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Japan Passes Controversial 'Anti-Conspiracy' Bill (privateinternetaccess.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Virtual Privacy Network Blog, News: Earlier today, after an intentionally rushed consideration process, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe passed a new mass surveillance law conveniently called the "anti-conspiracy bill." With the vague wording of the bill, anyone suspected of planning any of [the 277 acts listed in the bill] could be put under targeted surveillance. Of course, the Japanese government has promised not to overstep their boundaries and emphasized that the new law is only meant to increase security before the 2020 Olympics. Among the noted crimes that would be punishable in Japan under the new anti-terrorism law is copyright violation, which is a criminal offense not a civil offense in Japan. Both the Japanese Bar Association and the United Nation's Special Rapporteur have spoken out against the law, saying that it will severely curtail civil liberties in Japan.
BBC laid out some of the most ridiculous things that someone in Japan can now catch a potentially terrorism-related charge for even planning or discussing on social media the acts of: Copying music; Conducting sit-ins to protest against the construction of apartment buildings; Using forged stamps; Competing in a motor boat race without a license; Mushroom picking in conservation forests; Avoiding paying consumption tax. The stated rationale of the government is that these now-illegal acts, such as copying music to CDs or foraging for mushrooms in conservation forests, could be used to fund terrorist activities. Hence, planning or thinking about them is bad. If this sounds like the Thought Police, that's because it is.
BBC laid out some of the most ridiculous things that someone in Japan can now catch a potentially terrorism-related charge for even planning or discussing on social media the acts of: Copying music; Conducting sit-ins to protest against the construction of apartment buildings; Using forged stamps; Competing in a motor boat race without a license; Mushroom picking in conservation forests; Avoiding paying consumption tax. The stated rationale of the government is that these now-illegal acts, such as copying music to CDs or foraging for mushrooms in conservation forests, could be used to fund terrorist activities. Hence, planning or thinking about them is bad. If this sounds like the Thought Police, that's because it is.
...recur in Japan. Arbitrary power leads to arbitrary government and tyranny. Sounds like Japan is going to continue to implode on population.
It's one thing to hack into a computer to gather evidence of a serious crime or to prevent one, and it's ANOTHER THING ENTIRELY DESU when you're subscribing anyone who ever pirated a video or a Green Day album for enhanced surveillance...
...if they promise not to use it?
They always ask for ridiculously restrictive laws in their host countries.
...not an instruction manual.
Don't give great Orange leader any ideas.
You mean "cue". /grammar-pedant
"Queue outrage" is presumably, what happens when people push into a line of patiently-waiting people.
"We note success of Japanese law and are implementing it here " - Government of bobbied's country
Sad to see this happening there, but it's not like japanese government don't have previous bills that are borderline thought police like.
It's a country that I'd like to visit again and possibly even spend a longer time in the future, but this is pretty bad. I already discarded visiting the US in the near future, the last thing I want to see is even more countries using terrorism as an excuse for overbearing state surveillance.
The occupation government clamps down as the olympics approach, getting ready to smash some skulls as the general sense of nationalism in Japan grows, along with several "extreme" right-wing groups.
I no longer have any wish to visit Japan.
They always ask for ridiculously restrictive laws in their host countries.
Maybe so. But it also sounds like 277 special interest groups got together and wrote a law to protect their interests.
Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
As expected.
fuck the Olympic cartel
So japan wants to do same legally everyone else is doing illegally. Atleast they're being kind of honest when they pass an actual law.
I wish my country also would publicize what the actual rules are.
In Finland, you can be suspect to a crime based on "evidence" inside your apartment and not observable unless already performing a house search. ie. search was ordered prior to establishing any cause.
You can bring the victim of the original crime, doctor, whose clinic was burglarized to appeals court to prove police perjury in lower court. Cops said narcotic drugs could've been stolen, doc says cops knew an hour before the search started drug vault was still locked and untouched.
Cops also give statement under oath that they performed visual observation giving them cause to suspect me personally between points a-b, which in reality were lacking line of sight due to concrete wall without windows. I brought pictures proving this to court.
Court simply withdraws mention of possibly stolen drugs in new verdict, cops escape punishment, the person arrested on false pretext gets shafted with court bills.
If the government just fucking upfront said they're going to do the fuckever they wan't all this unnecessary bullshit could've been avoided.
In Finland, having dog hair on the bottom of your shoe can result in your house being raided at 3 am by 5 cops and the interrogation about non-existing imaginary stolen drugs lasts 7 hours. Supreme court simply refuses to admit the case without statement and whole process dies.
in response to the lessons of WW2. ...Japan is one that hasn't changed enough.
They keep moving toward (real) nationalism. Not this "'Merica!" kind, but "change the history books" kind. They would rather forget and hide all the atrocities than accept and learn from them.
(There are tons of great people in Japan, but the ones who have influence and power are NOT the same people.)
For all the shit we give Germany over WW2. Nobody ever bothers to read up on the near equal horror of Japan. Human experimentation on live subjects? Yes. Belief in superior race? Yes. Death marches? Yes. An nationalistic ideology so strong they had volunteer suicide bombers? Yep. Systematic rape (and murder) of millions of women and children? Yep. Experimentation of biological and chemical weapons on prisoners? Yep. (Google Unit-731)
The Japanese do not want to do this; in fact, several nearly identical laws have been stopped by popular protests. Large swathes of the ruling elite, however, want this.
The party currently in power also glorifies the Imperial military's conduct during the 1930s and 40s, much to the chagrin of China and Korea, whilst also trying to alter or reinterpret the current constitution to allow greater militarisation.
"It's been 1 hour, 22 minutes since you last successfully posted a comment" Yeah, fuck you to, /.
They have nice comfortable modern lives and no terrorists.
somethings working.
The Japanese sure like their mushrooms. Perhaps this is an example how diminishing access to natural resources and increasing population density leads to ever stricter laws and punishments. Islands have always been man-eat-dogs-and-other-men worlds, but in the future the island is the whole planet.
This is the most amusing of the rationale! By that reasoning, ALL income COULD be used to fund terrorism, therefore ANYONE who earns money should be arrested because they could use that money to fund terrorism!
-nomsg
The Japanese do not want to do this; in fact, several nearly identical laws have been stopped by popular protests. Large swathes of the ruling elite, however, want this. The party currently in power also glorifies the Imperial military's conduct during the 1930s and 40s, much to the chagrin of China and Korea, whilst also trying to alter or reinterpret the current constitution to allow greater militarisation.
So.. Are you advocating that a foreigner should somehow get involved in the politics of another country? If the people of Japan don't like this, they have the constitutional right to petition their government and the obligation to elect representatives who will change it. I have not dog in this hunt.
Now if you are advocating that we *should* care and be involved in Japan's politics, I'm wondering what we've been discussing about the Russians and the last presidential election. I mean, if it's OK for us to do it, why do we complain when the Russians do it?
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
Pretty sure "protest" falls under "basic human rights."
This is my signature. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
Actually Japan and the USA have reciprocity of copyright law. In theory, if you violate something under their copyright HERE (e.g. copy a work of a Japanese company) you could be prosecuted and tried THERE.
Sure, but I don't have a vested interest in this one. Protesting where don't have dog in the hunt isn't a profitable use of my time..
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
If the Japanese want to do this, why is it my business? I don't live there and I'm not planning to go there anytime soon. They are not out obviously committing violations of basic human rights... Let them argue their own laws and elect the politicians they wish to pass them, my opinion doesn't matter.
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." - Martin Luther King
They should do like the US, and just put everyone under surveillance regardless of whether any suspicion of any activity exists.
"Somebody has to do something. It's just incredibly pathetic it has to be us."
--- Jerry Garcia
Named using doublespeak and rammed through the legislature, under the pretense of increased security. Well doesn't that sound familiar.
Oh, you're going to object to draconian laws curtailing free speech and eroding personal privacy, that just happen to have a measure or two thrown in to protect corporate profits? Do you sympathize with terrorist criminals or are you one yourself?
At the rate the world is going, I wonder when freedom and liberty will stop mattering entirely.
Totally not a False Equivalence Argument there... Raising concerns of the dangers to civil liberties of a law, is not quite the same as hacking voting computers, disinformation campaigns, and funding a candidate all in order to weaken countries that dared question my right to invade and take over random country.... yep totally the same situation there
> So.. Are you advocating that a foreigner should somehow get involved in the politics of another country?
I was advocating neither for nor against such action. I was claiming someone else's statement regarding the will of the Japanese people was erroneus, and pointing out (subjective) flaws in the current ruling party.
It should be notet that 'In May, the UN Special Rapporteur for privacy rights, Joseph Cannataci, warned that: "If adopted into law [this bill] may lead to undue restrictions to the rights to privacy and to freedom of expression."' according to Al Jazeera. If the law violates any international treaties to which Japan is a signatory, other countries not only may, but have a duty, to protest this. I haven't bothered to ascertain whether this is actually the case.
> Now if you are advocating that we *should* care and be involved in Japan's politics, I'm wondering what we've been discussing about the Russians and the last presidential election. I mean, if it's OK for us to do it, why do we complain when the Russians do it?
Lodging official protests against laws violating international treaties (assuming this is, in fact, the case) is hardly the same as covert desinformation campaigns, allegedly trying to interfere with electronic voting, and allegedly bribing foreign politicians, is it?
Sharing opinions on various countries' laws happens daily on this website (just today there have been discussions on new mobile phone regulations in Canada and in the EU, amongst others) and is also a far cry from what the Russians are probably doing. My personal opinion happens to be that a law which classifies participating in a boat race without a license as conspiracy to terrorism is rubbish.
"It's been 1 hour, 31 minutes since you last successfully posted a comment"
I'm very much advocating against these idiotic limits on posting as AC. I couldn't even submit an article about the Chinese launching a new telescope into space today. Guess my private data is just too valuable to whomever Slashdot's newest owner is.
Precisely the same reason was laid out for granting Austrailian soldiers legal immunity for shooting at groups of citizens prior to the 2001 Olympics. Looking at what has happened to the Olympic infrastructure that was to be granted to the people of Brazil I think it is fair to say that the Olympics is a boondoggle factory of epic proportions.
For Japan in particular, considering the media blackout surrounding Fukushima it is more that likely the government and olympic officials don't want anyone talking about the toxic radionuclides that have been distributed over Tokyo. Since you can't get any reliable information about it I'm sure the brave Japanese people who are trying, whilst suffering the criminal negligence of TECPO and the regulator, will be shut down soon.
I would like to have a look at the text of this legislation and what is on that list however it wasn't posted with the story. As has become usual here, we are talking about this law in ignorance of what is in it. I tried to find the text of the Act for the last 45 minutes and whilst I see a lot of stories from around the world about how it was rammed through and how there was a brawl in the house about the passage of the war bill, it seems incredibly difficult to find the text of Japanese laws.
Free speech is a joke under such laws and I wonder how long the illusion that these acts of government are in place to serve the people can be maintained.
My ism, it's full of beliefs.
lots of money like looking in sea freighters containers and you are wrong you should get a bullet in the ear.
But protesting the protesting of a hunt you lack a dog in is a good use of your time?
The flamebait mod is perfect example of how badly the truth hurts. You damn people would rather complain and link to advertising click-bait than actually try to fix the problem. This tyranny is your own fault.
I suppose the correct answer to your question is, "Empathy."
However, it may be important to note that oppression often leads to violence of varied scales. Which means your country would potentially be involved. If they are involved, it will cost them money. That means you pay more in taxes.
I can't say I'm overly concerned, but I guess those are answers to your question.
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
Maybe Japanese lawmakers go the full length and make comming to work on time a felony too.
After all, holding a steady job is a fantastic way to finance terrorism. And a cover. And with the right job, even access to large buildings,city centers, subways during rush hour.
Yes, this is sarcasm.
Australia and the UK just passed the 'Snooper's charter' (and the USA is considering it); now they'll want a law enforcing this.
Yes. We must immediately harmonize these copyright infringement laws around the world, just to there is a level playing field for copyright holders. People have been getting away with remembering words from books, songs, movies for far too long!
Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
"Protesting where don't have dog in the hunt isn't a profitable use of my time."
Which makes you a self centered, asshole. Or, as we like to say, The Ugly American.
There's probably eight laws to protect tentacle hentai porn.
#DeleteFacebook
I remember when living in Japan, you used to have CD rental stores. You could rent a CD for a day for ~100Yen, At the time 20 years back or so, a new cd was around 3,000 yen or about double US prices. Of course right by the counter was a stack of minidiscs to buy, which probably explains why that format took off in Japan and not in the USA.
http://neojaponisme.com/2005/0...
The above link explains that the media manufacturers apparently had more clout than the music industry and thats why the stores were permitted.
Bring back the old version of slashdot.
Where in the summary is there anything even close to "thought police"?
This is part of a global trend and the fascistoid governments in power in far too many places these days take cues from each other. I take it you live on this planet? Then it _is_ your business.
Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.
they should make it illegal to buy oil.
LOLOLOLOL I'm done.
no he wants you to play this https://www.discogs.com/Outrage-Theme-From-Outrage/master/146846