Beware of possessing child porn in Japan

Japan’s workers have promoted a good image of being voracious readers, of reading books and magazines during lunch breaks. Cool, we say. But a perusal of what many of them are reading shows child pornographic materials.  For many years, the Japanese government wanted to crack down on  such stuff that objectify children.

Finally, last week, Japan’s parliament voted to outlaw possession of child pornography. That makes Japan the last OECD  (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) nation to criminalize possession of child pornography. Although it outlawed production and distribution in 1999,  the country has long been considered a “safe haven” for those buying child porn.

Japan is considered one of the world’s major source of child porn distribution, and while there are no real numbers, the US State Department describes Japan as an ‘international hub for production and trafficking of child pornography.

Kiyohiko Toyama, a member of the New Komeito party and a proponent of the bill, told Reuters, â€œFor too long, there was a poor understanding of children’s rights. Ultimately, that’s why it’s taken so long (to get  the bill passed). By outlawing the possession of child pornography with the intent to satisfy sexual  interest, we make it harder for people to trade in such material.”

National data show a rise in child pornography crimes with police uncovering 1,644 cases last year, around 10 times higher than a decade ago. Over half of the cases involved sharing or selling photos or videos over the Internet, police said. The photographs of real children show them clad in scanty clothing and posing seductively.

While anti-child pornography advocates hail the landmark law, some legislators expressed disappointment over the non-inclusion  of  â€œmanga” and “anime” magazines that proliferate in sections of Tokyo and urban areas. The exemption was due to the strong objection of publishers who make a killing from publishing porno material and fear losing their enterprise.

In fact, it is claimed that business has slowed down with the increasing popularity of accessing porn in the Internet. Others say the law could lead to a repression of freedom of expression and put a strain on artists and the publishing culture.  Unhappy about the law is the Japan Magazine Publishers Association which represents over 90 publishing companies.

The law excludes manga and anime  (animated) cartoons. The rationale for the ban is that the characters are products of the imagination, and not real children. But these cartoon characters include graphic, sexual depictions of children including stories of incest.  Matsatada Tsuchiya, a Liberal Democrat said, “I love manga. But some of the things out there are so depraved they aren’t worth defending.”

For example, Tokyo’s manga depict naked or nearly naked children,  and  foreigners and locals  have a heyday buying posters, shirts and even small plastic dolls with highly exaggerated hourglass figures.

Martin Facklerjune wrote that the law leaves untouched a vast gray area in which young girls are depicted in sexually suggestive ways. This includes everything from images of the all-girl bands of Japanese pop music wearing  lingerie and bikinis to fantasy illustrations with the faces of prepubescent girls atop the scantily clad bodies of voluptuous adults.

Such images, according to Falerjune,  â€œattest to Japan’s more casual social attitudes when it comes to the sexual objectification of women of all ages, and also toward the consumption of pornography itself.”

Manga comics with graphic illustrations  are sold in neighborhood convenience stores and on train station platforms, and until the proliferation of smartphones, it was common to see men openly  reading comics  and magazines featuring nude women while commuting to work.

Lawmakers said the new legislation would likely  help police crack down on child pornography,  and  buyers  of non-manga and non-anime publications with questionable sexual content can be held and questioned, possibly leading  to  collectors as well as distributors and manufacturers.

The law is due to take effect next month. Those found guilty under the new law will face imprisonment of up to a year or a fine of up to $10,000.  Punishment  will not be enforced  in the first year.

Justice  Minister  Sadakazu Tanigaki, said he hoped the new law would “spur a broader change in social attitudes by sending a clear signal that it is no longer acceptable to objectify children.”

“We must fight against a tendency of looking at children as sexual objects, and allowing them to be taken advantage of, sexually and commercially.”

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For claimants  for reparation  or recognition for their suffering human rights violations during the Marcos martial law regime,  the dates  for  filing applications are: Cotabato, from July 7 to 9,  Legaspi City, July 14-16, and Cagayan de Oro, July 31-August 4.  Dr. Erlinda Senturias, a member of the  Human rights Claims Board investigating the applications, says, “Some people think that if they are already getting checks from Hawaii they do not need to apply, but because of determination of points, everyone has to personally apply.”

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Dulaang UP will restage its hugely successful production  â€œAng Nawalang Kapatid,” on July 4-6 in celebration of the UP Department of Speech Communication and Theatre Arts’ 55^th anniversary.

 According to promoters of the show,

“If you missed or would like to relive the Filipino retelling of one of the world’s oldest and longest epic poems, The Mahabharata, this is your chance to watch the production praised by critics for its direction, text, music, and choreography. Critics laud the production as ‘an astonishing theatrical experience,’ ‘an elegant and regal Filipino adaptation,’ and Dexter Santos’ direction as ‘breathless and daring.’”

 The story revolves around the battling royal families of the Pandavas and Kauravas, and the moral dilemma Karna, the lost brother, finds himself in. To whom does he owe his loyalty? To his family or to the state which made him a prince?

 The production emphasizes how the epic has shaped strong values regarding loyalty to family which is so much a part of South East Asian culture. Prof. Rina Angela Corpus emphasizes that “Ang Nawalang Kapatid” was

originally staged as a children’s play, and has become  “a fiercer, bigger, and more complex staging” of acclaimed playwright Floy Quintos’ adaptation which  is under the direction and choreography of Santos, with original music by Ceejay Javier.

 Ang Nawalang Kapatid will be held   at the Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater, 2nd floor Palma Hall, University of the Philippines Diliman. Seats are limited. For tickets, sponsorships and show buying inquiries, call Samanta Hannah Clarin or Camille Guevara 9261349, 4337840, 9818500 loc 2449 or email [email protected].

 Proceeds are for the improvement of UP Diliman’s  Wilfrido

Ma. Guerrero Theater and Teatro Hermogenes Ylagan.

    My email: [email protected]