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Twenty years have passed since the Freedom of Information Act, which stipulates the public's right to request disclosure of government documents, came into force in 2001. It was hoped that this would lead to the realization of an open government, but there have been a series of cases in which the system has been flouted, such as the falsification of approval documents by the Ministry of Finance regarding Moritomo Gakuen and the short-term destruction of the guest list for the Cherry Blossom Viewing Party. [Interviewer: Akira Aoshima]

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, while governments in many countries issued mandatory lockdown orders backed by penalties for non-compliance, Japan’s did not.  International news organisations reported that Japan’s Constitution ‘would need to be amended to impose and enforce a lockdown’. The suggestion that effective action required constitutional change was no surprise. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has been calling for change to the democratic Constitution since it was founded in 1955. One key proposal is the creation of an ‘emergency powers’ provision. But while the pandemic is a crisis that calls for emergency action, an effective response does not require constitutional change.

This article compares the United States, where top-secret investigative materials related to the Ghosn fugitive case can be easily accessed online as part of the court records, with Japan, where access to court records remains difficult and progress in disclosure has been slow. The article features interviews with Japanese and American experts, as well as with plaintiffs in the court memo trial, about open court cases and the right to know.

This is a book review of a collection of writings on fundamental human rights issues written by experts who have been deeply involved in human rights issues at international organizations.

Makoto Ibusuki / Lawrence Repeta This article describes new developments regarding access to legal counsel during the pretrial stage, the recent trend toward a decline in pretrial detention, and the movement by bar associations to regulate interrogations of suspects. The main reason for the decline in detentions is believed to be the proactive efforts of defense lawyers, who frequently challenge court detention orders, and judges who are more willing to accept such challenges and release suspects from physical custody.

In Japan, there are opinions that the Japanese Constitution should be amended to add provisions that give special powers to the Cabinet in emergency situations to prevent COVID-19 infection. However, such provisions are not necessary in the current Constitution. Here we introduce judicial decisions on lockdowns in the United States.