An inter-party group of lawmakers calling for the abolition...

An inter-party group of lawmakers calling for the abolition of the death penalty in Japan visited Justice Minister Mayumi Moriyama to protest the execution of two death-row inmates in late December 2001.
The 98-member group was led by Kamei Shizuka, a senior lawmaker from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and a former senior official in the National Police Agency. They handed a protest to Moriyama at the Justice Ministry.
The document noted the case of one of the two executed inmates, Toshihiko Hasegawa, who was convicted of killing three people for insurance money between 1979 and 1983.
It cited the wishes of Masaharu Harada, the brother of one of Hasegawa's victims who had extensive contact with Hasegawa while he was in prison. Harada wanted Hasegawa to live to atone for his crimes rather than be executed.
The document also included a demand for the immediate suspension of executions in line with calls from international organizations such as the U.N. Commission on Human Rights, which has been urging Japan to take steps toward eliminating capital punishment.
Moriyama told the group, "It is the role of the administration to deliver (punishments) in line with court judgments, and in the capacity of the justice minister, I made the decision (to execute them). I am compelled to act faithfully in conformity with existing laws."
Death-row inmates are not executed unless ordered by the justice minister. The Justice Ministry does not disclose the names of those it executes.
The lawmakers' group has scheduled a protest rally in Tokyo on January 28 in cooperation with organizations working to abolish the death penalty. Activists from South Korea, where legislators are deliberating a bill to abolish capital punishment, will also be invited.
The Diet group was formed in April 1994 by lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition camps, and Kamei is the fourth politician to lead it. He became head of the group Nov. 2.
The execution of Hasegawa, 51, and the other inmate, Kojiro Asakura, 66, on December 27, 2001 represented the first hangings in 13 months and the first under the administration of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.