The so-called Anti-Conspiracy Bill (共謀罪法案 ''kyōbōzai hōan''), a bill intended to modify the Act on Punishment of Organized Crimes and Control of Crime Proceeds, was submitted to the Japanese

National Diet The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (Japan), House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (Japan), House of Councillors (, ...

on 21 March 2017 and passed on 15 June 2017.

Letter from the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy

In a letter dated 18 May 2017, the United Nations special rapporteur on the

right to privacy The right to privacy is an element of various legal traditions that intends to restrain governmental and private actions that threaten the privacy of individuals. Over 150 national constitutions mention the right to privacy. On 10 December 1948 ...

, Joseph Cannataci wrote a letter to the Japanese Prime-Minister,

Shinzō Abe Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍晋三, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 20 ...

, expressing concerns about the bill. The United Nations Special Rapporteur is an individual, independent expert appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council to investigate, monitor, advise upon, and publicize the human rights situation in specific countries. Joseph Cannataci wrote that the bill, and that, At a press conference on May 22, the Chief Cabinet Secretary

Yoshihide Suga is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2020 to 2021. He had served as Chief Cabinet Secretary during the second administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe fro ...

responded aggressively to the letter, saying, "The letter was released unilaterally without the Japanese government or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs having had the opportunity to directly explain the legislation (to Cannataci). The content was inappropriate, and we lodged a strong protest" with Cannataci. Cannataci responded in a second letter that "The 'strong protest' received from the Japanese government was just angry words but no substance ... It did not address even one of my many concerns about privacy or other defects. ... There is absolutely no justification for the Japanese government to behave in this way and push through seriously defective legislation in such a rush."

Background

The reason this law was created was to implement the

United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime The United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC, also called the Palermo Convention) is a 2000 United Nations-sponsored multilateral treaty against transnational organized crime. History The convention was adopted by a ...

. As for the theft of forest products, it has been suggested that it could be a potential source of funding for terrorism. Japan became the 188th country to become a party to the Convention.

References

{{Reflist Law in Asia Law of Japan Human rights abuses in Japan Conspiracy (criminal) Conspiracy Mass_surveillance