### Topic I. International Emergency Assistance Offered by the Police

When large-scale disasters occur overseas, the police dispatch the Japan Police Disaster Relief Team to give emergency assistance to affected areas.

One of the international assistance programs initiated by the Police is offering assistance for international emergencies. International emergency assistance offered in the event of large-scale disasters overseas serves the international community as well as enhances disaster resiliency of the Japanese police through experiences under various circumstances.

## (1) Forming the Japan Disaster Relief Team

When large-scale disasters occur overseas, Japan dispatches the Japan Disaster Relief (JDR) Team under the Act Concerning Dispatch of the Japan Disaster Relief Team in response to requests from the governments of affected countries or international agencies.

The JDR Team includes rescue, medical, and expert teams. The rescue team is usually composed of staff members of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the NPA, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency, the Japan Coast Guard, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and other organizations to roll out search and rescue activities.

The NPA dispatches a police officer to have him undertake responsibilities as deputy leader as well as the International Police Communications Deployment Squad formed from police communication officers to secure the communication required to enable police officers to implement activities overseas so that communication lines can be set up between local and Japanese organizations and among local rescue teams. The Japanese police form the Japan Police Disaster Relief Team by adding police officers pre-designated by Prefectural Police to these police officers and dispatch them as a part of the JDR rescue team.

## (2) (2) The JDR Rescue Team is Awarded the IEC "Heavy" Classification

In March 2010, the JDR rescue team underwent the IEC assessment process and was awarded “Heavy” classification, the highest out of three levels of classification by the INSARAG $ ^{1} $ External Classification (IEC) which evaluates the capabilities of rescue teams of each country. This classification is awarded to rescue teams that have high rescue capabilities in collapsed building sites and the ability and system for 24-hour rescue operations at two different affected sites for ten consecutive days. Since the IEC certification was established in 2005, Japan was the 12 $ ^{th} $ country (13 $ ^{th} $ team) to receive a “Heavy” classification. The “Heavy” classification given to the Japanese rescue team creates higher expectations for our future operations.

Note 1: International Search and Rescue Advisory Group, an international institution with its secretariat located within the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

## (3) Achievements to Date

From September 1987, when the law was enacted to dispatch the Japan Disaster Relief Team until January 2010, the police, in a total of 12 operations, dispatched 194 team members to 12 countries and areas affected by earthquakes, collapsed buildings, or tsunamis and conducted international emergency rescue operations to search and rescue affected people. When the rescue team was dispatched to an earthquake site in Algeria in 2003, it succeeded in rescuing one survivor.

Furthermore, in 2005, a team of five experts in DNA profiling were dispatched to the site affected by the tsunami in Thailand to identify disaster victims.

## (4) Recent Activities

1) Dispatching the JDR Rescue Team to the Earthquake-hit Area in Sichuan Province of China

A magnitude 7.9 earthquake hit Sichuan Province of China at 3:28 pm on May 12, 2008 (2:28 pm local time the same day). In response to a request for assistance by the government of China on May 15, the Japanese government dispatched a 61-member JDR rescue team including 20 police officers and three search dogs for seven-days May 15 to 21.

The Japan rescue team searched collapsed middle schools, hospitals, and other buildings and was unable to find any survivors but located and recovered 16 bodies.

In July 2008, Chinese President Hu Jintao offered words of appreciation directly to members of the Japan Disaster Relief Team.