95th Highlights: Taboos in Japan – Capital punishment

2nd Sep 2017

There was a lecture about capital punishment system in Japan that gave us a chance to think about the consequences.

Ms. Kawauchi, who has been spending lots of time with death-row inmates, bereaved families of victims and families of criminals, says that “Capital punishment” is not something that can simply be debated as pros or cons because there are so many people involved. However, she points out that the problem is that we do not have much access to what is happening in the capital punishment system in Japan. “We should be more conscious about the reality of how people should judge people, and be aware of who are behind the system and struggling with conflicts and anguish. We should be more aware of the sorrow that is always left behind, before judging capital punishment as right or wrong” says Ms. Kawauchi. The lecture gave us an opportunity to think about capital punishment in Japan.