
Japan
Japan is a liberal democracy with a record of upholding civil and political rights, but its laws and systems to protect rights are weak. Japan has no laws prohibiting racial, ethnic, or religious discrimination, or discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Japan has a law prohibiting sexual discrimination in the workplace only. Civil society groups have long called for a national human rights institution. Serious human rights issues include an asylum and refugee determination system that rarely grants refugee status, a “hostage” justice system that detains criminal suspects for long periods to coerce confessions, use of the death penalty, and a huge psychiatric industry that uses arbitrary detention and use of physical restraints. The Japanese government continues to actively support the expansion of fossil fuels both domestically and abroad, contributing to the global climate crisis.

Videos
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Tokyo Confirms Myanmar Military Misused Japan-Funded Ships
Japan Should Suspend Non-Humanitarian Aid to Junta
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Hong Kong Arrest Encroaches on Free Expression in Japan
Japanese Government Should Resist Beijing’s Transnational Repression
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Japan to Hold Retrial for Decades-Old Death Sentence
Case Highlights Cruelty of ‘Hostage Justice System,’ Capital Punishment
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G7 Letter Highlights Japan’s LGBT Rights Gaps
Ambassadors Call on the Prime Minister to Take Domestic Action
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Japan to ‘Appropriately Handle’ Project Benefiting Myanmar’s Military
Prime Minister Should Fulfill Pledge by Stopping Payments, Imposing Sanctions
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Japan Parliament Inquiry on "Building a New International Order – War, Peace, and Solution in the 21st Century"
Testimony on the subtheme of "Disarmament and Non-Proliferation" by Kanae Doi, Human Rights Watch on 22 February 2023
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Ouster of Anti-LGBT Official in Japan Should Prompt Reform
Tokyo Should Live Up to Peers for May G7 Summit
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Myanmar: Japan’s Construction Aid Benefits Junta
Yokogawa Bridge Corp. Should Cut Ties to Myanmar’s Military
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Japan Highlights Chinese Government Rights Abuses
Tokyo Should Support Crimes Against Humanity Investigation