A video clip of an anti-nuclear protester being arrested by Japanese police has received many views on YouTube. Here is a high quality version of the clip [turn on captions for English subtitles]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kid9mEhGKfw...player_embedded
The clip was apparently filmed during a demonstration that took place in Tokyo on September 11th. As anti-nuclear people marched, a small group of Zaitokukai right wingers held a protest against the anti-nuclear protest. (In other video clips, we can see that police erected a barrier between the two opposing sides, and officers were trying to prevent any physical contact between them.)
We are shown the aftermath of a confrontation between the two sides. Police are restraining and then arresting two protesters in faux radiation suits. All the while, the Zaitokukai members are shouting encouragement, even telling the police to “shoot the criminals.” According to the video uploader (a member of the anti-nuclear camp), it is an “unlawful arrest” of “innocent nonviolent protestors.”
It is alleged that the two protesters were physically attacked:
The French protestor and his Japanese wife were reportedly kicked in the stomach by the hate-group while they were being restrained by the police, yet the police did nothing.
Unfortunately, the video only shows what happened after the alleged kicking, so we can’t be sure if it actually happened. Nor is is possible to confirm that police saw the kicking and decided to do nothing about it.
Instead, we have footage of the two protesters physically resisting as police try to make them move away from the Zaitokukai extremists. The taller protester, who is presumably the Frenchman, is trying to push his way through the police. He wants to force his way towards the Zaitokukai group, and police are trying to make him to rejoin the other anti-nuclear demonstrators.
After some pushing and shoving, they finally seem to give up and begin to walk away. A few pedestrians obscure the camera shot, and when we can see the protesters again, they are being forced to the ground and the Frenchman is arrested. He is taken away, but his wife stays in the street, being physically restrained by police officers while she shouts questions about why they arrested an anti-nuclear protester.
The uploader of the video believes that the police should be arresting the people who were shouting threatening words:
They are shouting abusive language with megaphones at a nonviolent French anti-nuclear protestor and his Japanese wife, and encouraging the police to “shoot and kill” them. These two nonviolent protestors actually get arrested by the Japanese police, while this abusive, extremist hate-group shouting abusive and threatening language with megaphones in a threatening manner is not even as much touched by the police. They walk free, while the innocent nonviolent protestors are arrested by the police.
The uploader believes that the rightists’ shouts encouraging the police to “shoot the criminals” or “throw the criminals into the nuclear reactor” should be considered illegal threats:
Threats and intimidation are illegal under the Japanese law, Article 222.
第222条
1. 生命、身体、自由、名誉又は財産に対し害を加える旨を告知して人を脅迫した者は、2年以下の懲役又は30万円以下の罰金に処する。
2. 親族の生命、身体、自由、名誉又は財産に対し害を加える旨を告知して人を脅迫した者も、前項と同様とする。
A person announcing or threatening to kill a person could be fined for under 2 years in prison time or under 300,000 yen in fines. Yet there is no news that the people who were threatening to kill the protestors have been arrested by the police.
The uploader claims that the police don’t arrest the Zaitokukai members because they are corrupt and sympathize with their extreme fascist views:
CORRUPTION IN JAPAN is very real and the ultranationalist-friendly Japanese police tend to side with such extremists and ultranationalists. Innocent people are arrested for seemingly no reason other than for ideological biases, while the real violent hate-criminals are let go and ignored by the police.
FOREIGNERS THINKING OF VISITING JAPAN should be vigilant, lest they receive violent threats, harrassments and treatments from violent hate-groups such as this group that are not targeted by the police and possibly get arrested for no reason by the corrupt Japanese police.
WE HAVE THE RIGHT to peacefully protest and peacefully co-exist whereever we live without being harrased and violently threatened by extremist hate-groups, especially in democratic, developed nations such as Japan.
As far as I am aware, the only cases of Zaitokukai or right-winger violence against foreigners have taken place when foreigners have tried to confront and argue with the rightists. There have been no attacks on tourists. Although complaints about police treatment of foreigners tend to come up from time to time, random unjustified arrests of tourists have not taken place.
As is always the case with Zaitokukai demonstrations, they are shouting really disgusting and ugly things. They are indeed a hate group, and their speech is hateful. But should they be arrested for expressing their views?
In some countries, there are strictly-enforced laws against hate speech, incitement to violence, and threatening language. Japan, like the United States, seems to have gone down a different road, one that places greater importance on free speech and free expression. This means that fascists, racists, history-deniers, and religious extremists are allowed to say extremely ugly things in public.
If the Zaitokukai demonstrators had kicked the woman, I think she should definitely demand that assault charges be filed against the attackers. However, as someone who believes in American-style protections of freedom of speech, I don’t think that anyone should be arrested for shouting the ugly phrases that were recorded in this YouTube video.
http://www.japanprobe.com/2011/09/17/video...lear-protester/
