Ms. Ayaka SHIOMURA, a member of the House of Councilors of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), stated that she would like to hear what the UNDP Associate Administrator thought about Japan’s approach to human rights, even if it is just his personal opinion. She also expressed her opinion that the UN Human Rights Council`s recommendations are not legally binding, which she felt was exacerbating the current situation in Japan. In response, Mr. Haoliang Xu said he could not answer the question about human rights in Japan in detail because he did not have perfect knowledge. However, to the best of his knowledge, the Universal Periodic Review of the UN Human Rights Council scrutinizes member states’ status about their total human rights efforts. He added that as Japan was also subject to the Universal Periodic Review, he would like to refer to it for a detailed assessment of Japan’s human rights efforts. (26/6/2024)
Explanatory Note from the Secretariat of the Japan Commission on Global Governance
The Universal Periodic Review is a system under which the UN Human Rights Council examines the human rights situation of all UN member states in light of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and human rights treaties and issues recommendations on areas for improvement. In Japan’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) conducted in 2023, approximately 300 recommendations were issued to Japan. The Government of Japan has responded that it would follow up on more than 180 of those recommendations.
The main recommendations of the UN Human Rights Council and the Japanese government’s response are as follows
- Death Penalty: Although many countries have called for the abolition of the death penalty, the Government of Japan has maintained its previous position and indicated that it intends to continue the death penalty.
- Rights of women, children, persons with disabilities, and foreign workers: Several recommendations were made to guarantee rights in these areas. The Japanese government would review relevant laws and policies based on these recommendations.
- National Human Rights Institutions: Although many countries have called for establishing national human rights institutions in Japan, the Japanese government has not yet announced concrete plans.
Reference documents.
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan’s page on the UPR: https://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/gaiko/jinken_r/upr_gai.html
- OHCHR’s UPR page for Japan: