Law enforcement in Japan

According to statistics of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, among the 192 member states of the UN, and among the countries reporting statistics of criminal and criminal justice, the incidence rate of violent crimes such as murder, abduction, rape and robbery is very low in Japan.[3][4][5][6][7]

The incarceration rate is very low and Japan ranks 209 out of 223 countries. It has an incarceration rate of 41 per 100,000 people. In 2018 the prison population was 51,805 and 10.8% of prisoners were unsentenced.[8]

Japan has a very low rate of intentional homicide victims. According to the UNODC it ranks 219 out of 230 countries. It has a rate of just 0.20 per 100,000 inhabitants. There were 306 in 2017.[9][10]

The number of firearm related deaths is low. The firearm-related death rate was 0.00 homicide (in 2008), 0.04 suicide (in 1999), 0.01 unintentional (in 1999) and 0.01 undetermined (in 1999) per 100,000 people. There's a gun ownership of 0.6 per 100 inhabitants.[11]

The intentional death rate is low for homicides with 0.4 per 100,000 people in 2013. However, the suicide rate is relatively high with 21.7 per 100,000 in 2013.[12]

As the central coordinating body for the entire police system, the National Police Agency determines general standards and policies; detailed direction of operations is left to the lower echelons.[15] In a national emergency or large-scale disaster, the agency is authorized to take command of prefectural police forces. In 1989, the agency was composed of about 1,100 national civil servants, empowered to collect information and to formulate and execute national policies. The agency is headed by a Commissioner General who is appointed by the National Public Safety Commission with the approval of the Prime Minister.[15]

The Central Office includes the Secretariat, with divisions for general operations, planning, information, finance, management, and procurement and distribution of police equipment, and five bureaus. The citizen oversight is provided by the National Public Safety Commission.

As of 2017, the NPA has a strength of 7,800 personnel: 2,100 police officers, 900 Imperial guards and 4,800 civilian staff.[14]

Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department building in Kasumigaseki.

All operational police units are organized into Prefectural Police Headquarters for each Prefectures. Each Prefectural Police Departments are composed of Prefectural Public Safety Commission, police authority, and Police Headquarters, operational units.[13]

The Prefectural Police Department of Tokyo is specifically referred to as the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department (警視庁, Keishi-chō). The Hokkaido Prefectural Police Department is known as Dō-keisatsu (道警察). For Ōsaka and Kyōto, they're known as Fu-keisatsu (府警察) and are distinguished from other Prefectural Police Departments (県警察, Ken-keisatsu). The total strength of the prefectural police is approximately 288,000 personnel: 260,400 police officers and 28,400 civilian staff.[14]

Police officers are divided into nine ranks:[16]

The NPA Commissioner General holds the highest position of the Japanese police.[18] His title is not a rank, but rather denotes his position as head of the NPA. On the other hand, the MPD Superintendent General represents not only the highest rank in the system but also assignment as head of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.[18]

Police officers whose rank are higher than Assistant Commissioner (警視正, Keishi-sei) are salaried by the National budget even if they belong to local police departments. Designation and dismissal of these high-rank officers are delegated to National Public Safety Commission.[19]

The superintendent general which is highest police rank is only in Tokyo outside of it senior commissioner is the highest rank and chief outside of Tokyo, Prefecture police headquarters are commanded by Chief or director general(hunbocho).

• Imperial guard (皇宮護衛官)

• Prison guard (刑務官)

• Narcotics agent (麻薬取締官)
• Labor Standards Inspector (労働基準監督官)

• Authorized Fisheries Inspector (漁業監督官)
• Officers of Regional Forest Office (森林官)

The largest and most important of these ministry-supervised public safety agencies is the Japan Coast Guard, an external agency of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism that deals with crime in coastal waters and maintains facilities for safeguarding navigation. The agency operates a fleet of patrol and rescue craft in addition to a few aircraft used primarily for anti-smuggling patrols and rescue activities. In 1990 there were 2,846 incidents in and on the waters. In those incidents, 1,479 people drowned or were lost and 1,347 people were rescued.

• (船員労務官)

• Military police officer (警務官)

There are other officers having limited public safety functions.

• Diet guard (衛視)

• Immigration control officer (入国警備官)
• Immigration inspector (入国審査官)

They handle national security matters both inside and outside the country. Their activities are not generally known to the public.

• Public prosecutor (検察官)
• Public prosecutor's assistant officer (検察事務官)

• Customs official (税関職員)
• Officers of National Tax Agency (国税庁職員)

• Quarantine Officer (検疫官)

• Animal Quarantine Officers (家畜防疫官)
• Plant Protection Officer (植物防疫官)

The Firearm and Sword Possession Control Law strictly regulates the civilian ownership of guns, swords and other weaponry, in accordance with a 1958 Japanese law which states: "No person shall possess a firearm or firearms or a sword or swords" and there are few exceptions.[20][21]

Japan has strict regulations on medical and recreational drugs. Importing or using any type of narcotics is illegal and there is generally no leniency. For example the possession of cannabis has a jail sentence of up to five years for the first offense. There are no exceptions for celebrities; if a celebrity is caught then their products are removed from stores and it could bring an end to their career. Authorities can detain a suspect for up to three weeks without charges. Solitary confinement is common and you only get access to a lawyer.[22] It is illegal to have prescription drugs mailed to you, and only designated parties in Japan are allowed to import them.[23] If someone intends to bring more than one month of prescription medication, cosmetics or medical devices into Japan, he or she is required to obtain import certification called "Yakkan Shoumei" (薬監証明).[24]

• Yoshino, Jun. (2004). "Law Enforcement in the Edo Period". In: Japan Echo, vol. 31 n. 3, June 2004. p. 59-62.
• National Police Agency Police History Compilation Committee, ed. (1977). Japan post-war police history (in Japanese). Japan Police Support Association.