Japan
2026
- GOVERNMENT
- constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary government
- CONSTITUTION
- May 3, 1947
- LEGAL SYSTEM
- based on the German model with Anglo-American influences; review of legislative acts by the Supreme Court
- LEGISLATIVE SYSTEM
- bicameral, House of Councillors (Sangi-in) and House of Representatives (Shugi-in)
- JUDICIAL SYSTEM
- Supreme Court (president appointed by the King on the recommendation of the Government, others appointed by the Government)
RELIGIONS
majority of Buddhists and Shintoists; minorities of Catholics, Protestants, and Orthodox
From the country
- MARCH 29, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. DEATH SENTENCE UPHELD FOR 71 YEAR OLD
the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence handed down to Kazutoshi Takahashi, a 71-year-old man, for a 1998 double-murder in Yokohama.
- MARCH 28, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. TOKYO HIGH COURT REJECTS ASAHARA'S APPEAL OF DEATH SENTENCE
the Tokyo High Court rejected former doomsday cult leader Shoko Asahara's appeal of his death sentence, bringing him a step closer to hanging for a nerve gas attack on Tokyo and other assaults that killed 27 and injured thousands
- MARCH 21, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. DEATH SENTENCE METED VIA NEW FAST-TRACK PROCESS
the Kobe District Court sentenced 65-year-old Mineteru Yamamoto to death for robbing and killing a couple in 2004 in what was believed to be the first death sentence handed down by a court through streamlined trial procedures.
- MARCH 16, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. DEATH SENTENCE UPHELD ON GANGSTER FOR KILLING 4 IN BAR SHOOTING
the Tokyo High Court upheld the death sentence imposed on Masato Kohinata for killing a rival gang member and three bystanders in a shooting at a bar in Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture, in 2003.
- MARCH 16, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. EX-AUM MEMBER APPEALS HIGH COURT'S UPHOLDING OF DEATH SENTENCE
Tomomitsu Niimi, a former senior member of the cult formerly called AUM Shinrikyo, appealed a high court's decision that upheld the death sentence handed down against him for his involvement in a series of crimes including the deadly sarin gas attack on t
- MARCH 15, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. 30% OF POLLED DEATH ROW INMATES HAVE NO ONE TO VISIT THEM
nearly 30 percent of death row inmates polled in Japan had no one to visit them, a survey conducted by the Japan Federation of Bar Associations showed. The survey was given to 79 inmates as of January 2006 and 58 people responded.
- MARCH 15, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. TOKYO HIGH COURT UPHOLDS DEATH SENTENCE ON AUM'S NIIMI
the Tokyo High Court rejected an appeal by former doomsday cult member Tomomitsu Niimi convicted in attacks including the 1995 Tokyo nerve gassing that killed 12 people.
- MARCH 2, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS DEATH SENTENCE ON MAN FOR KILLING, ROBBING 2 WOMEN
Japan’s Supreme Court upheld a death sentence on Masami Toyoda, a 62-year-old man, for killing two women in murder-robbery cases in the 1990s.
- MARCH 1, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. KEY MAN IN JAPANESE DOOMSDAY CULT APPEALS DEATH SENTENCE
Tomomasa Nakagawa, key member of the doomsday cult who allegedly prepared the nerve gas for the deadly attack on the Tokyo subway in 1995, began an appeal against his death sentence.
- FEBRUARY 24, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. DEATH SENTENCE UPHELD FOR MAN CONVICTED OF TWO MURDERS
Japan’s Supreme Court upheld the death sentence for Masuo Yamaguchi, convicted of two murders and robbery in 1994 and 1995 in Gifu and Mie prefectures.
- FEBRUARY 20, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. CULT LEADER FIT TO APPEAL AGAINST DEATH SENTENCE
Shoko Asahara, the former leader of the cult responsible for the deadly 1995 nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway moved a step closer to the gallows when a psychiatrist ruled that he was mentally fit to continue his appeal against the death penalty.
- FEBRUARY 14, 2006JapanDEATH PENALTY
JAPAN. TOP COURT LETS DEATH PENALTY STAND FOR FORMER RIGHT-WINGER
the Supreme Court rejected an appeal against the death penalty for Takehiko Tanaka, a 42-year-old former right-wing group member found guilty of murdering two men in 1992 and 1994, letting stand a high court ruling in favour of capital punishment.