In executing three death-row inmates last week, the Justice Ministry made public their names, the crimes they were convicted of and the locations of the executions. This break with its secrecy policy has slightly improved transparency in the nation’s capital punishment system. This trend should not be reversed.
Until 1998, the ministry kept mum about executions. Only that year, it started announcing the number of those hanged. Other information was withheld so as not to cause “emotional distress” to family members of those executed and to other death-row inmates. But because an error in capital punishment is irreparable, the public must be fully informed concerning any implementation of the death penalty.
Unable to view this article?
This could be due to a conflict with your ad-blocking or security software.
Please add japantimes.co.jp and piano.io to your list of allowed sites.
If this does not resolve the issue or you are unable to add the domains to your allowlist, please see out this support page.
We humbly apologize for the inconvenience.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.