Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held the 22nd Ministerial Meeting Concerning Measures Against Crime at the Prime Minister’s Office.

At the meeting, the draft “Declaration: No Return to Crime, No Facilitating a Return to Crime;” the draft “2014 Action Plan for Measures Against Human Trafficking;” and the current state of and countermeasures in response to international terrorism, were discussed.

Based on the discussion, the Prime Minister said in his address,

“Ensuring good public order is a critical issue that is not only a prerequisite for the success of the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, but also an important foundation for women and young people to advance in society with peace of mind, as well as being the cornerstone of regional vitalization.
Improvements have clearly been seen in Japan’s public order, such as the continuing decrease in the number of crimes recognized by the police as a result of the Government-wide comprehensive anti-crime measures that we have implemented based on the Strategy to Make ‘Japan One of the Safest Countries in the World,’ compiled at the end of last year. However, the realization of making ‘Japan One of the Safest Countries in the World’ is still incomplete.
Specifically, there are serious crimes that closely affect people’s daily lives, such as crimes and major accidents whose cause is the misuse of dangerous drugs; increasingly serious threats to cyber-space; a spate of stalker incidents; and an increase in elderly victims of crimes such as bank transfer scams, leading to anxiety. Also, the risk of international terrorism, following the rise of the Islamic State, is rapidly increasing.
It is essential to improve the ‘perception of public order’ that people personally experience, by further advancing these measures.
Furthermore, the prevention of repeated offending is an urgent issue. About 60% of crimes are perpetrated by repeat offenders. Rather than isolating and removing those who have committed crimes from society, it is important to re-accept them as responsible members of society. In other words, this means ensuring jobs and homes for them. To that end, we have determined the ‘Declaration: No Return to Crime, No Facilitating a Return to Crime.’ I would like to ask all of you, based on this Declaration, to squarely address these issues, with the understanding and cooperation of the people.
In addition, it is essential to advance the ‘Measures to Combat Human Trafficking,’ which is an issue of major international concern. Based on the new action plan that was compiled today, I would like all of you to thoroughly carry out measures such as for the protection of victims.
I would like to ask that everyone in the Government continue to work together as one to achieve good public order, the foundation of the people’s daily lives, and to exert your unstinting efforts to make ‘Japan One of the Safest Countries in the World,’ a country in which we can take pride before the rest of the world.”