Japan Press Weekly

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2016 August 17 - 23 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Kanagawa Police put out feelers questioning high voter turnout at 3 high schools

Akahata has recently found that the Kanagawa Prefectural Police put out feelers to see if anyone had given “biased” classes at the three public high schools located in the electoral district achieving the highest teenager turnout in the July Upper House election in which 18-year-olds voted for the first time in Japan.

According to Akahata on August 20, upon receiving calls from several citizens complaining about the police inquiry, Japanese Communist Party member of the Kanagawa Prefectural Assembly Oyama Nanako asked the police if it was true. The police in response said that it did call the three schools after the election to ask whether they taught students special classes because students’ voter turnout in the district was very high.

Furthermore, the police allegedly asked what specifically was taught to students at the three schools. A teacher told Akahata that she/he was asked by the police how teachers taught about “political neutrality” to students. The teacher said, “I’ve never heard of police inquiring into school curriculums. The school staff are feeling uneasy about the police inquiries. I think this is unfair interference in education that is stepping over the line. I’m awfully scared that the Board of Education is shutting its eyes to the act which exceeds the limits of police authority.”

The JCP assemblyperson said, “The police said it wasn’t an order from the top, but the act was very reminiscent of prewar control over education. Established on remorse over the past excesses, the present Boards of Education are independent from the state. The Kanagawa Board of Education should be aware of its role and do something to protect the autonomy of education.”

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The ruling Liberal Democratic Party in July encouraged parents and students to inform the LDP about teachers who, the party said, did not adhere to political “neutrality”. The LDP, on its website, defined those who oppose sending children to battlefields or who call for the revocation of the security-related legislation as “biased” teachers. The Internet page, now closed, provoked public criticism such as, “You are telling students to be police informants. It is intervention in education by the state power.”

Past related articles:
> LDP criticized for encouraging people to denounce teachers under guise of survey on neutrality in education [July 10, 2016]
> Move to discourage political education in schools should be prevented [January 17, 2016]