Gun Control in Japan

Japan has what many consider to be the world's strictest gun control laws, and the idea is often put forward that the Japanese gun control laws should serve as model for other nations. However, although gun related crimes in Japan are lower per-capita than elsewhere, such reasoning ignores many other factors, which at the end of the day makes for an unpersuasive argument.

Many people cite the Japanese example, without understanding exactly what the law is, how it is implemented and enforced, as well as the culture within the country itself towards both gun ownership and authority. Although crime figures, especially gun-related crimes, are lower in Japan than many other places, it comes at a cost to the civilian population. This cost can be broadly summarised as a combination between increased police monitoring and reduced civil liberties.

In January 2008, then-Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda of Japan's ruling conservative LDP, in response to an increase in violent crimes committed by minors and organised crime (bouryokudan 暴力団), called for an amendment to the constitution, to allow for even tighter firearms control measures.

Extensive police authority is one reason the Japanese gun control system works. Another reason is that Japan has no cultural history of gun ownership by citizens.

Enforcing the Law

Stop, Search and Seize

In legal terms, illegal gun possession, much like the possession of illegal drugs, is a "consensual offense", as there is no "victim" involved who would lodge a complaint with the police. Japanese police have wide-ranging search-and-seizure powers in order to find illegal weapons. The Firearms Act permits a policeman to stop and search anybody, if the officer feels that there is "sufficient suspicion that a person is carrying a fire-arm, a sword or a knife," or if he feels that somebody "is likely to endanger life or body of other persons judging reasonably from his abnormal behavior or any other surrounding circumstances." If a weapon is found, the policeman may confiscate it and even if the confiscation is later found to be in error, the confiscated firearm is sometimes not returned.

Ironically, the law allowing for special weapons searches is almost redundant, as routine searches by the police are commonplace. They can stop anybody they deem to look suspicious and ask them to show the contents of their purse, case or bag. Technically, citizens are not obligated to show the policeman what is in their bag, but given the Japanese culture of deferring to authority, plus the fact that a refusal could result in the citizen being taken in for further questioning, few refuse. Even if a policeman's search does discover a gun or any other illegal substance and the search is subsequently ruled illegal, it makes no difference to the case, as Japanese courts permit the use of illegally seized evidence.

House Visits

One of the most important duties carried out by the police is the so-called "home visit." Twice a year, "residence information cards" are filled in by police officers during door-to-door visits of each household within their precinct. These cards contain information about who lives in the house and which family member to contact in case of emergency, the relationship between the various occupants of the house, their occupations, working hours, and even the make of car they own. As part of the home visits, all gun licensees are checked, to ensure that their gun has not been stolen or misused, that it is securely stored as per regulations, and that the licensees are emotionally stable.

However, police surveillance goes beyond house visits and checking up on license owners. Japanese police have a long-standing tradition of keeping tabs on the local populace and monitoring every aspect of life (a fact which came to light with the inclusion of such statistics as the disturbing "Background and Motives for Girls' Sexual Misconduct" in the the nation's official year-end police report. Virtually every citizen is the subject of a police dossier of one form or another.

Police State?

Virtually all Japanese citizens believe that the police should be respected and not questioned. Due to the esteem in which the police are held, the Japanese people willingly co-operate with them, and this co-operation also extends to obeying the laws which almost everyone believes in. The Japanese people, and even the large majority of Japanese criminals, voluntarily obey the gun control laws.

This is despite the fact that as well as not having the right to bear arms, citizens also have no right to privacy against police searches and many other rights are so restricted that Japan could easily be called a "police state."

If an individual is arrested, whatever the crime, the suspect may be detained - without bail - for a maximum of 28 days, before the prosecutor brings the suspect before a judge. Bail can be denied if there is reason to believe it could interfere with the police's interrogation of the defendant.

Even if the initial 28 day detention period has expired, detention in a Japanese police station often continues, based on numerous pretexts, such as preventing the defendant from destroying evidence. Another common tactic is to re-arrest the suspect on another charge, called bekken taihou (別件大法; literally, "separate case, basic law"), which means a fresh 28-day detention period under interrogation. This "rearrest" often occurs whilst the suspect is still being held on the first charge. Some defendants may be held for several months without ever being brought before a judge. Courts approve 99.5 per cent of prosecutors' requests for detentions.