Japan Press Weekly

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2013 December 4 - 10 [CIVIL RIGHTS]

JCP Nihi reveals police monitoring of Muslims in Tokyo

The security police has been conducting the gathering of personal information targeting 40,000 Muslims living in Tokyo, Japanese Communist Party Upper House member Nihi Sohei revealed on December 5.

At a House special committee meeting on national security, Nihi cited internal documents of the security police leaked online in 2010 which report on its information collection activities, including the continuous monitoring of mosques in Tokyo. “Such outrageous violations of human rights should not be allowed,” he stressed.

National Public Safety Commission Chair Furuya Keiji responded to Nihi by saying, “For public safety and maintenance of order, police collect and analyze necessary information.” Chief Cabinet Secretary Suga Yoshihide stated, “Information gathering has been conducted in accordance with the law.”

Nihi pointed out that no provision on a state secrets protection bill guarantees that such human rights violations would not take place. “A secrets law could give the nation legal grounds to do whatever it wants,” he warned.

Past related article:
> Police collect personal data on students from Islamic nations (March 17, 2012)