Japan's Ruling Party Approves Bill Criminalising Flag Desecration

Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on Tuesday approved a bill prohibiting the desecration of the national flag, the Hinomaru. The bill, targeted for enactment before mid-July, has become one of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s top legislative priorities. “While paying full attention to freedom of expression, the state has a responsibility to punish acts that damage the national flag, a symbol of our country, with the intent to insult,” said LDP Acting Executive Secretary-General Koichi Hagiuda. The bill stipulates that a person who publicly damages, removes, or defiles the Japanese flag with the intent to insult could face a prison sentence of up to two years or a fine of up to 200,000 yen. The provision also applies to individuals who livestream or upload videos of such flag desecration via the internet. However, some opposition figures say the regulation potentially violates the constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of expression. They assess that there is not yet a sufficiently strong reason to enforce the rule. Takeshi Shina, Secretary-General of the centrist Reform Alliance Party, said the criminal penalties in the bill “severely restrict human rights” and that there is no clear reason to make them a deterrent instrument. To allay concerns regarding free expression, the bill also provides for a number of exceptions, including the use of the flag to support national athletes. The depiction of flag destruction in fictional works such as films, anime, manga, and video games, as well as content generated by artificial intelligence, is also exempt. In previous discussions, parties also agreed that the small Japanese flags commonly included as decorations on children’s meals in restaurants would not be affected by the provision.