COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD TAKES UP REPORT OF JAPAN

HR/CRC/98/26
27 May 1998

The Committee on the Rights of the Child this morning started its consideration of a Japanese Government report, raising such issues as bullying in schools, sexual exploitation of youngsters and the treatment of foreign nationals.

Introducing the report, Nobutoshi Akao, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations Office at Geneva and head of a 23-member strong Japanese delegation, said realization of the well-being of children was considered to be the task of the whole Japanese society. Based on this thinking, he said, the central Government, as well as local communities and families, had been making efforts to create an ideal environment for children in which they could nurture their abilities and talents to the maximum extent.

But Mr. Akao acknowledged that Japan was facing some serious problems concerning children, including bullying and acts of sexual exploitation of youth committed by Japanese nationals. In order to tackle such problems, he said, it was necessary to identify their root causes, to deepen understanding of those causes and to take earnest steps toward a solution.

The report of Japan says the Government has implemented appropriate measures to protect children from all forms of exploitation and abuse under the Penal Code, the Child Welfare Law and the Labour Standards Law, among other legislation.

Representatives of some 80 Japanese non-governmental organizations (NGOs) also attended this morning's meeting.

The Committee resumes its work at 3 p.m. today to continue its consideration of the report of Japan.

Report of Japan

The report (document CRC/C/41/Add.1), which contains an article-by-article review of how Japan applies the provisions of the Convention, says the Government has implemented appropriate measures to protect children from all forms of exploitation and abuse under the Penal Code, the Child Welfare Law and the Labour Standards Law, among other legislation. Measures against child abuse include projects like the urban in-home family support scheme and the model project for the management of child abuse cases.

According to the document, the Japanese Civil Code prescribes that any person attaining 20 years of age may take legal action autonomously. An adult is considered to be any person of 20 years of age or more. Meanwhile, the Penal Code provides that an act of a person under 14 years of age is not punishable by law, and that anyone who performs a sexual act or commits an indecent act with a person under the age of 13 is subject to punishment. The Child Welfare Law additionally prohibits inducement of a person under 18 years of age to practice obscene acts.

The report also states that compulsory education is provided for children from 6 years to 15 years of age.

Introduction of Report

NOBUTOSHI AKAO, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said in his country children were regarded as the creators of the future and a precious treasure. Realization of the well-being of children was considered to be the task of the whole Japanese society. Since the ratification of the Convention, all administrative, legislative and judicial bodies had been implementing measures related to children in accordance with the purpose of the treaty, especially its basic philosophy of 'the best interest of the child'. There had been an increased recognition and understanding by the general public of the importance of children's rights; more attention was being paid to various social problems involving children, such as bullying, child
abuse and sexual exploitation, including prostitution. Mr. Akao said in 1994, the 'Civil Liberties Commissioners for the Rights of the Child' were introduced as a measure to monitor the rights provided in the Convention. The Commissioners were in charge of supervision in order to prevent any violations of children's rights, and they took immediate and proper relief measures in
cooperation with the Legal Affairs Bureau. They were also responsible for publicity campaigns to fully protect the rights of the child. Bullying was one of the central problems of children's rights and the number of consultations on bullying considered by the Commissioners had increased from 612 cases in 1994 to 2,654 cases in 1997.

To date, the Government had actively pursued various educational activities for the dissemination of the Convention, including distribution of brochures explaining the purpose and content of the treaty, posters and publicity via television, radio and other media, he said. As for the child-rearing allowance which was provided to fatherless families, under the current system, the allowance was not provided in the case of a child of an unmarried mother who was recognized by his or her father. Japan now recognized the problem that this system discouraged unmarried mothers from requesting admittance of paternity from the father of the child. Necessary amendments were being prepared so that fatherless families could continue to receive allowance even if the child was recognized by his or her father.

Mr. Akao said the problem of bullying was still serious in Japan. The root causes and background behind bullying included various and complicated elements concerning family, school and the local community. To solve this problem, various measures had been implemented with a view to promoting cooperation among these aspects of society, enhancing individual-oriented education rather than education based on the deviation, improving and developing the capability and aptitude of teachers, increasing the number of schools with a professional counsellor stationed, and promoting education for mental development.

The problem of sexual exploitation was attracting more attention in Japan following the ratification of the Convention and the World Congress against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, he continued. Exploiting children for money or abusing children for pleasure was a serious violation of human rights of children, and Japan was ashamed of the fact that there were some cases in which some Japanese nationals were found to have been involved in these kinds of crimes, not only in Japan but also in foreign countries. The Japanese Government had been conducting
awareness-raising activities to eliminate child prostitution and child pornography since 1996.
Increased international cooperation among the related law enforcement bodies was also necessary to cope with child sexual exploitation.

In conclusion, Mr. Akao said Japan was facing various serious problems concerning children. In order to tackle these problems, it was necessary to identify their root causes, to deepen understanding of those causes and to take earnest steps toward a solution.

Discussion

Committee experts welcomed the updated information provided by the delegation, because, they said, the report presented extensive information on the legal system but lacked the practical side of the situation of children. Acknowledging serious problems was commendable, but the report emphasized protection. How did Japan foresee the transition from an emphasis on the 'protection of children' to seeing children as the subject of rights, which was the main thrust of the Convention? Why had such a long time elapsed between the signing of the Convention in 1990 and its ratification in 1994? Had the report being disseminated widely in the country, and did the delegation intend to publicize the concluding remarks of the Committee?

There were many official organs involved with children in Japan, said one expert. How did the Government avoid fragmentation? Was there a specific mechanism to implement the Convention and to collect data?

Requesting further information about the legal value of the Convention in the Japanese legal system, an expert said it was reported that the Convention overrode national law, but that courts did not actively apply its provisions in traditional cases concerning children. Was the Convention self-executing in the Japanese legal system and could it be invoked directly before national courts? The system of Civil Liberties Commissioners was welcome but did not appear to be sufficient; the main problem was their lack of independence and insufficient financial resources. Also, often children did not understand the function of the Commissioners, who did not have an office of their own. What training did these Commissioners receive and what powers did they have?


An expert said the Committee believed in the need for an independent Ombudsman for children who was accountable to Parliament directly. In a meeting yesterday with about 40 representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the Committee had heard complaints that the Government had not consulted sufficiently with such groups. How did the delegation assess cooperation between the Government and NGOs? The Convention considered NGOs to be important bodies. Was there a possibility of cooperating more actively with NGOs and providing then with funds?

Committee experts asked if Japan intended to withdraw its reservations to provisions of the Convention. Since some reservations had not been removed, this raised concern that substitute prisons for children had not been abolished as had been recommended.

Experts also asked about the education and health care of children of the Korean minority; whether the Convention had been translated into minority languages; if there were plans to train persons who worked with children on awareness of the Convention; how the Central Government and local governments ensured that the quality of services provided to children was the same all around the country, and about the budgetary allocations for children, especially to enhance their participation in public life.

In response to questions, the delegation of Japan said the reason it had taken four years to ratify the Convention was that the treaty had been signed during a visit of the Prime Minister to New York in 1990 despite the fact that the Parliament was still debating the question at the time. Among the issues discussed then was how to translate 'child' into Japanese. Other issues were school uniforms, inheritance rights of children born out of wedlock, treatment of some minorities and children with disabilities. The Upper House of Counsellors had approved the Convention in 1993; however, the Lower House of Representatives had been dissolved before it could ratify the treaty, meaning that ratification had to wait until the following year.

All Japanese domestic laws were consistent with the provisions of international conventions which the country had ratified, the delegation indicated. International conventions ratified by Japan were part of domestic law and took precedence over domestic laws. There had been a number of cases in Japan where courts had heard charges that domestic laws violated the Convention, but there had not been any rulings yet. Japan had entered reservations on article 37 (c) because, according to domestic juvenile law, a person under 20 years of age was defined as a juvenile; juveniles deprived of their liberty were separated from adults over 20. A wider range of young people were protected under Japanese law.

The delegation said the Government attached great importance to the Convention and made every effort to raise public awareness about it. Upon signature of the treaty, the Government had distributed one million copies of a poster on the Convention to schools around the country. This year, another 100,000 copies would be distributed. Some 90,000 copies of the text of the Convention had been published and distributed to all offices dealing with children's affairs. There were also other publicity activities, like seminars. At the local governments levels and municipalities, efforts were also made to increase knowledge about the Convention.

Concerning cooperation with NGOs, the delegation said a hearing had been held with
representatives of more than 60 interested NGOs, and their views had been taken into consideration. The NGOs had proposed that the report not only include the legal framework in Japan but also the practical applications involved. The Government had paid attention to their proposals and added information about issues like bullying, ill-treatment, corporal punishment and substance abuse. The Government believed it was important to involve civil society in the promotion and protection of children's rights.

The delegation said the text of the Convention and other public relations leaflets were available only in Japanese and English. However, if a request was made, it was possible for the Government to obtain the translated text in a foreign language. Local governments had asked for the text in Portuguese and Tagalog.

Many Government bodies were involved in children's affairs in Japan, the officials said. Under these
circumstances, coordination measures were implemented to ensure that policies were carried out in a
comprehensive and effective manner. Each ministry or agency collected data and statistics, but the management coordination body published an annual report which gathered all the figures.

The delegation said the Government's budget last year was 60 trillion yen, 8.6 per cent of which was allocated for youth affairs.

Turning to the issue of Civil Liberty Commissioners, the delegation said there were around 600 trained Commissioners. Each region had a council for the Commissioners, who discussed necessary measures to be taken to protect children. The further independence of these Commissioners was an area which Japan had to consider more. The Commissioners, whose 1998 budget was 14,449,000 yen, had sufficient knowledge and training on children's rights. They were also Commissioners on civil liberties, and were chosen according to specifications in the Civil Liberties Law. With regard to the access of children to Commissioners, the civil liberty organs had prepared hundreds of thousands of leaflets and posters to make sure the Convention was well known.

The delegation said foreign nationals, including Koreans, were guaranteed the same rights as Japanese nationals. Foreign children could enter national schools and had exactly the same rights as Japanese children, including free tuition and school books. The foreign nationals could learn subjects in their own language and culture as part of extra-curriculum activities, and they could establish schools in their own language if they wanted.

The delegation said the final conclusions of the Committee on the report of the country would be disseminated in Japan.