As we continue our series of 9 podcasts about jails and police in Japan, we take a look at sentencing. You will be surprised at the factors that are included in the decision about prison time.
Hiroshi, Yu, Yoshika
refPod2Per3GA
Script
(SE) knocking on the door
A&B) May we come in?
C) Sure.
(SE) the door opening
A&B) Hi,
C) Hi, welcome to my office. I’m a lawyer. It’s good to see you.
A) It’s good to see you too. I’m from Australia, and this is my friend from Singapore. We…uh…we saw the notice about your job and…
C) So you are here to listen to my “Committing Crimes in Japan Project”, right?
B) Yes, we want more information.
C) Sure. I’ll explain. At least once in a life, everyone must have dreamed of committing a crime, just because they want to do something exciting. However, most of them don’t have courage to do that because they are afraid of going to jail. So, to fulfill your interests, I, an international lawyer, will tell you which crimes you should commit here in Japan. By following my advice, you only have to go to jail for at most 20 years. If you commit those crimes in your countries, you could be sentenced to capital punishment.
Wow! That’s a big difference!
Why is Japan so tolerant to criminals?
Well, it’s probably because Japan used to be an agricultural country. Everyone needed to co-operate to make their livings, so they gave criminals many chances to return to society.
Oh, I see. So more specifically, what crimes should I commit in Japan?
C) Well, in Australia, it is illegal to wear a Batman’s costume, right?
Yes, of course!
C) But in Japan, you are allowed to do that.
Oh really? I’ve always wanted to wear batman’s costume on Halloween!
C) Also in Australia, people are not allowed to wear black clothes and put shoe polish on your face, because you might look like a robber, right?
Right.
C) Well, that’s not illegal in Japan, neither.
Really? Then are there people with black all over their body in Japan?
C) I’ve never seen one, but you never get caught even if you dress like that.
And the rarest law in Japan is that in Japan, there is no life imprisonment, unlike Australia, America, France, and so on.
A) That’s unbelievable! Do you mean all criminals get released from prison?
C) Besides criminals who are sentenced to capital punishment, yes. The longest term of imprisonment in Japan is 20 years.
A) What a tolerant country Japan is! It’s so interesting that Japan is a very safe country although they don’t have life-imprisonment system.
B) What about me? What crimes should I commit in Japan?
C) Singapore is a very strict country, so you have many choices. For example, if you throw garbage away on streets, you will have to pay about $660. However in Japan, although you might be scolded for doing so, you don’t have to pay any penalty.
B) Yes! I’ve always wanted to throw garbage away on streets! And I can do that in Japan!
C) Sure you can.
B) What else can I do here?
C) Well, if you use fake money in Singapore, you could be sentenced to death. However in Japan, you would have to go to jail for only about 3 years.
B) That’s so short! I want to commit some kind of crime right now!
A) Well, thank you for telling us much information.
Thanks to you, our stay in Japan would be a very fun stuff!
C) I hope you enjoy your stay. Well, I want you to pay me $200 each for charge.
B) No way!
A) That’s too expensive!
C) Sorry, but you have to.
B) Okay… here.
A) Here you are.
C) Thank you! Have a nice stay!
A&B) Bye…
(SE) the door closing
C) Now that I have much money now, I want to eat sushi for today’s dinner. How much do I have now? One two three…. What?! The bills they gave me are fake!!!
(SE) airy sound