That was my first thought when I read this head-scratching article in the Mainichi Daily News. The National Police Agency is quite literally arguing that because so many suspects confess to their crimes, there is no need to change how police interrogations are conducted. Nevermind that the “change” they are resisting is limited to recording said interrogations to prevent improper conduct. You know, stuff like torture.
Also, holy shit at that average interrogation time: 65 hours and 31 minutes?
The terrifying quote above (in Japanese: ヤクザと外国人に人権はないと教えられた) comes from a former prosecutor in Yokohama who is now dishing dirt on the dark side of the Japanese justice system. While I knew that Japanese discrimination would certainly count against me if I was ever arrested (“foreign crime” is a constant talking point in Japan, even though crimes committed by foreigners has steadily declined for years) but I had no idea that public servants were being taught to treat me like I wasn’t a human being. Another delightful tip he was given: “Foreigners don’t understand Japanese, so if you speak Japanese, you can heap as much verbal abuse as you want on them.” (外国人は日本語が分からないか ら、日本語であればどんなに罵倒してもいい)
If there was any real justice system in Japan, the conviction of every foreign-born prisoner in Yokohama would be under review right now. I’d be shocked if this even makes headline news though.
