ENGLISH

2. Welcoming the new development of anti-discrimination legislation:

Anti-“Buraku Discrimination” Act came into force (2016.12.24)

Human rights education in Japan traces its roots back to the anti-discrimination education in the post-war period, known as Dowa education, an education to combat Buraku discrimination.  Dowa education was strongly promoted under three Dowa Special Measures Laws (1969-2002), temporary statutes to implement affirmative action measures for Buraku communities, and to promote anti-discrimination education.

Shortly before the termination of the last Special Measures Law in 2002, the Law on the Promotion of Human Rights Education and Human Rights Awareness-Raising (LPHREA) was enacted in 2000.  Although LPHREA stipulates government responsibility to promote human rights education in general, the new law with special focus on combating Buraku discrimination was much-needed, due to the recent rise of exclusivism online, including dissemination of discriminatory information on internet by Tottori-Loop.

Anti-“Buraku Discrimination” Act, (部落差別の解消の推進に関する法律 Act on the Promotion of elimination of Buraku discrimination) was passed by the upper house on Dec. 9th, and came into force on Dec. 16th, 2016.

Although the new act does not ban nor criminalize Buraku discrimination, nor the acts inciting discrimination, it stipulates government's responsibility to implement anti-discrimination education and awareness-raising, to give consultation to those who are discriminated against, and to conduct research to benchmark existing discrimination against Buraku (communities and person with Buraku origin).

We believe that it is the beginning of further development of anti-discrimination legislation in Japan.

By Tsubame-Obasan