to return to Japan without losing their residents status
and that the granting of such permits is entirely within the discretion of theMinister of Justice. Under this law, foreigners who are second- orthird-generation permanent residents in Japan and whose life activities arebased in Japan may be deprived of their right to leave and re-enter thecountry. The Committee is of the view that this provision is incompatible

CCPR/C/79/Add.102
page 4with article 12, paragraphs 2 and 4, of the Covenant. The Committee reminds
the State party that the words “one’s own country” are not synonymous with“country of one’s own nationality”. The Committee therefore strongly urges
the State party to remove from the law the necessity to obtain a permit to
re-enter prior to departure, in respect of permanent residents like persons ofKorean origin born in Japan.
19.
The Committee is concerned about allegations of violence and sexual
harassment of persons detained pending immigration procedures, including harshconditions of detention, the use of handcuffs and detention in isolation
rooms. Persons held in immigration detention centres may remain there forperiods of up to six months and, in some cases, even up to two years. TheCommittee recommends that the State party review the conditions of detention
and, if necessary, take measures to bring the situation into compliance witharticles 7 and 9 of the Covenant.
20.
The Committee is gravely concerned that the number of crimes punishable
by the death penalty has not been reduced, as was indicated by the delegation
at the consideration of Japan’s third periodic report. The Committee recalls
once again that the terms of the Covenant tend towards the abolition of thedeath penalty and that those States which have not already abolished the death
penalty are bound to apply it only for the most serious crimes. The Committee
recommends that Japan take measures towards the abolition of the death penalty
and that, in the meantime, that penalty should be limited to the most serious
crimes, in accordance with article 6, paragraph 2, of the Covenant.
21.
The Committee remains seriously concerned at the conditions under which
persons are held on death row. In particular, the Committee finds that theundue restrictions on visits and correspondence and the failure to notify thefamily and lawyers of the prisoners on death row of their execution areincompatible with the Covenant. The Committee recommends that the conditionsof detention on death row be made humane in accordance with articles 7 and 10,paragraph 1, of the Covenant.
22.
The Committee is deeply concerned that the guarantees contained inarticles 9, 10 and 14 are not fully complied with in pre-trial detention inthat pre-trial detention may continue for as long as 23 days under police
control and is not promptly and effectively brought under judicial control;
the suspect is not entitled to bail during the 23-day period; there are norules regulating the time and length of interrogation; there is no
State-appointed counsel to advise and assist the suspect in custody; there areserious restrictions on access to defence counsel under article 39(3) of theCode of Criminal Procedure; and the interrogation does not take place in thepresence of the counsel engaged by the suspect. The Committee strongly
recommends that the pre-trial detention system in Japan should be reformed
with immediate effect to bring it in conformity with articles 9, 10 and 14 ofthe Covenant.

CCPR/C/79/Add.102
page 523.
The Committee is concerned that the substitute prison system(Daiyo Kangoku), though subject to a branch of the police which does not deal
with investigation, is not under the control of a separate authority. This
may increase the chances of abuse of the rights of detainees under articles 9and 14 of the Covenant. The Committee reiterates its recommendation, madeafter consideration of the third periodic report, that the substitute prisonsystem should be made compatible with all requirements of the Covenant.
24.
The Committee is concerned that rule 4 of the Habeas Corpus Rules
under the Habeas Corpus Law limits the grounds for obtaining a writ ofhabeas corpus to (a) the absence of a legal right to place a person incustody and (b) manifest violation of due process. It also requires
exhaustion of all other remedies. The Committee is of the view thatrule 4 impairs the effectiveness of the remedy for challenging the legalityof detention and is therefore incompatible with article 9 of the Covenant.
The Committee recommends that the State party repeal rule 4 and make theremedy of habeas corpus fully effective without any limitation or restriction.
25.
The Committee is deeply concerned about the fact that a large numberof the convictions in criminal trials are based on confessions. In order
to exclude the possibility that confessions are extracted under duress, theCommittee strongly recommends that the interrogation of the suspect in police
custody or substitute prisons be strictly monitored, and recorded byelectronic means.
26.
The Committee is concerned that under the criminal law, there is noobligation on the prosecution to disclose evidence it may have gathered in thecourse of the investigation other than that which it intends to produce at thetrial, and that the defence has no general right to ask for the disclosure ofthat material at any stage of the proceedings. The Committee recommends that,in accordance with the guarantees provided for in article 14, paragraph 3, of
the Covenant, the State party ensure that its law and practice enable thedefence to have access to all relevant material so as not to hamper the rightof defence.
27.
The Committee is deeply concerned at many aspects of the prison
system in Japan which raise serious questions of compliance with articles 2,paragraph 3 (a), 7 and 10 of the Covenant. Specifically, the Committee isconcerned with the following:(a)Harsh rules of conduct in prisons that restrict the fundamental
rights of prisoners, including freedom of speech, freedom of association andprivacy;(b)
Use of harsh punitive measures, including frequent resort tosolitary confinement;

CCPR/C/79/Add.102
page 6(c)Lack of fair and open procedures for deciding on disciplinarymeasures against prisoners accused of breaking the rules;(d)
Inadequate protection for prisoners who complain of reprisals by
prison warders;(e)Lack of a credible system for investigating complaints byprisoners; and(f)Frequent use of protective measures, such as leather handcuffs,that may constitute cruel and inhuman treatment.
28.
The Committee is concerned that the Central Labour Relations Commission
refuses to hear an application of unfair labour practices if the workers wear
armbands indicating their affiliation to a trade union. Such an action
contravenes articles 19 and 22 of the Covenant. The Committee’s view should
be brought to the attention of the Central Labour Relations Commission.
29.
Despite the amendment to the Business Entertainment Law, traffic inwomen and insufficient protection for women subject to trafficking andslavery-like practices remain serious concerns under article 8 of theCovenant. In light of information given by the State party on planned newlegislation against child prostitution and child pornography, the Committee isconcerned that such measures may not protect children under the age of 18 when
the age limit for sexual consent is as low as 13. The Committee is also
concerned about the absence of specific legal provisions prohibiting bringing
of foreign children to Japan for the purpose of prostitution, despite the factthat abduction and sexual exploitation of children are subject to penal
sanctions. The Committee recommends that the situation be brought into
compliance with the State party’s obligations under articles 9, 17 and 24 of
the Covenant.
30.
The Committee continues to be gravely concerned about the high incidenceof violence against women, in particular domestic violence and rape, and theabsence of any remedial measures to eradicate this practice. The Committee istroubled that the courts in Japan seem to consider domestic violence,including forced sexual intercourse, as a normal incident of married life.
31.
The Committee, while acknowledging the abolition of forced
sterilization of disabled women, regrets that the law has not provided
for a right of compensation to persons who were subjected to forced
sterilization, and recommends that the necessary legal steps be taken.
32.
The Committee is concerned that there is no provision for trainingof judges, prosecutors and administrative officers in human rights underthe Covenant. The Committee strongly recommends that such training be madeavailable. Judicial colloquiums and seminars should be held to familiarize
judges with the provisions of the Covenant. The Committee’s general comments
and the Views expressed by the Committee on communications under theOptional Protocol should be supplied to the judges.

CCPR/C/79/Add.102
page 733.
The Committee urges the Government to take action on the ground of these
concluding observations and to consider them in the preparation of the fifth
periodic report. It also recommends that the State party continue reviewing
its laws, and making appropriate amendments, so as to bring its legislation
into full conformity with the Covenant. The Committee recommends that theState party take measures to provide remedies to victims of violations ofhuman rights and, in particular, that it ratify the Optional Protocol to theCovenant.
34.
The Committee expects that in implementing these concluding observations
the State party will engage itself in a dialogue with all domestic interested
parties, including non-governmental organizations. The Committee urges theState party to ensure the wide dissemination of its report and of these
concluding observations.
35.
The Committee has fixed the date of submission of Japan’s fifth periodic
report to be October 2002.

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