Japan to Ban Parental Physical Punishment

Tokyo, March 2 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government will step up its fight against child abuse, by taking such measures as prohibiting physical punishment by parents against their children through law revisions, Jiji Press found Saturday. Learning lessons from a high-profile incident in which a 10-year-old girl in Noda, Chiba Prefecture, died after being abused by her father, the government will also oblige officials of schools, education boards, child consultation centers and other public bodies to never disclose information about children they take care of, according to outlined draft amendments to the child welfare law and the child abuse prevention law. To detect child abuse cases early, spouse violence counselling and support centers will be required to cooperate with child consultation centers. In the Noda case, the city education board showed the father of the deceased girl, Mia Kurihara, her report of abuse. Her mother sought advice from city government officials about the violence she received from the husband, but the information was not shared by relevant authorities, including the education board and a child consultation center. The outlined drafts also call for beefing up functions of child consultation centers so the centers can step into domestic affairs more easily by taking such action as temporary protective custody. In addition, the government will have lawyers always ready for giving advice to the centers and station doctors and nurses there. As for officials working for the well-being of children, measures to improve their expertise will be discussed three years after the amended laws take effect, the drafts said. The government plans to show the outlines to the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, Komeito, on Tuesday. After working out details, the government is expected to adopt the amendment bills at a cabinet meeting as early as mid-March and introduce them in the Diet. END