First Person Perspective of Age of Consent [Japanese Government & Those Who Support the Current Age of Consent]
◆First Person Perspective of Age of Consent [ Part A + B ]
In this blog I will be representing the point of view of the Japanese Government and those who are in support of the current age of consent in Japan.
A: Japanese Government
As the Japanese Government we have faced many criticism regarding our low age of consent when compared to other first world countries, which can somewhat be attributed to the fact that our law regarding the age of consent has not been changed since 1907, which was during the Meiji Period.
Our law regarding age of consent states that,
●Indecency through Compulsion
Article 176A person who forcibly commits an indecent act through assault or intimidation upon another person of not less than thirteen years of age is punished by imprisonment for not less than 6 months but not more than 10 years. The same applies to a person who commits an indecent act upon another person under thirteen years of age.
We are well aware of organization such as Human Rights Now and petitions on Change.org that asks for the age of consent to be changed to age 16, which is when Japanese students would finish their compulsory education.
For example, the Human Rights Now organization has stated that the Article 176,177, 178, and 179 of Penal Code of 1907 to be more specific and detailed when it comes to the wording to make sure that those who commit the crime gets punished accordingly to the law.
However, we have not seen any advancement regarding age of consent and its surrounding law in Japan for a while.
A Sources:
Penal Code(Act No.45 of 1907). (1907). Penal Code(Act No.45 of 1907).
https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/3581/en
Human Rights Now. (n.a.) Human Rights Now Official Website. https://hrn.or.jp/
Your Voice Matters. (2020). Raise age of consent in Japan!
https://chng.it/CMtDTSFmNH
Machi Kunizaki, Huffington Post. (2020). 性交同意年齢13→16歳に変更求め。性犯罪の刑法改正案、人権団体が叩き台を公表.
https://www.huffingtonpost.jp/entry/story_jp_5ee1a0d7c5b6f0d3f408ed1e
NHK. (2021). 性交同意年齢とは？なぜ13歳？世界では….
https://www.nhk.or.jp/gendai/comment/0026/topic029.html
B: Those Who Support the Current Age of Consent
My name is Honda Hiranao and I am a house of representative member for the Hokkaido 4th District, which consists of such cities as City of Otaru (小樽) and Teine district of Sapporo City (札幌市手稲区). I believe that changing Age of Consent should not be changed due to the fact that
On May 10th, 2021 I made a comment stating that, "It would be "absurd" if a 50-year-old and a 14-year-old consented to have sex and the 50-year-old got arrested." Which was released to the public in June 4th of the same year by Sankei Newspaper. On July 27th I submitted my resignation from the political party and four days later I decided to not become the candidate from the Hokkaido 4th District.
In my personal defence I would like to state that this statement originated from the conversation that I had during the Working Team on Revision of the Sex Offenses Criminal Code which was a conference that was hosted by the Constitutional Democratic Party (立憲民主党). During this event I had a discussion online with Prof. Mana Shimaoka who stated during the conference that, "Romance between people with large age gap does absolutely not occur in any circumstance." Which I responded by asking if the term "absolute" may be a exaggeration and if she can absolutely deny it even if I was in a hypothetical situation where I state that romantic relationship with 14-year-old exists, which she instantly stated in response, "absolutely not, if it happened in a first world country you will be arrested."
This statement was taken as, "It would be "absurd" if a 50-year-old and a 14-year-old consented to have sex and the 50-year-old got arrested" in the interim report which was leaked to the public which lead to the entire event which eventually resulted in my resignation from the Constitutional Democratic Party and the Hokkaido 4th District. I would also like to state that I was somewhat forced by my parties leaders to admit to this statement even though it was not what I said or what I intended.
I would like to conclude to this statement by saying that I do not disagree with the punishment of adults taking advantage of children, but rather there are always some kind of exceptions that we must take into account to make sure those who are actually innocent to not be punished.
B Sources:
Mainichi Japan. (2021). What are Japanese experts' opinions on consent for sex between an adult and child? https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20210614/p2a/00m/0na/032000c
Honda Hiranao, Bungei Shunju.(2022). 14歳と性交 捏造発言で立憲民主を去った私 本多平直. https://bungeishunju.com/n/n497ee1867a7a#BF8Mk
I really felt the dedication to the topic when I saw that you had translated las about age of consent. I also liked the fact that there were many snippets of information that is not known widely by the world, or even the Japanese population. I also liked that you made the perspectives into two blogs, it made the whole thing much easier to digest when reading. I thought this was great because you don’t feel the toll of reading a lot, but, you feel like you’ve really learnt something.
ReplyDeleteI actually find it absolutely hilarious, and insanely terrifying how Honda Hiranao had the nerve to come out and say what he said. Firstly, he pretty much came out to everyone that he was a pedophile. There is no way you can make an excuse like that without sounding like a pedophile. and Secondly, It's actually crazy how there are still people out there who find it OK to take advantage of literal children. It doesn't matter what the "law" says. If you can't come to the conclusion that having sexual relations with children is bad, then there is something deeply terrifying about you.
ReplyDeleteI think the blog post was really well put, and it was interesting and insightful to see the perspectives on the topic.
These positions are clearly stated. I agree with Dan that Honda Hiranao's views on the possibility of "consent" in the case of huge age discrepancies, with one party being as young as 14, are outrageous. One has to think of the power and maturity gaps that exist in such a relationship. Those gaps make discussions of the possibility of a "true romantic relationship" or genuine consent ridiculous. "Romance" depends on certain mature understandings and consent may be difficult or impossible for a child to withhold if they feel intimidated, pressured, or overpowered. The fact that the concept of "consent" isn't generally even introduced in Japanese schools, in any meaningful way, makes it even more clear that such relationships cannot be considered "by mutual consent."
ReplyDelete