Column 6 Prevention of Re-offending

The White Paper on Crime 2007 pointed out the importance of preventing re-offending. Since then, the Ministerial Meeting Concerning Measures Against Crime has established the following action plans that focus on this issue:

• (i)The Action Plan for Achieving a Crime-Resistant Society 2008, which clarified its commitment to preventing re-offending by released inmates for “building a society that does not create offenders”;
• (ii)The Comprehensive Measures for the Prevention of Re-offending 2012, which set numerical targets for criminal policies over the next decade;
• (iii)The Strategy to Make Japan the “Safest Country in the World” 2013, which promoted correctional guidance and support based on individual characteristics;
• (iv)The Declaration of No Return to Crime, No Facilitation of a Return to Crime 2014, which emphasized the importance of securing an “occupation” and a “place to belong”; and
• (v)The Emergency Measures to Prevent Re-offending by Drug Addicts and Elderly Criminals 2016, which focused on drug addicts and elderly offenders.

The Act for the Prevention of Recidivism (Act No. 104 of 2016) enacted in 2016 sets the basic philosophy on preventing re-offending, clarifies the responsibility of the national and local governments, and sets basic measures for preventing re-offending. In accordance with the provisions of the Act, the Recidivism Prevention Plan with 5 basic principles and 7 priorities was drawn up in 2017.