Stricter Penalties for Insults Not Needed Now: Govt

Tokyo, Feb. 10 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Justice Ministry has decided that there is no need to further toughen punishment for the crime of insults or to newly impose penalties for libel conducted via direct messages on social media.

On Monday, the ministry held a meeting of an expert panel reviewing the operation of a Penal Code article related to insults and compiled a report saying that the 2022 increase in statutory penalties for the crime of insults has been "effective to a certain extent as a measure against libel on the internet."

The report said that the current legal framework is sufficient to handle malicious cases, denying the need for further penalty increase.

Insults are recognized when someone "openly" denigrates another person. On defamation carried out by direct messages, which does not meet the requirement for insults, the report cautioned that expanding punishable acts to include such communications could excessively broaden the scope of punishment.

As a result, the ministry deemed it appropriate to postpone moves to make direct-message defamation subject to penalties.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]