Child pornography laws in Japan
Encyclopedia
Production, distribution and possessing for sale or distribution of child pornography
depicting real children is illegal and strictly enforced.
is strictly restricted by the article 175 of the Criminal Code
banning to sell, distribute, display in public and possession for sale of obscene objects since 1907. Pornographic films with clear view of genitals are illegal, thus, genital areas are pixelized
in legal pornographic videos (see Pornography in Japan
).
Article 34 of the Child Welfare Act is also applicable to child sexual abuse
including child pornography and child prostitution since 1947.
The Criminal Code has been applied to child and adult pornography. In August 1993, a manager of a burusera
shop who induced a female high school student to appear on an underground video called was arrested on suspicion of possession for sale of obscene pictures, i.e., article 175 of the Criminal Code, and violation of article 34 of the Child Welfare Act.
Child pornography
is banned in Japan by the Act on Punishment of Activities Relating to Child Prostitution and Child Pornography. It was passed in the Diet of Japan
in 1998, and enforcement started in 1999. It was amended in 2003.
The law is applied to hardcore, softcore, erotica, or artistic nude with no distinction. For example, the model of a famous nude photo book Santa Fe
is 18 years old at the time of publication, however, she may be 17 years old at the time of taking the pictures. The Minister of Justice Eisuke Mori explained the photo book may fall under the category of child pornography if the model was 17.
The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography is ratified by the Diet in 2004 and enforced in 2005.
In 2003, the Japanese government updated its child pornography laws again to match those of the west, but this did not curtail the young idol and lolicon industry.
reporting an estimated 3 million idol photo books sold between 2006 and 2007. Models are categorized under age groupings, ranging anywhere from 18 years of age (U-18), to as young as 3 years old (U-3). Child models in Japan are not seen in the same light as in the West, however, as some models are eventually offered acting, singing, or promotional careers.
Studios producing junior idol media are not exempt from current laws. After 2007, staffs and presidents of some video production firms were arrested on allegations that their productions overstepped the legal boundary at least a few times.
" is the slang term used in reference to the child porn industry, today this consists of drawn images in manga
form and not real images of actual children (see simulated pornography
). It is short for "Lolita
Complex
". Lolicon manga depict young girls in an erotic manner. The young boys equivalent is called Shotacon
.
Figures for the total value of the simulated child pornography industry are hard to come
by, but it is estimated that 30-40% of manga
contains sexual themes or content. The age of consent
in Japan is 13, but generally higher under prefectural
laws. Manga is a large industry in Japan, accounting for over $5.5 billion USD in sales alone in 2000; nearly a quarter of the total sales of all published materials in Japan. No regulations are in place to control images portraying sexual exploitation in manga
and animated films
.
In Japan, considerable debate exists regarding the legality of simulated child pornography. Supporters of legal control of simulated pornography claim to be advocate the laws of human rights
and children's rights such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child
. Opponents, such as the also claims to be advocacy of the child rights pointed out the lack of evidence for commercial sexual exploitation of children
(CSEC) and decreasing numbers in sexually motivated crimes.
Constitutionality
of the laws were discussed since Article 21 of the Constitution of Japan
guarantees freedom of speech
, press
and all other forms of expression. The definitions of obscenity
, specifically written as "arouses or stimulates the viewer's sexual desire" in these laws are argued as ambiguous.
In regards to the crackdown, Takafumi Ozawa of the Japanese National Police Agency
stated: "We are strengthening the crackdown on child porn as society became more aware of the issue, and child porn is getting rapidly copied and spread on the Internet".
has yet to review any of the laws currently in place making simple possession of child pornography legal in Japan, or more specifically the lack of laws punishing simple possession without the additional criteria of distribution.
In 2008, , a Japanese lawyer
, complained that no organization or government body supported the victims of child sexual exploitation, pointing out the fact that there is no government budget to care for these victims.
, are the only two member countries in the G8 that have not outlawed the simple possession of child pornography itself.
Today, the law permits the simple possession of child pornographic images if there is no intention of selling or distributing them. The United States ambassador to Japan has stated that Japan's lack of laws restricting possession of child pornography has impeded international efforts in the investigation of child pornography rings. In June 2008, a bill proposing the ban on child pornography possession was submitted to the House of Representatives of Japan
, where it was brought before the Diet in September.
In October 2007, a public opinion poll taken by the Japanese government showed that 86.5% of respondents favored regulation on art depicting child pornography, while 90.9% endorsed regulation of "harmful materials" on the Internet. A non-government internet opinion poll indicates the opposite result, i.e. 10.35% in favor of punishing possession, and 47.71% against.
The Liberal Democratic Party
and the New Komeito Party
proposed to prohibit possession without distribution, but the Democratic Party of Japan
presented a counterproposal to prohibit the taking over from anyone. The House of Representatives was dissolved on July 21, 2009, therefore the proposals to revise the law on the table were withdrawn.
During the general election
of the House of Representatives in August 2009, politicians' opinions were divided, as shown in answers to open letters from a civilian organization; those who opposed simple possession feared being falsely accused of such.
Child pornography
Child pornography refers to images or films and, in some cases, writings depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child...
depicting real children is illegal and strictly enforced.
Legal background
Japanese pornographyPornography in Japan
Pornography in Japan.-Before the 20th century:Shunga or pornographic wood-block pictures were printed with all imaginable situations. These often took the form of a book with sentences to describe verbal utterances of the partners, as well as to offer brief descriptions of a scene...
is strictly restricted by the article 175 of the Criminal Code
Criminal Code of Japan
The Penal Code of Japan was passed in 1907 as Law No. 45. It is one of the Six Codes that form the foundation of Japanese law.- External links :* - Japanese Ministry of Justice...
banning to sell, distribute, display in public and possession for sale of obscene objects since 1907. Pornographic films with clear view of genitals are illegal, thus, genital areas are pixelized
Pixelization
Pixelization is a video- and image-editing technique in which an image is blurred by displaying part or all of it at a markedly lower resolution. It is primarily used for censorship...
in legal pornographic videos (see Pornography in Japan
Pornography in Japan
Pornography in Japan.-Before the 20th century:Shunga or pornographic wood-block pictures were printed with all imaginable situations. These often took the form of a book with sentences to describe verbal utterances of the partners, as well as to offer brief descriptions of a scene...
).
Article 34 of the Child Welfare Act is also applicable to child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include asking or pressuring a child to engage in sexual activities , indecent exposure with intent to gratify their own sexual desires or to...
including child pornography and child prostitution since 1947.
The Criminal Code has been applied to child and adult pornography. In August 1993, a manager of a burusera
Burusera
Burusera is a Japanese word coined by combining , meaning bloomers as in bottoms of gym suits, and , meaning sailor suit, the traditional Japanese school uniforms for schoolgirls.-Burusera shops:...
shop who induced a female high school student to appear on an underground video called was arrested on suspicion of possession for sale of obscene pictures, i.e., article 175 of the Criminal Code, and violation of article 34 of the Child Welfare Act.
Child pornography
Child pornography
Child pornography refers to images or films and, in some cases, writings depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child...
is banned in Japan by the Act on Punishment of Activities Relating to Child Prostitution and Child Pornography. It was passed in the Diet of Japan
Diet of Japan
The is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a parallel voting system. In addition to passing laws, the Diet is formally...
in 1998, and enforcement started in 1999. It was amended in 2003.
The law is applied to hardcore, softcore, erotica, or artistic nude with no distinction. For example, the model of a famous nude photo book Santa Fe
Santa Fe (nude photo book)
Santa Fe is a Japanese nude photo book published in 1991. It was modelled by Rie Miyazawa, and photographed by Kishin Shinoyama. Taken at the peak of Miyazawa's career, it sold 1.5 million copies...
is 18 years old at the time of publication, however, she may be 17 years old at the time of taking the pictures. The Minister of Justice Eisuke Mori explained the photo book may fall under the category of child pornography if the model was 17.
The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography is ratified by the Diet in 2004 and enforced in 2005.
In 2003, the Japanese government updated its child pornography laws again to match those of the west, but this did not curtail the young idol and lolicon industry.
Junior Idols
Although not explicitly pornographic, media portraying young "idols" is a significant industry in Japan. Despite the lack of nudity, photobooks and videos of underage models in scant, tight fitting and revealing clothing are often taken to be provocative and pornographic in nature. Today, this industry remains lucrative, with The Japan TimesThe Japan Times
The Japan Times is an English language newspaper published in Japan. Unlike its competitors, the Daily Yomiuri and the International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun, it is not affiliated with a Japanese language media organization...
reporting an estimated 3 million idol photo books sold between 2006 and 2007. Models are categorized under age groupings, ranging anywhere from 18 years of age (U-18), to as young as 3 years old (U-3). Child models in Japan are not seen in the same light as in the West, however, as some models are eventually offered acting, singing, or promotional careers.
Studios producing junior idol media are not exempt from current laws. After 2007, staffs and presidents of some video production firms were arrested on allegations that their productions overstepped the legal boundary at least a few times.
Simulated pornography
"LoliconLolicon
, also romanised as lolikon or rorikon, is a Japanese portmanteau of the phrase "Lolita complex". In Japan, the term describes an attraction to underage girls or an individual with such an attraction...
" is the slang term used in reference to the child porn industry, today this consists of drawn images in manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
form and not real images of actual children (see simulated pornography
Simulated pornography
Simulated child pornography is defined as pornography depicting minors that is produced without the direct involvement of children in the production process itself...
). It is short for "Lolita
Lolita
Lolita is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov, first written in English and published in 1955 in Paris and 1958 in New York, and later translated by the author into Russian...
Complex
Complex (psychology)
A complex is a core pattern of emotions, memories, perceptions, and wishes in the personal unconscious organized around a common theme, such as power or status...
". Lolicon manga depict young girls in an erotic manner. The young boys equivalent is called Shotacon
Shotacon
, sometimes shortened to , is a Japanese slang portmanteau of the phrase and describes an attraction to young boys, or an individual with such an attraction. Outside Japan, the term is used less often with this meaning. It refers to a genre of manga and anime wherein pre-pubescent or pubescent...
.
Figures for the total value of the simulated child pornography industry are hard to come
by, but it is estimated that 30-40% of manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
contains sexual themes or content. The age of consent
Age of consent
While the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used in relation to sexual activity, the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. The European Union calls it the legal age for sexual...
in Japan is 13, but generally higher under prefectural
Prefectures of Japan
The prefectures of Japan are the country's 47 subnational jurisdictions: one "metropolis" , Tokyo; one "circuit" , Hokkaidō; two urban prefectures , Osaka and Kyoto; and 43 other prefectures . In Japanese, they are commonly referred to as...
laws. Manga is a large industry in Japan, accounting for over $5.5 billion USD in sales alone in 2000; nearly a quarter of the total sales of all published materials in Japan. No regulations are in place to control images portraying sexual exploitation in manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
and animated films
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
.
In Japan, considerable debate exists regarding the legality of simulated child pornography. Supporters of legal control of simulated pornography claim to be advocate the laws of human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
and children's rights such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child
Convention on the Rights of the Child
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is a human rights treaty setting out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children...
. Opponents, such as the also claims to be advocacy of the child rights pointed out the lack of evidence for commercial sexual exploitation of children
Commercial sexual exploitation of children
Commercial sexual exploitation of children constitutes a form of coercion and violence against children and amounts to forced labour and a contemporary form of slavery....
(CSEC) and decreasing numbers in sexually motivated crimes.
Constitutionality
Constitutionality
Constitutionality is the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution. Acts that are not in accordance with the rules laid down in the constitution are deemed to be ultra vires.-See also:*ultra vires*Company law*Constitutional law...
of the laws were discussed since Article 21 of the Constitution of Japan
Constitution of Japan
The is the fundamental law of Japan. It was enacted on 3 May, 1947 as a new constitution for postwar Japan.-Outline:The constitution provides for a parliamentary system of government and guarantees certain fundamental rights...
guarantees freedom of speech
Freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship. The term freedom of expression is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used...
, press
Freedom of the press
Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the freedom of communication and expression through vehicles including various electronic media and published materials...
and all other forms of expression. The definitions of obscenity
Obscenity
An obscenity is any statement or act which strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time, is a profanity, or is otherwise taboo, indecent, abhorrent, or disgusting, or is especially inauspicious...
, specifically written as "arouses or stimulates the viewer's sexual desire" in these laws are argued as ambiguous.
2008 police raids
In the first half of 2008, Japanese police took action against over 300 cases of child pornography. This was a 17 percent rise from 2007, and three times the number of legal actions taken in 2004. According to police, is a sign of increasing awareness when it comes to child sexual exploitation.In regards to the crackdown, Takafumi Ozawa of the Japanese National Police Agency
National Police Agency (Japan)
The is an agency administered by the National Public Safety Commission of the Cabinet Office in the cabinet of Japan, and is the central coordinating agency of the Japanese police system....
stated: "We are strengthening the crackdown on child porn as society became more aware of the issue, and child porn is getting rapidly copied and spread on the Internet".
Criticism of the Japanese government
In 2008, Ethel Quayle, an expert on child pornography issues, made a report to the Third World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents highlighted that Japan was a major impetus behind child pornography worldwide. TokyoTokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
has yet to review any of the laws currently in place making simple possession of child pornography legal in Japan, or more specifically the lack of laws punishing simple possession without the additional criteria of distribution.
In 2008, , a Japanese lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, complained that no organization or government body supported the victims of child sexual exploitation, pointing out the fact that there is no government budget to care for these victims.
Debate on simple possession control
Japan, along with RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, are the only two member countries in the G8 that have not outlawed the simple possession of child pornography itself.
Today, the law permits the simple possession of child pornographic images if there is no intention of selling or distributing them. The United States ambassador to Japan has stated that Japan's lack of laws restricting possession of child pornography has impeded international efforts in the investigation of child pornography rings. In June 2008, a bill proposing the ban on child pornography possession was submitted to the House of Representatives of Japan
House of Representatives of Japan
The is the lower house of the Diet of Japan. The House of Councillors of Japan is the upper house.The House of Representatives has 480 members, elected for a four-year term. Of these, 180 members are elected from 11 multi-member constituencies by a party-list system of proportional representation,...
, where it was brought before the Diet in September.
In October 2007, a public opinion poll taken by the Japanese government showed that 86.5% of respondents favored regulation on art depicting child pornography, while 90.9% endorsed regulation of "harmful materials" on the Internet. A non-government internet opinion poll indicates the opposite result, i.e. 10.35% in favor of punishing possession, and 47.71% against.
The Liberal Democratic Party
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election...
and the New Komeito Party
New Komeito Party
The , New Kōmei Party, or NKP is a centre-right political party in Japan founded by members of the Nichiren Buddhist organization Sōka Gakkai. The leadership and financing of the two groups are currently independent...
proposed to prohibit possession without distribution, but the Democratic Party of Japan
Democratic Party of Japan
The is a political party in Japan founded in 1998 by the merger of several opposition parties. Its socially liberal platform is generally considered center-left in the Japanese political spectrum...
presented a counterproposal to prohibit the taking over from anyone. The House of Representatives was dissolved on July 21, 2009, therefore the proposals to revise the law on the table were withdrawn.
During the general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
of the House of Representatives in August 2009, politicians' opinions were divided, as shown in answers to open letters from a civilian organization; those who opposed simple possession feared being falsely accused of such.