Penal system of Japan
Encyclopedia
The Penal system of Japan (including prison
s) is part of the criminal justice system of Japan
. It is intended to resocialize
, reform
, and rehabilitate
offenders. The penal system is operated by the Correction Bureau of the Ministry of Justice
.
according to gender
, nationality
, type of penalty
, length of sentence
, degree of criminality, and state of physical and mental health
. They are then placed in special programs designed to treat their individual needs.
Vocational and formal education are emphasized, as is instruction in social values. Most convicts engage in labor, for which a small stipend is set aside for use on release. Under a system stressing incentives, prisoners are initially assigned to community cells, then earn better quarters and additional privileges based on their good behavior.
administers the adult prison system as well as the juvenile correctional system and three women's guidance homes (to rehabilitate prostitutes). The ministry's Rehabilitation Bureau operates the probation
and parole
systems. Prison personnel are trained at an institute in Tokyo and in branch training institutes in each of the eight regional correctional headquarters under the Correctional Bureau. Professional probation officers study at the Legal Training and Research Institute of the Ministry.
centers, and the remaining 40,000 were in prisons. Approximately 46 percent were repeat offenders. Japanese recidivism
was attributed mainly to the discretionary powers of police, prosecutors, and courts and to the tendency to seek alternative sentences for first offenders.
By 2001 The overall prison population rose to 61,242 or 48 prisoners per 100,000. By of the end of 2009, the prison population had yet again risen to 75,250, or 59 prisoners per 100,000. One reason for the rise is a large increase in the number of elderly being convicted of crimes, with loneliness being cited as a major factor.
are handled under the general penal system, most are treated in separate juvenile training schools. More lenient than the penal institutions, these facilities provide correctional education and regular schooling for delinquents under the age of twenty.
More adults are in prison than child delinquents, mainly because of the low crime rate.
A large number of those given suspended sentences are released to the supervision of volunteer officers under the guidance of professional probation officers. Adults are usually placed on probation
for a fixed period, and juveniles are placed on probation until they reach the age of twenty.
Although volunteers are sometimes criticized for being too old compared with their charges (more than 70 percent are retired and are age fifty-five or over) and thus unable to understand the problems their charges faced, most authorities believe that the volunteers are critically important in the nation's criminal justice system.
has cited Japan for abuse of inmates by guards for infractions of prison rules. This abuse is in the form of beatings, solitary confinement, overcrowding, or "Minor solitary confinement" (keiheikin), which forces inmates to be interned in tiny cells kneeling or crossed legged, and restrained with handcuffs for prolonged periods of time. http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ASA22/008/1998/en/e5ddfbf0-da97-11dd-80bc-797022e51902/asa220081998en.html,"
Detention houses:
Medical facilities:
- Houses men - Sakura, Tochigi
- Houses men - Mine, Yamaguchi
- Houses men and women - Hamada, Shimane
- Houses men
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
s) is part of the criminal justice system of Japan
Criminal justice system of Japan
Three basic features of Japan's system of criminal justice characterize its operations. First, the institutions—police, government prosecutor's offices, courts, and correctional organs—maintain close and cooperative relations with each other, consulting frequently on how best to accomplish the...
. It is intended to resocialize
Resocialization
Resocialization is defined as radically changing an inmate’s personality by carefully controlling the environmentKey examples include the process of resocializing new recruits into the military so that they can operate as soldiers and the reverse process, in which those who have become accustomed...
, reform
Reform
Reform means to put or change into an improved form or condition; to amend or improve by change of color or removal of faults or abuses, beneficial change, more specifically, reversion to a pure original state, to repair, restore or to correct....
, and rehabilitate
Rehabilitation (penology)
Rehabilitation means; To restore to useful life, as through therapy and education or To restore to good condition, operation, or capacity....
offenders. The penal system is operated by the Correction Bureau of the Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice (Japan)
The is one of Ministries of the Japanese government.-Meiji Constitution:The Ministry of Justice was established under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan in 1871 as the .-Constitution of Japan:...
.
Procedure
On confinement, prisoners are first classifiedClassified
Classified may refer to:*Classified information, sensitive information to which access is restricted by law or regulation to particular classes of people*Classified advertising*Classified , rapper from Halifax, Nova Scotia...
according to gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
, nationality
Nationality
Nationality is membership of a nation or sovereign state, usually determined by their citizenship, but sometimes by ethnicity or place of residence, or based on their sense of national identity....
, type of penalty
Sentence (law)
In law, a sentence forms the final explicit act of a judge-ruled process, and also the symbolic principal act connected to his function. The sentence can generally involve a decree of imprisonment, a fine and/or other punishments against a defendant convicted of a crime...
, length of sentence
Sentence (law)
In law, a sentence forms the final explicit act of a judge-ruled process, and also the symbolic principal act connected to his function. The sentence can generally involve a decree of imprisonment, a fine and/or other punishments against a defendant convicted of a crime...
, degree of criminality, and state of physical and mental health
Mental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
. They are then placed in special programs designed to treat their individual needs.
Vocational and formal education are emphasized, as is instruction in social values. Most convicts engage in labor, for which a small stipend is set aside for use on release. Under a system stressing incentives, prisoners are initially assigned to community cells, then earn better quarters and additional privileges based on their good behavior.
Administration
The Correctional Bureau of the Ministry of JusticeMinistry of Justice (Japan)
The is one of Ministries of the Japanese government.-Meiji Constitution:The Ministry of Justice was established under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan in 1871 as the .-Constitution of Japan:...
administers the adult prison system as well as the juvenile correctional system and three women's guidance homes (to rehabilitate prostitutes). The ministry's Rehabilitation Bureau operates the probation
Probation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
and parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
systems. Prison personnel are trained at an institute in Tokyo and in branch training institutes in each of the eight regional correctional headquarters under the Correctional Bureau. Professional probation officers study at the Legal Training and Research Institute of the Ministry.
Prison population
In 1990 Japan's prison population stood at somewhat less than 47,000; nearly 7,000 were in short-term detentionDetention (imprisonment)
Detention is the process when a state, government or citizen lawfully holds a person by removing their freedom of liberty at that time. This can be due to criminal charges being raised against the individual as part of a prosecution or to protect a person or property...
centers, and the remaining 40,000 were in prisons. Approximately 46 percent were repeat offenders. Japanese recidivism
Recidivism
Recidivism is the act of a person repeating an undesirable behavior after they have either experienced negative consequences of that behavior, or have been treated or trained to extinguish that behavior...
was attributed mainly to the discretionary powers of police, prosecutors, and courts and to the tendency to seek alternative sentences for first offenders.
By 2001 The overall prison population rose to 61,242 or 48 prisoners per 100,000. By of the end of 2009, the prison population had yet again risen to 75,250, or 59 prisoners per 100,000. One reason for the rise is a large increase in the number of elderly being convicted of crimes, with loneliness being cited as a major factor.
Juvenile offenders
Although a few juvenile offendersJuvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency is participation in illegal behavior by minors who fall under a statutory age limit. Most legal systems prescribe specific procedures for dealing with juveniles, such as juvenile detention centers. There are a multitude of different theories on the causes of crime, most if not...
are handled under the general penal system, most are treated in separate juvenile training schools. More lenient than the penal institutions, these facilities provide correctional education and regular schooling for delinquents under the age of twenty.
More adults are in prison than child delinquents, mainly because of the low crime rate.
Aftercare treatment
According to the Ministry of Justice, the government's responsibility for social order does not end with imprisoning an offender, but also extends to aftercare treatment and to noninstitutional treatment to substitute for or supplement prison terms.A large number of those given suspended sentences are released to the supervision of volunteer officers under the guidance of professional probation officers. Adults are usually placed on probation
Probation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
for a fixed period, and juveniles are placed on probation until they reach the age of twenty.
Use of volunteers
Volunteers are also used in supervising parolees, although professional probation officers generally supervise offenders considered to have a high risk of recidivism. Volunteers hail from all walks of life and handle no more than five cases at one time. They are responsible for overseeing the offenders' conduct to prevent the occurrence of further offenses. Volunteer probation officers also offer guidance and assistance to the ex-convict in assuming a law-abiding place in the community.Although volunteers are sometimes criticized for being too old compared with their charges (more than 70 percent are retired and are age fifty-five or over) and thus unable to understand the problems their charges faced, most authorities believe that the volunteers are critically important in the nation's criminal justice system.
Inmate rights abuses
Amnesty InternationalAmnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
has cited Japan for abuse of inmates by guards for infractions of prison rules. This abuse is in the form of beatings, solitary confinement, overcrowding, or "Minor solitary confinement" (keiheikin), which forces inmates to be interned in tiny cells kneeling or crossed legged, and restrained with handcuffs for prolonged periods of time. http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ASA22/008/1998/en/e5ddfbf0-da97-11dd-80bc-797022e51902/asa220081998en.html,"
Penal institutions
Japanese "penal institutions" include prisons for sentenced adults, juvenile detention centers for sentenced juveniles, and detention houses for pre-trial inmates.Prisons
- Abashiri Prison (maximum security}
- Fukuoka Prison
- Fukushima Prison
- Hiroshima Prison - Naka-ku, HiroshimaNaka-ku, Hiroshimais the heart of Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. Naka-ku is home to Hiroshima's central business district and Peace Memorial Park. Major attractions include the Hondori shopping arcade, a covered mall-like street of shops extending east from the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park to Hacchobori...
- Ichihara Prison
- Matsuyama Prison
- Oita Prison - Kita-ku, OsakaKita-ku, Osakais one of 24 wards of Osaka, Japan.-Economy:West Japan Railway Company has its headquarters in Kita-ku. Nihon Bussan has its headquarters in Kita-ku. Dentsu and Yomiuri Shimbun have branch offices in Kita-ku. Mazda has an office in the Umeda Sky Building Tower East. Air France has an office on the...
- Tukigata Prison
- Yokohama Prison
Detention houses:
- Tokyo Detention HouseTokyo Detention HouseThe is a correctional facility in Katsushika, Tokyo. A part of the penal system of Japan, it is operated by the Ministry of Justice.One of Japan's seven execution chambers is in this facility. Hanging is Japan's method of execution. The execution chamber in Tokyo has a trap door...
Medical facilities:
- Kitakyusyu Medical Prison
Private Finance Initiative
Private Finance Initiative (PFI) prisons are maintained with private management. PFI prisons, which are for sentenced inmates with low criminal tendencies, include: - Kakogawa, HyogoKakogawa, Hyogo
is a city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. The city was founded on June 15, 1950.As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 268,565 and a population density of 1,940 persons per km². The total area is 138.51 km²...
- Houses men - Sakura, Tochigi
Sakura, Tochigi
is a city located in Tochigi, Japan.The city was formed on March 28, 2005 with the merger of the towns of Kitsuregawa and Ujiie, both from Shioya District. It is a hiragana city....
- Houses men - Mine, Yamaguchi
Mine, Yamaguchi
is a city located in Yamaguchi, Japan.- History :The city was founded on March 31, 1954 by a merger of municipalities that departed from Mine District ....
- Houses men and women - Hamada, Shimane
Hamada, Shimane
is a city located in Shimane, Japan. It is the third largest city in the prefecture and is located at the south-western end of the prefecture. It is a coastal city on the Sea of Japan and possesses beautiful white-sand beaches, which make the city a popular destination for local tourists in the...
- Houses men
Logo
The logo of the Correction Bureau includes three "C"s. One stands for Challenge, one for Change, and one for Cooperate.External links
- Correction Bureau - Ministry of JusticeMinistry of Justice (Japan)The is one of Ministries of the Japanese government.-Meiji Constitution:The Ministry of Justice was established under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan in 1871 as the .-Constitution of Japan:...
- Correction Bureau - Ministry of JusticeMinistry of Justice (Japan)The is one of Ministries of the Japanese government.-Meiji Constitution:The Ministry of Justice was established under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan in 1871 as the .-Constitution of Japan:...
- Correctional Association Foundation
- Center for Prisoners' Rights
- Documentary: Japan from inside / Le Japon à double tour