Japan Press Weekly

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2013 December 4 - 10 [CIVIL RIGHTS]

Anime master Miyazaki Hayao opposes secrets bill

Japan’s well-known actors and film directors, including anime maestro Miyazaki Hayao, on December 3 set up a group in protest against a state secrets protection bill.

The number of people joining the group has reached 246, including film directors Obayashi Nobuhiko, Koreeda Hirokazu, and Izutsu Kazuyuki; actors Yoshinaga Sayuri and Otake Shinobu; and scenario writer Yamada Taichi.

The group declared that the bill is unacceptable with the horrific past history of repression under the imperial government in which the film industry was forced to play a role in glorifying the war without any right to freedom of expression.

On the same day, the Directors Guild of Japan, the Japan Writers Guild, and the Writers Guild of Japan issued a joint statement calling for the scrapping of the bill.