Japan Press Weekly

Tweet

2018 March 14 - 20 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

JCP: Revision of Tokyo ordinance will lead to human rights violations

Japanese Communist Party member of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly Oyama Tomoko on March 19 at an assembly committee meeting criticized the Tokyo government-proposed revision of the Anti-Nuisance Ordinance for having the potential to excessively restrict Tokyo citizens’ liberties, and demanded the withdrawal of the proposal.

The Tokyo Metropolitan government submitted to the current session of the Metropolitan Assembly a bill to change the Anti-Nuisance Ordinance to broaden the scope of the regulations. The bill is currently under discussion in the Police/Fire Fighting committee.

JCP Oyama at the committee meeting pointed to risks entailed in the revision of the ordinance. As an example, she cited citizens’ repeated demonstrations and rallies in front of the Diet building in protest against Prime Minister Abe’s anti-people policies. Oyama said that if the police recognize citizens’ protests as “illegitimate”, they would arrest people involved in those actions. The police may also regulate the access of journalists to homes of people to be interviewed, the JCP lawmaker added.

Oyama noted that lawyers and experts expressed their opposition to the revision of the ordinance by saying that it would curtail freedom of expression, press freedom, and other human rights guaranteed under the Constitution. Furthermore, the JCP assemblyperson reported that as of March 19, the number of civil groups which sent to the Tokyo government petitions objecting to the bill exceeded 100. She urged the governor to drop the proposal which can be used to strengthen police suppression of civil liberties.