In recent years, two moves concerning the handling of personal information have created clearly different political and public reactions in Japan. A law for strengthening the protection of personal information has been generally accepted by the public and people are learning its "dos" and "don'ts." By contrast, the implementation three years ago of a residents' registration system using an electronic network has been strongly rejected not only by individuals but also by local governments. And more than 10 court battles have started demanding either the scrapping of the system or the recognition of an individual's right to opt out of it.
In the first landmark ruling last week, the Kanazawa District Court endorsed a new right for Japanese -- the "right to control one's personal data." The decision was handed down on a suit filed by residents of Ishikawa Prefecture who had demanded that their addresses and other personal data be deleted from the national electronic registry network known as "Juki Net." The ruling said refusing residents' requests for removal of their data from the system is a violation of the right and is unconstitutional.
The network, launched in 2002, stores residents' personal information and shares it among national agencies and local governments. However, due to concern over its security, the town of Yamatsuri in Fukushima Prefecture, Tokyo's Suginami Ward as well as the suburban city of Kunitachi have refused to join the system. The ruling is likely to seriously affect national and local governments' plans to administer government electronically.