Japan Ruling LDP Formally OKs Retrial System Reform Bill

Tokyo, May 14 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party officially approved on Thursday a draft criminal procedure law amendment stipulating a basic ban on public prosecutors’ appeals against court orders granting retrials in the main text of the law. The government draft legislation, designed to reform the nation’s retrial system, was endorsed at an extraordinary meeting of the party’s decision-making General Council. The government plans to adopt the bill at a cabinet meeting Friday and promptly submit it to the Diet, or parliament, with the aim of securing its enactment during the ongoing Diet session, scheduled to end July 17. In the LDP’s preliminary screenings of the draft, some member lawmakers strongly insisted that prosecutors be fully barred from appealing against retrial rulings. After the draft was revised three times, LDP lawmakers finally agreed that a clause basically banning appeals would be included in the main text of the revised law. Prosecutors’ appeals have been criticized as a factor to prolong retrial-related procedures, thereby substantially delaying the rescue of victims of false convictions. The draft amendment allows prosecutors to file appeals only in cases where there are sufficient grounds. Upcoming Diet deliberations on the bill are expected to center on the scope of evidence to be disclosed by law-enforcement authorities during retrial procedures and the handling of the ban on the use of disclosed evidence for purposes other than original intent. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]