Japan's Child Pornography Bill Would Not Restrict Anime, Manga

[OneManArmy]

On Wednesday, Japan's Lower House Judicial Affairs Committee discussed a bill to make the possession of child pornography a crime. Japan currently only outlaws the creation and distribution of child pornography. The bill adds possession, but would not criminalize depictions in manga and anime. The Lower House Judicial Affairs Committee unanimously passed the bill to the full House of Representatives, who is in turn expected to pass and send the bill the upper chamber for a vote before June 22.

 

The bill will replace the previously proposed child pornography bill that included instructions to investigate pornography in manga and anime.

 

According the bill, anyone found in possession of child pornography could face one year in prison and a fine of one million yen (about US$10,000). The law will not go into effect until one year after it is passed to give potential violators a chance to throw away any child pornography they currently own. Japan is the only member of the Group of Seven industrialized nations that does not criminalize possession of child pornography.

Cool

[Melancholic]

Despite calls for manga imagery to be included in the new rules, there has been strong resistance from manga artists, free-speech advocates and publishers, who said it would impinge on freedom of expression and allow authorities to make arbitrary decisions about art.

Dangerous.

 

Of course I'm all for this law in its current form, and glad they seem able to make a distinction between reality and fiction (unlike some governments) but I'm still more worried for my lolis than I've ever been since there are apparently groups actively campaigning against them...

 

All the angry commenters calling for a ban on anime and manga across a variety of news sources aren't helping.

 

Edit:

Somehow missed:

The bill will replace the previously proposed child pornography bill that included instructions to investigate pornography in manga and anime.

Somewhat less depressed now! Edited June 5, 2014 by Melancholic

[Rance Petersen]

Oh, thank god.

 

Here I was afraid of them taking away my pedophile material.

 

Now we can all continue to rape little girls in eroge games without feeling guilty.