Japan’s move to ban crude words to transform prison system dismissed as ‘trivial’, ‘a joke’
- The justice ministry is shifting the focus of the prison system from punishment to preparing inmates to become law-abiding citizens when they are released
- Activists and experts, however, say the move is ‘cosmetic’ and does nothing to address problems such as incarceration for minor crimes or abuse by prison guards
A move by Japan to abolish prison slang among guards and inmates to encourage rehabilitation has been criticised by activists as “largely cosmetic” and ineffective in addressing deep-rooted issues within the country’s notoriously harsh detention system.
Authorities have instructed correctional officers to refer to prisoners with the honorific “san”, which translates as “honourable mister”, in a shift in focus on incarceration and punishment to preparing inmates for a return to society and helping them to become law-abiding members of the public.
The changes were outlined by Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi on February 22 and will come ahead of amendments to Japan’s criminal law.
Koizumi said at a news conference in Tokyo: “The human heart is connected to words. If words become distorted, it can lead to abusive acts.”
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While human rights activists have said the change is positive, they point to it being “largely cosmetic” and doing nothing to address underlying problems that continue to plague the prison service, such as violent treatment from guards and whether incarceration is even needed for petty crimes.
They argued, for example, that even though Japan is a signatory to the United Nations’ Nelson Mandela Rules – which state: “In no circumstances may restrictions or disciplinary sanctions amount to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of punishment” – Japanese prisons had been shown to breach the limit of 15 days in solitary confinement.
‘They’re asking if it’s a joke’
Shinichi Ishizuka, founder of the Tokyo-based Criminal Justice Future think tank, said changes were required to make life on the inside easier for inmates, but that he wasn’t convinced the minister’s demand for greater politeness was the solution.
“I was in Nagoya Prison a few weeks ago. The guards were referring to yakuza members as ‘san’, and they were shocked,” said Ishizuka, the former director of the criminology research centre at Kyoto’s Ryukoku University. “These are criminals and they are saying it’s too ‘tender’. They are asking if it is some sort of a joke.
“Japanese prisons are very hierarchical and there is concern among the guards that these changes will upset that hierarchy and undermine their authority,” he added.
The Japanese government is revising its prison regulations as a result of an investigation into reports that surfaced in 2022 that guards at Nagoya Prison were physically and verbally abusing inmates. The inquiry ultimately determined that 22 guards assaulted or otherwise mistreated three male prisoners on 419 occasions between November 2021 and September 2022.
Around 100 incidents involved guards kicking prisoners, slapping them, seizing them by their neck, or spraying them with an alcohol disinfectant, the Asahi newspaper reported. At least one of the inmates is understood to have learning difficulties.
The guards claimed they had only acted when the inmates failed to follow their instructions or made requests.
Telling guards to use or not use certain words is a bit cosmetic to me; it’s trivial
Nagoya Prison is regarded as one of the toughest in Japan, with guards previously found guilty of killing two inmates and seriously injuring another in 2001 and 2002. Seven guards were convicted of a series of assaults on prisoners, including killing one man by aiming a high-pressure fire hosepipe at his anus and causing him to die of bacterial shock.
The guards received only suspended sentences.
Nagoya Prison holds members of the Kodo-kai gang, one of the wealthiest in Japan’s yakuza criminal underworld. The group, which has its headquarters in Nagoya but operates in at least 18 prefectures, earns most of its income from white-collar crime, such as kickbacks in the construction and real estate sectors, although it also employs enforcers. Japanese police have classified the Kodo-kai as a quasi-terrorist organisation.
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The new initiative by the justice ministry, which rolled out the pilot project in Nagoya Prison last autumn, is designed to stop these inmates returning to the life of a gangster after completing their sentences.
As well as using honorifics to refer to inmates, warders and prison staff have been instructed to stop using slang terms only used within the prison system, where food is known as “mosso”, a haircut is “gari” and custody is “gara”.
The ministry is banning the use of 35 terms which, if used after a prisoner’s release, could single him or her out as a former inmate and hinder their chances to return to society.
“My impression is that this is a step forward, but it is a very small step that has come about because of the expert panel that was set up last year to investigate abuse by guards in Nagoya prison,” said Teppei Kasai, programme officer at the Japan office of Human Rights Watch. “Telling guards to use or not use certain words is a bit cosmetic to me; it’s trivial.”
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Human Rights Watch is campaigning for more comprehensive reforms to Japan’s prison system that the organisation believes would be more effective at reducing recidivism.
“The question we should be discussing is whether many of these people – especially women – should even be in prison in the first place,” he said. “In Japan, it is very difficult for people to rebuild their social and family ties after they are released and it is hard to find a job again.”
As a result, people convicted of relatively minor crimes – shoplifting or being in possession of a small amount of drugs – are serving custodial sentences and struggling to reintegrate when they are released, according to Kasai. And very often, that ostracism from family, friends and society sees them reoffending.
“Our position is that there should be other ways of dealing with these cases instead of sending people to prison,” he added.
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A study of conditions at Japan’s women’s prisons published by Human Rights Watch last year concluded that inmates endure “serious human rights violations”, including inadequate access to healthcare, separation from their children, and excessive restrictions in their communications within and outside prison.
“My concern is that the government is making these cosmetic changes so it looks to the public like they are doing something, but in reality nothing is changing in the areas where change is most needed,” Kasai said. “Fundamental change is required, such as alternatives to prison for minor crimes.”
