Japan's new Justice Minister Katsuyuki Kawai pledges reform

On Friday, newly appointed Justice Minister Katsuyuki Kawai promised to reform his ministry, including a pledge to more stringently enforce laws and regulations related to immigration.

Kawai said the increase of the foreign worker quota under a new visa program that took effect in April will be a focal point during his tenure, alongside enhancing immigration controls through more rigorous screening and stricter immigration checks.

The justice minister added that his new policies will also target foreign nationals staying in Japan illegally who refuse to return to their home countries, including those in detention, pointing to a trend of increasingly longer detention periods.

Kawai also pledged to provide greater assistance to disadvantaged citizens.

“I’m aware that there are many people in Japan who cry out in anguish and many who aren’t even able to raise their voices,” he said, referring in particular to the victims of child abuse. He said the ministry is now working on new countermeasures.

His comment comes amid criticism over inadequacies in the current system that failed to prevent cases of child abuse that led to tragic deaths.

“I don’t think it would be appropriate to abolish the death penalty”

However, Kawai’s new policies and planned changes in laws and regulations won’t affect the capital punishment system, which has long been criticized by many in the international community as cruel and inhumane. The minister said he has no intention to changing the system.

“I don’t think it would be appropriate to abolish the death penalty,” he said. “The existence of the death penalty system is a critical issue that lies at the basis of Japan’s penal code, which should reflect public opinion and requires thorough consideration from various angles.”

He said the latest public opinion polls on the death penalty conducted by the Cabinet Office show that 80.3 percent of citizens say the death penalty is an unavoidable punishment for those who have committed heinous crimes.

“But I’m aware this is the most severe form of punishment as it ends one’s life and it goes without saying that it should be based on the highest of ethical standards,” he said.

He promised to run the ministry with transparency.

“I want to transform the Justice Ministry into an institution that will provide support to all people waiting for help and stand by them in the truest sense,” he added.

Calling the Justice Ministry “the most conservative of all governmental institutions,” Kawai added that the new approach will involve more innovative measures including the use of the most advanced technology available to improve the ministry’s operations. [Click here to read the full article.]

Source: Japan Times, Staff, September 30, 2019

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