Diet passes Japan’s first law to curb hate speech Japan’s first anti-hate speech law passed the Diet on Tuesday, marking a step forward in the nation’s slow efforts to curb racial discrimination. But the legislation has been criticised for lacking any real power. Japan Times, May 24 2016.
Japanese court issues first-ever injunction against hate-speech rally A district court in Kanagawa Prefecture has issued a first-ever provisional injunction preventing an anti-Korean activist from holding a rally near the premises of a group that supports ethnic Korean people. Japan Times, 3 Jun 2016.
Injunction issued against group planning anti-Korea rally A district court, citing stipulations in Japan’s first anti-hate speech law, issued a temporary injunction against a group that was planning an anti-Korean rally on June 5. Asahi Shimbun, 3 Jun 2016.
Anti-Korean hate speech rally called off in Kawasaki amid protests An anti-Korean group called off a demonstration Sunday after about a dozen members of the group were surrounded by hundreds of people who rallied in opposition to the event in Kawasaki. Japan Times, 5 Jun 2016.
UPDATE: Citizens against racism confront hate group’s protest in Tokyo A hate group that abandoned its anti-Korean demonstration after being surrounded and outnumbered by angry citizens in Kawasaki still managed to hold a smaller protest in Tokyo’s Shibuya district later on June 5. Asahi Shimbun, 6 Jun 2016.
Hate speech in Japan: To ban or not to ban? Free speech debate rages with some saying outlawing hate-filled protests will only hide the haters. Aljazeera, 19 Mar 2015.
Rise of Hate Speech in Japan by The International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism - Japan Committee The recent cases of anti-Korean demonstrations and hate speech marches including the speech by a Japanese girl calling for the “massacre” of the resident Koreans have drawn attention and raised concerns within and outside Japan.... Some of the crucial backgrounds are the complete lack of Anti-Discrimination Law, poor understanding of the general public about the history and culture of minority communities and their human rights issues, the lack of appropriate understanding by the Japanese government of the international human rights standards, and the lack of willingness of the State to actively implement them." Asia Pacific Human Rights Information Center, Dec 2013.
Should Japan Ban Hate Speech? Netizens Respond Includes the views of 11 lawyers on this issue. Japan Crush 20 Aug 2014.
Spin and substance: A troubling rise in xenophobic vitriol This article explains how the Japanese needs to take action on hate speech because of the upcoming Olympics. The Economist, 24 Sep 2014.
U.S. human rights report cites anti-Korean hate speech in Japan The U.S. State Department took up hate speech against Korean residents in Japan in its annual human rights report released Thursday, apparently reflecting Washington’s concern about the campaign against the ethnic minority in the country. Japan Times, 28 Feb 2014
Korean consultant forms anti-racism group in Japan Because of the rising incidents of racism against Koreans in Japan, 54-year-old South Korean Shin Su-gok has started a new organization to fight discrimination. Japan Daily Press, 12 Dec 2013.
Anti-Korean protests trigger counter-protests against hatemongers This article looks at tension in Shi-Okubo, Shinjuku, where there have been counter-protests against right-wing nationalist Japanese demonstrations calling for Koreans to be made to leave Japan. It looks at the views of people of both Korean and Japanese ancestry who have joined the protests, which call for better relations between Japanese and Koreans, and discusses how these counter demonstrations are a new development for the Korean community in Japan. Asahi Shinbun, 26 March, 2013.
Hate aimed at ethnic Korean residents continues, but one man changes This article looks at Zaitokukai, a right wing organisation that claims ethnic Koreans in Japan receive unfair privileges and calls for them to be forced to leave or even killed. It also tells the story of one Japanese man who became an active member of Zaitokukai but who changed his views and left. Asahi Shinbun, 28 April 2013.
Hashimoto likens weekly’s slur to hate speak "The clash between Toru Hashimoto and the weekly magazine Shukan Asahi over an article on the Osaka mayor’s lineage has raised a question that Japan still refuses to directly confront: What kinds of comments cross the line from criticism into hate speech that should be legally banned?" Japan Times, Nov 3, 2012.
Activists form group in Tokyo to counter hate mongers An ethnic Korean activist has joined forces with a Japanese scholar, a lawyer and other prominent individuals to form a citizens group aimed at countering racists spouting hatred against ethnic Korean residents and other minorities. Asahi Shimbun, 25 Sep 2013.
New Dissent in Japan Is Loudly Anti-Foreign An article about a new type of ultranationalist group in Japan that are openly anti-foreign in their message, and unafraid to win attention by holding unruly street demonstrations.Their protests have been directed at not only Japan’s half million ethnic Koreans, but also Chinese and other Asian workers, Christian churchgoers and even Westerners in Halloween costumes. New York Times, 28 Aug 2010.
Zaitokukai told to leave Korean school in Kyoto alone: Court bans rightists’ hate speech, rallies The Kyoto District Court ordered anti-Korean activists Monday to pay damages for disrupting classes at a Korean school by staging demonstrations during which they used hate speech, and banned them from staging further rallies. Japan Times, 7 Oct 2013.
Volunteers remove anti-Korea graffiti in Tokyo's Shinjuku Dozens of volunteers on March 2 removed hate-filled messages and other graffiti targeting ethnic Korean residents in Tokyo’s Okubo district, and called on authorities and the public to condemn such discriminatory action. Asahi Shimbun, 3 March 2014.
Shin Sugok: Countering hatemongers aims at protecting universal human rights An interview with the women who formed the anti-hate speech group Norkoeru Net. Asahi Shimbun, 1 Dec 20-13.
Japan enacts law against hate speech, but critics doubt effectiveness Japan's parliament on Tuesday enacted a law designed to deter hate speech, but questions remain about its effectiveness given a lack of provisions to ban or punish the use of discriminatory language. Mainichi News, 25 May, 2016
のりこえねっと / Norikoeru Net (We Shall Overcome) An anti-hate speech group formed quite recently in Japan
The International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism (IMADR) (in Japanese here) - Japanese organization campaigning against discrimination against Buraku, Korean and other minorities in Japan, for gender equality , and against discrimination internationally.
Counter Racist Action Collective (in Japanese) A Japanese group that takes direct action against racist groups and demonstrations