On June 1, 2005, the Ministry of Justice started to provide the National Police Agency with information concerning the scheduled date of release and residing place after release, etc. of inmates who committed violent sexual offenses targeting children. Inmates subject to this new system are those who were convicted for such offenses as forcible indecency, rape, kidnapping for the purpose of indecency and rape at the scene of a robbery, with victims under 13 years of age. When such an inmate is going to be released, the director of a penal institution is required to notify the National Police Agency about the name, scheduled date of release, date of entry to the institution, scheduled place to return, and other reference matters of the inmate nearly one month prior to the scheduled date of release. By May 31, 2006, information on 169 inmates was provided (Source: Correction Bureau, Ministry of Justice).
  In addition to this, on September 1, 2005, the Ministry of Justice started to provide the National Police Agency with information on release of inmates concerning heinous grave crimes such as homicide and robbery and offenses such as burglary theft and drug offenses that are apt to lead to those heinous crimes and are highly likely to be repeated. The Ministry of Justice is to make notification every month to the National Police Agency about information, such as the date of entry, (scheduled) date of release, and reasons for release, of inmates subject to this system. By May 31, 2006, information on nearly 19,000 inmates in total was provided (Source: Correction Bureau, Ministry of Justice).

  Ensuring inmates' basis of life after release is significant from the viewpoint of preventing repeat offenses. The Ministry of Justice has worked on job assistance for those released from penal institutions in cooperation with related organs including the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare. Concretely, the Ministry has provided "job assistance guidance" for subject inmates as a part of special rehabilitation guidance in penal institutions, through cooperating with probation offices and public employment agencies. Furthermore, the Ministry has implemented vocational training according to employment conditions, and staff of public employment agencies have provided vocational counseling, job placement service, and vocational lectures, etc.
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Penal Institution Inspection Committee
The Penal Institution Inspection Committee, which was newly established by the Act on Treatment of Sentenced Inmates, consists of up to 10 members who are appointed by the Minister of Justice from among people who are noble and highly experienced and are passionate about improving the management of penal institutions. The Committee can inspect penal institutions and offer its opinions to the directors of institutions. Penal institutions have been managed with support from private cooperators in local communities, but under this new Committee system, cooperation between penal institutions and local communities is expected to be further strengthened.