Photo/Illutration Masanobu Ogura, minister in charge of policies related to children, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on June 16. (Kenjiro Takahashi)

The Japanese government faces legal hurdles in its plan to establish a system that will restrict people convicted of sex crimes from working in educational institutions and child care facilities.

An expert panel under the Children and Families Agency on June 27 started discussions on the system following a spate of child sexual abuse cases by teachers and babysitters.

The agency, which was inaugurated in April, plans to submit a bill to create the Japanese version of Britain’s Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) to an extraordinary Diet session expected in autumn, at the earliest.

The panel comprises experts on the Criminal Law, the Civil Code and child psychology, as well as a representative of a parents’ organization.

In Britain, employers in the fields of education and child care can ask the DBS for background information on job-seekers, including criminal records.

Applicants can also submit clean-record certificates from the DBS to potential employers.

Masanobu Ogura, minister in charge of policies related to children, said one issue to be discussed is whether restricting employment of people with criminal backgrounds violates the constitutional guarantee of freedom to choose occupation.

A related issue will be whether the system is consistent with the Criminal Law provision for the “extinction of punishment” to promote correction and social rehabilitation of convicts.

The provision states that a criminal sentence ceases to have effect when 10 years have passed since the person completes imprisonment without labor or a greater punishment, among other conditions.

Ogura said another key issue will be the scope of places where the employment of perpetrators of sexual abuse will be restricted.

The outline of policies related to children, which was approved by the Cabinet in December 2021, called for considering the introduction of a Japanese DBS to prevent sexual abuse of children.

In addition to educational institutions and child care facilities, the outline cited cram schools and sports clubs as examples of places where children may require protection.

The places of employment to be covered under the Japanese DBS will likely be limited to a certain extent so that government regulators can monitor designated workplaces and ensure the system works effectively.

The panel will examine specific procedures for issuing certificates about sexual crime records, including who can request such information.

Aki Fukoin, adviser to Hoikuen wo Kangaeru Oya no Kai (Group of parents to think about nursery schools) and a member of the expert panel, said job-seekers’ requests for certificates would be reasonable because third parties would not be able to make arbitrary inquiries about their criminal records.

“We need to pay special attention to children,” said Fukoin, whose group has been calling for the introduction of a Japanese DBS. “Given the importance of children’s rights and safety, it is necessary to limit the freedom to choose occupation to a certain extent.”

Hisashi Sonoda, a professor emeritus at Konan University and expert on the Criminal Law, cast doubts on legislation to introduce a Japanese DBS in light of the Criminal Law provision on the extinction of punishment after 10 years.

“Should the government restrict people from gaining employment beyond the 10-year period, the fundamental idea of the Criminal Law, which takes into account correction and social rehabilitation, would be forced to change,” he said.

Sonoda is also concerned that a Japanese DBS would limit job opportunities for people with other criminal backgrounds, such as shoplifting.

(This article was written by Kenjiro Takahashi and Yuki Kawano.)

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