ヒューマンライツウォッチ 土井香苗のブログ

The Japanese State Secrets Law
by Billy Fujii

Tanabe Akihiro, a carpenter, moves away from the Fukushima area settling in the fifty-kilometer radius of the nuclear power plant with his family of four. Ten years after the Fukushima nuclear disaster, due to the exposure of radiation, his eldest son of two is showing a conspicuous development of thyroid cancer as well as his wife's burgeoning breast cancer. One summer night at a bar, he begins to talk to a stranger who turns out to be a doctor helping out the Fukushima children. Doctor Yoshi, slightly drunk, informs Akihiro about the confidential government data which displays the certain regions where cancer is prevalent. Hearing this, Akihiro disseminates this 'state secret' as a documentary to the New York Times; however, he and the doctor are immediately arrested, while Tanabe's family undergoes an investigation all warranted by Japan's state secrets law.

Do you think this story was just made-up? Believe it or not, it is starting to become a harsh reality in the near future of Japan.

Japan, known as the heaven for spies, recently established the State Secrets Law under the pressure from "Washington to protect state secrets - including intelligence shared by the US", especially at a time of regional tensions between China and Korea. Likewise, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stated, "The bill was necessary for Japan to cooperate more closely on security with allies such as the United States by preventing leaks of sensitive information." The law was erected with the intent to strengthen the punishment for individuals who disclose information that threatens national security. This law enables the government to indefinitely keep sensitive data away from the public and classify any information as a state secret that relates to the following: defense, diplomacy, counter-terrorism, and counter-espionage. With Wikileaks along with Edward Snowden, Japan seeks to obstruct those who leak the country's confidential information to the public. Edward Snowden played a significant role in leaking NSA's classified information to the public, becoming a major political traitor to the United States. His motivation arose from seeing that the NSA violated many of the human rights that were supposed to be protected according to the Constitution. His main objective was to question the appropriateness of the government concealing data from the public. Without further discussion, Japan aspires to make certain that there is no leakage of the state secrets. The critics of this new law are mainly concerned with its ambiguity, its violation of basic human rights, and its threat to democracy.

Critics of the new legislation pointed out the equivocal terms used in the law such as "reference to 'other types of information' that will be classified as protected, and making it illegal for journalists to use 'inappropriate methods' would give the government wide-ranging power in controlling the media." What constitutes a state secret? What are the other types of information? What are the inappropriate methods? The Japan Times commented that there was an apparent ambiguity in many articles in the bill. The Japanese lawyer association, Nichiberen, also conveyed that the range of what constitutes a state secret is too wide and perplexing. How would a citizen or a journalist know what subjects are considered state secrets? How would a citizen or a journalist know what they are allowed to ask or say? Mizuho Fukushima, an opposition Member of Parliament said, "There are few specifics in the law, which means it can be used to hide whatever the government wishes to keep away from public scrutiny." The lack of detail creates an irresolute ambience and a feeling of uncertainty among the citizens. Like Bloomberg says, "Ambiguity reigns."

The state secrets law infringes upon the right to information. Some critics perceived the law as a marking of return to the days of prewar and wartime Japanese militarism, when the government enacted the Peace Preservation Act allowing political opponents to be arrested and imprisoned. Japan's state secrets law is similar to the prewar military secrets-protection law that allowed Japan to "vaguely categorize secrets and ban access to military-related areas, and punish the formation of "spy groups" (political enemies).

Suppose the Japanese intelligence field discovers through certain sources that a terrorist is devising a plan to have a bomb attack in Tokyo in the next few days, and then the Japanese government classifies this information as a 'state secret.' The governing Liberal Democratic Party conceals this information from the public and decides that only the eminent political figures along with a few others should evacuate out of Tokyo to ensure that there would be no chaos and trepidation among the citizens.

Should the public be notified about this information? Is it not the citizens' right to this information? The government should apprise the citizens of this information, especially when it may have a significant threat or impact on the citizens' lives. "The government has a history of covering up vital information and postponing crucial decisions," said an Asahi Shimbun op-ed. The people indubitably have the right to information: the Japanese history of World War ll should not repeat itself.

The state secrets law also endangers the freedom of expression and freedom of the press. Along with numerous media corporations, The Mainichi Shinbun expressed its censure: the bill proposes that administrative organs be given unlimited authority at their own discretion to designate as special secrets information identified as relating to foreign diplomacy, espionage and terrorism. Penalties extend not only to those who leak confidential government information, but also to those who acquire it. Journalism, particularly investigative journalism is at risk. Similarly, the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan displayed their concerns: "In particular, we are alarmed by the text of the bill, as well as associated statements made by some ruling party lawmakers relating to the potential targeting of journalists for prosecution and imprisonment. It is at the very heart of investigative journalism in open societies to uncover secrets and to inform the people about the activities of government. Such journalism is not a crime, but rather a crucial part of the checks-and-balances that go hand-in-hand with democracy." Since the media is limited in what it is allowed to ask or say, the Japanese government is beginning to manipulate the media.

The media's duty is to distribute unknown or vital information to the public, but now with this new state secrets law, the media cannot inform the citizens. If the law says that the government can also arrest people who acquire the secret information, how will journalists know what they are allowed to ask or say? How will the journalist know if the topic that he or she is researching is considered a state secret? No matter how much the government limits the information, it has no right to limit the media. Lawrence Repeta, a law professor at Meiji University, issued a statement: there is a demand by the established political forces for greater control over the people. This fits with the notion that the state should have broad authority to act in secret. It seems very clear that the law would have a chilling effect on journalism in Japan. "The activities of the media could be restricted under the newly enacted state secrecy law," said Shigeru Ishiba, an executive of the governing Liberal Democratic Party. The government is exploiting the media, taking the law to its own advantage.

The new secrecy law is detrimental to the human right of freedom of speech. "Citizens protesting against the state secrets bill are committing an act of terrorism," wrote Shigeru Ishiba on his blog. Does the term "counter-terrorism" apply to the people demonstrating against the government? Are the citizens not allowed to make their voices heard? It is the citizen's human right to freedom of speech and freedom of expression. I regret to say that the government of Japan is taking a step too far.

China is renowned for concealing sensitive information from the public, particularly that which is inauspicious towards the government. A major issue still unremitting today is China's censorship of the Internet and other types of media. For example, in 2009, China blocked YouTube, a video -sharing site, "condemning a video released by the Tibetan government-in-exile" displaying footage of "the brutal beating of Tibetan protestors and the wounds of a young man called Tendar." The censorship in the People's Republic of China allows the government to censor events including the Tiananmen Square protest of 1989, police brutality, religion, anti-government movements, and a wide range of the other subjects that may cause problems for the government. The censorship in China violates many of the basic human rights similar to that of Japan's state secrets law such as right to information, freedom of expression, and freedom of speech. Japan is moving away from being a democratic society, becoming more of a totalitarian society.

What are human rights and where did they begin? Human rights are the rights that every human (child, woman, man) is entitled to. Through diffusion, the idea of human rights spread quickly throughout Europe becoming more elaborate. In fact, the initial human rights law began in Britain, which were called the British Petition of Rights and the British Bill of Rights. The concept of human rights became more stable after the American Revolution, when the U.S. Constitution was written. In the annals of human history, through the abuses of Napoleon, Hitler, and others, the full concrete development of human rights was finally established. 

We must not forget that for over a period of more than a thousand years, human rights have been fought for in many wars and protests. Human rights took such a long time to eventually attain. I am afraid that with the new state secrets law established, the Japanese government may be heading back towards the days of prewar, when the people hardly had any human rights. The Japanese government should be more wary about its decisions, so that its actions will lead to a better future.

In the end, the people have an obligation related to every human right. Just because we have the right to the freedom of speech, that doesn't mean anyone should be allowed to say whatever he or she wants. As the people who receive the benefits from the freedom of speech and freedom of expression, we shouldn't be allowed to cyber bully or say anything offensive. In just a few generations, technology such as the Internet and the mass media has been advancing at an unimaginable speed. With just one individual, comments or opinions can propagate throughout all regions in the world. Considering this, as the beneficiaries of the human rights, we should not only think about our own human rights, but also be cautious of violating the rights of others.

Bibliography

Blair, Gavin J. "Japan State Secrets Bill Raises Press Freedom Concerns." The Hollywood Reporter. The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Nov. 2013. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.

Branigan, Tania. "China Blocks YouTube." Theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 25 Mar. 2009. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.

"Censorship in China." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Jan. 2014. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censorship_in_China>.

"Edward Snowden Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 16 Jan. 2014.

History of Human Rights. N.p.: Venus Project, Zeitgeist Movement, 06 Dec. 2009. Video.

Hong, Cai. "Japan's New State Secrets Law Called Threat to Freedoms." China Daily USA. China Daily USA, 09 Dec. 2013. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. 

McCurry, Justin. "Japan Whistleblowers Face Crackdown under Proposed State Secrets Law." Theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 06 Dec. 2013. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. 

McDonnell, Justin. "Japan's State Secrets Bill Polarizes Society." The Diplomat. The Diplomat, 28 Nov. 2013. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. 

Pesek, William. "Japan's Secrets Bill Turns Journalists Into Terrorists." Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, 03 Dec. 2013. Web. 17 Jan. 2014. 

Tainaka, Masato. "Foreign Journalists in Japan Raise Concerns over State Secrets Protection Bill." AJW by The Asahi Shimbun. The Asahi Shimbun, 04 Dec. 2013. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.