The community and criminal justice in Japan

Abstract

While Japan has consistently recorded the lowest official crime rate of any industrialized nation, the involvement of Japanese citizens and communities in the prevention and control of crime has remained unexplored. This paper examines the role of the community in criminal justice and more specifically, the initiatives which have been taken at the various stages of the criminal justice system from policing to corrections. Among the findings of the analysis are that citizens do participate in a variety of volunteer initiatives in the justice system, while at the same time placing considerable trust in criminal justice agencies. There are, however, areas in which citizens often oppose the policies and programs of justice agencies, particularly in the field of corrections. And, while there is an absence of North American style mechanisms for dispute resolution, such as victim‐offender reconciliation, there is an extensive system of informal social control in Japan by which disputes are settled.