Intrusion on Thought at Heart

House of Representatives embarked on the discussion over revised Organized Crime Punishment Law, which included provisions of crime of conspiracy. While Shinzo Abe administration recognize the law as necessary for success of Tokyo Olympics 2020, the opposite parties rejected the bill as it would intrude on freedom of thought at heart. Disguising true intention with popular demand is one of the ordinary methods of bureaucracy to oppress the people.

The law submitted to the Diet by Abe administration would enable law enforcement power to arrest members of “terrorist group or other organized crime groups” before activation of crime, when they were involved in stand-by activities such as accumulating money or goods or making preview. While the government calls it “crime of preparing terrorism or other things,” the bill makes no difference from Crime of Conspiracy Law, which was rejected by the Diet three times in Jun-ichiro Koizumi administration.

In the discussion at Plenary Sittings, a Representative Seiji Osaka, Democratic Party, dismissed the bill as not panacea for preventing terrorism. “It is really a cheap trick for the government to establish new crime attributing it to anti-terrorist measures,” told Osaka. Raising an appeal of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for Japan as a safest country in the world in invitation of Tokyo Olympics, Osaka asked Abe whether Japan had become unsafe only in these three years afterward.

Yasufumi Fujino with Japan Communist Party argued that not only the terrorist but everyone would be targeted, because an administration in power and organization of law enforcement could arbitrarily be interpreting the provision, once they obtain power for punishing every thought at heart. “Crime of conspiracy is unconstitutional legislation that intrudes on freedom of thought and conscience and violate the clause of accordance with right legal procedure. That was because the crime was dismissed three times,” said Fujino.

Abe tried to defend the bill. “Although security in Japan has been kept moderate, situation can be changed anytime. A party that abandons sufficient efforts cannot handle an administration. We will do everything for Olympics,” stressed Abe. Surprisingly enough, Abe defended past provision of crime of conspiracy as not punishing thought at heart but punishing activity of conspiracy. He looked like distorting the fact that crime of conspiracy had been a basic concept of Maintenance of Public Order Act that oppressed a great number of people with suspect of keeping anti-governmental thought.

Protesters surrounded the Diet building on Thursday, chanting “No to Crime of Conspiracy.” Local governments have passed resolution against the law. Writers, journalists or other professionals living on freedom of thought also criticize governmental attempt of further censoring. This is the government that upholds beautiful nation, a concept raised by Abe.