Japan approves anti-terrorist conspiracy bill

Tokyo, June 15 (IANS) Japan on Thursday approved a controversial anti-conspiracy bill that penalises the planning of crimes with the aim to prevent terrorism.

The Japanese Upper House of Parliament approved an amendment to the organised crime law which will penalise for the first time criminal conspiracy, which is defined as an organisation or group of persons planning to commit a crime (out of a total of 277 typified), or to prepare for it, reports Efe news.

The legislative body, in which the ruling coalition led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has a majority, promulgated the law despite the opposition's rejection, after deliberating on Wednesday night.

The approval of the law will allow the government to avoid an extension of the current parliamentary session, which will be finalised on Sunday, at a time of intense scrutiny of Abe's government for its alleged involvement in the arbitrary approval of a university project.

The government defended the "anti-conspiracy" bill as a tool to prevent terrorism, especially ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, and to allow Japan to ratify the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime adopted in the year 2000.

Three similar projects were previously halted.

Critics of the legislation, including legal experts such as the Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA), warned that the legislation's scope will lead to a violation of fundamental rights such as freedom of expression, or excessive oversight of civil groups such as labour unions or NGOs.

Amnesty International is also concerned about the law and the UN Special Rapporteur on Privacy, Joseph Cannataci, who had warned in a letter to Abe in May that this could affect the right to privacy as well as other freedoms. These concerns were publicly rejected by the Abe government.