Police system of Japan - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Law enforcement in Japan is provided by the Prefectural Police under the oversight of the National Police Agency

National Police Agency (Japan)

The is an agency administered by the National Public Safety Commission of the Cabinet Office in the cabinet of Japan, and is the central coordinating agency of the Japanese police system....

or NPA. The NPA is headed by the National Public Safety Commission thus ensuring that Japan's police are an apolitical body and free of direct central government executive control. They are checked by an independent judiciary

Judicial system of Japan

In the judicial system of Japan, the postwar constitution guarantees that "all judges shall be independent in the exercise of their conscience and shall be bound only by this constitution and the Laws"...

and monitored by a free and active press

Japanese media

The communications media of Japan include numerous television and radio networks as well as newspapers and magazines in Japan. For the most part, television networks were established based on the capital contribution from existing radio networks at that time...

History

See also: Police services of the Empire of Japan
Police services of the Empire of Japan
The of the Empire of Japan, consisted of numerous police services, in many cases with overlapping jurisdictions.-History and background:During the Tokugawa bakufu , police functions were based on a combination of appointed town magistrates of samurai status, who served simultaneously as a chief of...

The Japanese government

Government of Japan

The government of Japan is a constitutional monarchy where the power of the Emperor is very limited. As a ceremonial figurehead, he is defined by the 1947 constitution as "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people". Power is held chiefly by the Prime Minister of Japan and other elected...

established a European-style civil police system in 1874, under the centralized control of the Police Bureau within the Home Ministry

Home Ministry (Japan)

The ' was a Cabinet-level ministry established under the Meiji Constitution that managed the internal affairs of Empire of Japan from 1873-1947...

, to put down internal disturbances and maintain order during the Meiji Restoration

Meiji Restoration

The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...

. By the 1880s, the police had developed into a nationwide instrument of government control, providing support for local leaders and enforcing public morality

Public morality

Public morality refers to moral and ethical standards enforced in a society, by law or police work or social pressure, and applied to public life, to the content of the media, and to conduct in public places...

. They acted as general civil administrators, implementing official policies and thereby facilitating unification and modernization. In rural areas especially, the police had great authority and were accorded the same mixture of fear and respect as the village head. Their increasing involvement in political affairs was one of the foundations of the authoritarian state in Japan in the first half of the twentieth century.

The centralized police system steadily acquired responsibilities, until it controlled almost all aspects of daily life, including fire prevention

Firefighter

Firefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous fires that threaten civilian populations and property, to rescue people from car incidents, collapsed and burning buildings and other such situations...

and mediation of labor disputes. The system regulated public health

Public health

Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...

, business, factories, and construction, and it issued permits and licenses. The Peace Preservation Law

Peace Preservation Law

The Public Security Preservation Laws were a series of laws enacted during the Empire of Japan. Collectively, the laws were designed to suppress political dissent.-the Safety Preservation Law of 1894:...

of 1925 gave police the authority to arrest people for "wrong thoughts". Special Higher Police (Tokko) were created to regulate the content of motion pictures, political meetings, and election campaigns. The Imperial Japanese Army

Imperial Japanese Army

-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...

's military police

Military police

Military police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...

(Kempeitai

Kempeitai

The was the military police arm of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1881 to 1945. It was not an English-style military police, but a French-style gendarmerie...

) and the Imperial Japanese Navy

Imperial Japanese Navy

The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...

's Tokeitai, operating under their respective services and the justice

Ministry of Justice (Japan)

The is one of Ministries of the Japanese government.-Meiji Constitution:The Ministry of Justice was established under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan in 1871 as the .-Constitution of Japan:...

and home ministries

Home Ministry (Japan)

The ' was a Cabinet-level ministry established under the Meiji Constitution that managed the internal affairs of Empire of Japan from 1873-1947...

aided the civilian police in limiting proscribed political activity. After the Manchurian Incident of 1931, military police assumed greater authority, leading to friction with their civilian counterparts. After 1937 police directed business activities for the war effort, mobilized labor, and controlled transportation.

After Japan's surrender

Surrender of Japan

The surrender of Japan in 1945 brought hostilities of World War II to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy was incapable of conducting operations and an Allied invasion of Japan was imminent...

in 1945, occupation

Occupied Japan

At the end of World War II, Japan was occupied by the Allied Powers, led by the United States with contributions also from Australia, India, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. This foreign presence marked the first time in its history that the island nation had been occupied by a foreign power...

authorities retained the prewar police structure until a new system was implemented and the Diet passed the 1947 Police Law. Contrary to Japanese proposals for a strong, centralized force to deal with postwar unrest, the police system was decentralized. About 1,600 independent municipal forces were established in cities, towns, and villages with 5,000 inhabitants or more, and a National Rural Police was organized by prefecture. Civilian control was to be ensured by placing the police under the jurisdiction of public safety commissions controlled by the National Public Safety Commission

National Public Safety Commission (Japan)

The is a Japanese Cabinet Office commission. It is headquartered in the 2nd Building of the Central Common Government Office at 2-1-2 Kasumigasaeki in Chiyoda, Tokyo....

in the Office of the Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Japan

The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...

. The Home Ministry was abolished and replaced by the less powerful Ministry of Home Affairs

Ministry of Home Affairs (Japan)

was a ministry in the Japanese government that existed from July 1, 1960 to January 5, 2001 and is now part of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. The head of the ministry was a member of a cabinet....

, and the police were stripped of their responsibility for fire protection, public health, and other administrative duties.

When most of the occupation forces were transferred to Korea

Korea

Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

in 1950–51, the 75,000 strong National Police Reserve was formed to back up the ordinary police during civil disturbances, and pressure mounted for a centralized system more compatible with Japanese political preferences. The 1947 Police Law was amended in 1951 to allow the municipal police of smaller communities to merge with the National Rural Police. Most chose this arrangement, and by 1954 only about 400 cities, towns, and villages still had their own police forces. Under the 1954 amended Police Law, a final restructuring created an even more centralized system in which local forces were organized by prefectures under a National Police Agency

National Police Agency (Japan)

The is an agency administered by the National Public Safety Commission of the Cabinet Office in the cabinet of Japan, and is the central coordinating agency of the Japanese police system....

.

The revised Police Law of 1954, still in effect in the 1990s, preserves some strong points of the postwar system, particularly measures ensuring civilian control and political neutrality, while allowing for increased centralization. The National Public Safety Commission system has been retained. State responsibility for maintaining public order has been clarified to include coordination of national and local efforts; centralization of police information, communications, and record keeping facilities; and national standards for training, uniforms, pay, rank, and promotion. Rural and municipal forces were abolished and integrated into prefectural forces, which handled basic police matters. Officials and inspectors in various ministries and agencies continue to exercise special police functions assigned to them in the 1947 Police Law.

National Public Safety Commission

The mission of the National Public Safety Commission

National Public Safety Commission (Japan)

The is a Japanese Cabinet Office commission. It is headquartered in the 2nd Building of the Central Common Government Office at 2-1-2 Kasumigasaeki in Chiyoda, Tokyo....

is to guarantee the neutrality of the police by insulating the force from political pressure and to ensure the maintenance of democratic methods in police administration. The commission's primary function is to supervise the National Police Agency, and it has the authority to appoint or dismiss senior police officers. The commission consists of a chairman, who holds the rank of minister of state, and five members appointed by the prime minister with the consent of both houses of the Diet. The commission operates independently of the cabinet, but liaison and coordination with it are facilitated by the chairman's being a member of that body.

National Police Agency

As the central coordinating body for the entire police system, the National Police Agency determines general standards and policies; detailed direction of operations is left to the lower echelons. In a national emergency or large-scale disaster, the agency is authorized to take command of prefectural police forces. In 1989 the agency was composed of about 1,100 national civil servants, empowered to collect information and to formulate and execute national policies. The agency is headed by a commissioner general who is appointed by the National Public Safety Commission with the approval of the prime minister.

The Central Office includes the Secretariat, with divisions for general operations, planning, information, finance, management, and procurement and distribution of police equipment, and five bureaus.

Police Administration Bureau

The Administration Bureau is concerned with police personnel, education, welfare, training, and unit inspections.

Criminal Investigation Bureau

The Criminal Investigation Bureau is in charge of research statistics and the investigation of nationally important and international cases. This bureau's Safety Department is responsible for crime prevention, combating juvenile delinquency, and pollution control. In addition, the Criminal Investigation Bureau surveys, formulates, and recommends legislation on firearms, explosives, food, drugs, and narcotics. The Communications Bureau supervises police communications systems.

Traffic Bureau

The Traffic Bureau licenses drivers, enforces traffic safety laws, and regulates traffic. Intensive traffic safety and driver education campaigns are run at both national and prefectural levels. The bureau's Expressway Division addresses special conditions of the nation's growing system of express highways.

Security Bureau

The Security Bureau formulates and supervises the execution of security policies. It conducts research on equipment and tactics for suppressing riots and oversaw and coordinates activities of the riot police. The Security Bureau is also responsible for security intelligence on foreigners and radical political groups, including investigation of violations of the Alien Registration Law and administration of the Entry and Exit Control Law. The bureau also implements security policies during national emergencies and natural disasters.

Regional Public Safety Bureaus

The National Police Agency has seven regional police bureaus, each responsible for a number of prefectures. Each is headed by a Director and they are organizationed similar to the Central Office. They are located in major cities of each geographic region. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and Hokkaido Prefectural Police Headquarters are excluded from the jurisdiction of RPBs. Headed by a Director General, each RPB exercises necessary control and supervision over and provides support services to prefectural police within its jurisdiction, under the authority and orders of NPA's Commissioner General. Attached to each Regional Police Bureaus is a Regional Police School which provides police personnel with education and training required of staff officers as well as other necessary education and training.

Regional Police Bureaus:

Tohoku - Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata, and Fukushima Prefectures
Kinki - Shiga, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo, Nara, and Wakayama Prefectures
Shikoku - Tokushima, Kagawa, Ehime, Kochi Prefectures
Kanto - Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa, Niigata, Yamanashi, Nagano, and Shizuoka Prefectures
Chubu - Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui, Gifu, Aichi, Mie, Prefectures
Kyushu - Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Oita, Miyazaki, Kagoshima, and Okinawa Prefectures
Chugoku - Tottori, Shimane, Okayama, Hiroshima, and Yamaguchi Prefectures

Police Communications Divisions

Metropolitan Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

and the island of Hokkaidō

Hokkaido

, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...

are excluded from the regional jurisdictions and are run more autonomously than other local forces, in the case of Tokyo, because of its special urban situation, and of Hokkaidō, because of its distinctive geography. The National Police Agency maintains police communications divisions in these two areas to handle any coordination needed between national and local forces.

Imperial Guard

See article: Imperial Guard (Japan)

In 1947 the was created under the control of the Home Ministry

Home Ministry (Japan)

The ' was a Cabinet-level ministry established under the Meiji Constitution that managed the internal affairs of Empire of Japan from 1873-1947...

from the Imperial Household Ministry. It came under the aegis of the National Police Agency of Japan in 1957. It provides personal security for the Emperor

Emperor of Japan

The Emperor of Japan is, according to the 1947 Constitution of Japan, "the symbol of the state and of the unity of the people." He is a ceremonial figurehead under a form of constitutional monarchy and is head of the Japanese Imperial Family with functions as head of state. He is also the highest...

, Crown Prince

Crown Prince

A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....

and other members of the Imperial Family of Japan, as well as protection of imperial properties, including the Tokyo Imperial Palace

Kokyo

is the main residence of the Emperor of Japan. It is a large park-like area located in the Chiyoda area of Tokyo close to Tokyo Station and contains several buildings including the main palace , the emperor left Kyoto Imperial Palace for Tokyo...

, Kyoto Imperial Palace, Katsura Imperial Villa

Katsura Imperial Villa

The , or Katsura Detached Palace, is a villa with associated gardens and outbuildings in the western suburbs of Kyoto, Japan...

, Shugakuin Imperial Villa (both in Kyoto), Shosoin

Shosoin

The is the treasure house that belongs to Tōdai-ji, Nara The building is in the azekura log-cabin style, with a raised floor. It lies to the northwest of the Daibutsuden...

Imperial Repository in Nara

Nara, Nara

is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture...

and the imperial villas as Hayama, Kanagawa

Hayama, Kanagawa

is a town located in Miura District, Kanagawa Prefecture, on central Honshū, Japan. As of 2010, the town had an estimated population of 32,386 and a density of 1,900 per km². The total area was 17.06 km²...

and Nasu, Tochigi

Nasu, Tochigi

is a town located in Nasu District, Tochigi, Japan.As of April 1, 2008, the town has an estimated population of 26,629 and a density of 71.5 persons per km². The total area is 372.31 km².Nasu Imperial Villa is located there.-External links:*...

Strength

As of 2008, the total strength reached approximately 289,800 personnel. The NPA total is about 7,600 with 1,800 police officers, 900 Imperial guards and 4,900 civilians. The Prefectural police total is about 282,200 with 253,400 police officers and 28,800 civilians.

Nationwide, there are about 13,500 female police officers and about 11,800 female civilians.

Local organization

There are some 289,000 police officers nationwide, about 97 percent of whom were affiliated with local police forces. Local forces include:

forty-three prefectural
Prefectures of Japan
The prefectures of Japan are the country's 47 subnational jurisdictions: one "metropolis" , Tokyo; one "circuit" , Hokkaidō; two urban prefectures , Osaka and Kyoto; and 43 other prefectures . In Japanese, they are commonly referred to as...

(ken) police forces;
Tokyo Metropolitan (to) police force, in Tokyo;
two urban prefectural (fu) police forces, in Osaka and Kyoto; and
one district (dō) police force, in Hokkaidō
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...

.

These forces have limited authority to initiate police actions. Their most important activities are regulated by the National Police Agency

National Police Agency (Japan)

The is an agency administered by the National Public Safety Commission of the Cabinet Office in the cabinet of Japan, and is the central coordinating agency of the Japanese police system....

, which provides funds for equipment, salaries, riot control, escort, and natural disaster duties, and for internal security and multiple jurisdiction cases. National police statutes and regulations establish the strength and rank allocations of all local personnel and the locations of local police stations. Prefectural police finance and control the patrol officer on the beat, traffic control, criminal investigations, and other daily operations.

Prefectural Police

Each prefectural police

State police

State police are a type of sub-national territorial police force, particularly in Australia and the United States. Some other countries have analogous police forces, such as the provincial police in some Canadian provinces, while in other places, the same responsibilities are held by national...

headquarters contains administrative divisions corresponding to those of the bureaus of the National Police Agency. Headquarters are staffed by specialists in basic police functions and administration and are commanded by an officer appointed by the local office of the National Public Safety Commission. Most arrests and investigations are performed by prefectural police officials (and, in large jurisdictions, by police assigned to substations), who are assigned to one or more central locations within the prefecture. Experienced officers are organized into functional bureaus and handle all but the most ordinary problems in their fields.

Kōban

Koban

Koban may refer to:, Japanese neighborhood police substation, sometimes called a "police box", a former Japanese oval gold coin* Koban culture, a Central North Caucasian culture circa 1100 to 400 BC...

s are substations near major transportation hubs and shopping areas and in residential districts. They form the first line of police response to the public. The Koban system is composed of about 6000 police boxes (Koban) and about 7000 residential police boxes (Chuzaisho). Koban is staffed by relatively small number of police officers (3-5 officers in usual), and also Chuzaisho is usually staffed by a single officer. About 20 percent of the total police force is assigned to koban. Staffed by officers working in eight-hour shifts, they serve as a base for foot patrols and usually have both sleeping and eating facilities for officers on duty but not on watch. In rural areas, residential offices usually are staffed by one police officer who resides in adjacent family quarters. These officers endeavor to become a part of the community, and their families often aid in performing official tasks.

Vigilance at the Koban and Chuzaisho is maintained by standing watch in front or sitting watch inside, enabling police officers to respond immediately to any incident. While keeping a constant watch, they perform a myriad of routine tasks, such as receiving crime reports from citizens, handling lost and found articles, counseling citizens in trouble and giving directions.

Outside their Koban and Chuzaisho, police officers patrol their beats either on foot, by bicycle or by car. While on patrol, they gain a precise knowledge of the topography and terrain of the area, question suspicious-looking persons, provide traffic guidance and enforcement, instruct juveniles, rescue the injured, warn citizens of imminent dangers and protect lost children and those under the influence or intoxicated.

Radio-equipped patrol cars are deployed at each PPH, police station, Koban and Chuzaisho. Police
officers use them for routine patrol and rapid response. These cars remain in constant radio contact
with their police station and the communications command center of the PPH. When an emergency is
reported, this rapid response capability plays a major role in the quick resolution of such incidents.

Officers assigned to koban have intimate knowledge of their jurisdictions. One of their primary tasks is to conduct twice-yearly house-by-house residential surveys of homes in their areas, at which time the head of the household at each address fills out a residence information card detailing the names, ages, occupations, business addresses, and vehicle registration numbers of household occupants and the names of relatives living elsewhere. Police take special note of names of the aged or those living alone who might need special attention in an emergency. They conduct surveys of local businesses and record employee names and addresses, in addition to such data as which establishments stay open late and which employees might be expected to work late. Participation in the survey is voluntary, and most citizens cooperate, but an increasing segment of the population has come to regard the surveys as invasions of privacy.

Information elicited through the surveys is not centralized but is stored in each police box

Police box

A police box is a British telephone kiosk or callbox located in a public place for the use of members of the police, or for members of the public to contact the police...

, where it is used primarily as an aid to locating people. When a crime occurs or an investigation is under way, however, these files are invaluable in establishing background data for a case. Specialists from district police stations spend considerable time culling through the usually poorly filed data maintained in the police boxes.

Riot police

Within their security divisions, each prefecture level police department and the Tokyo police maintain Kidotai, special riot units. These units were formed after riots at the Imperial Palace in 1952, to respond quickly and effectively to large public disturbances. They are also used in crowd control during festival periods, at times of natural disaster, and to reinforce regular police when necessary. Full-time riot police can also be augmented by regular police trained in riot duties. Currently, there are 10,000 in the whole riot force.

In handling demonstrations and violent disturbances, riot units are deployed en masse, military style. It is common practice for files of riot police to line streets through which demonstrations pass. If demonstrators grow disorderly or deviate from officially sanctioned areas, riot police stand shoulder-to-shoulder, sometimes three and four deep, to push with their hands to control the crowds. Individual action is forbidden. Three-person units sometimes perform reconnaissance duties, but more often operations are carried out by squads of nine to eleven, platoons of twenty-seven to thirty-three, and companies of eighty to one hundred. Front ranks are trained to open to allow passage of special squads to rescue captured police or to engage in tear gas assaults. Each person wears a radio with an earpiece to hear commands given simultaneously to the formation.

The riot police are committed to using disciplined, nonlethal force and do not carry firearms while engaged in riot control duties. They are trained to take pride in their poise under stress. Demonstrators also are usually restrained. Police brutality is rarely an issue. When excesses occur, the perpetrator is disciplined and sometimes transferred from the force if considered unable to keep his temper.

Extensive experience in quelling violent disorders led to the development of special uniforms and equipment for the riot police units. Riot dress consists of a field-type jacket, which covered several pieces of body armor and includes a corselet hung from the waist, an aluminum plate down the spine, and shoulder pads. Armored gauntlets cover the hands and forearms. Helmets have faceplates and flared padded skirts down the back to protect the neck. In case of violence, the front ranks carry 1.2-meter shields to protect against stave and rocks and hold nets on high poles to catch flying objects. Specially designed equipment includes water cannons, armored vans, and mobile tunnels for protected entry into seized buildings.

Because riot police duties require special group action, units are maintained in virtually self-sufficient compounds and trained to work as a coordinated force. The overwhelming majority of officers are bachelors who live in dormitories within riot police compounds. Training is constant and focuses on physical conditioning, mock battles, and tactical problems. A military atmosphere prevails—dress codes, behavior standards, and rank differentiations are more strictly adhered to than in the regular police. Esprit de corps is inculcated with regular ceremonies and institutionalization of rituals such as applauding personnel dispatched to or returning from assignments and formally welcoming senior officers to the mess hall at all meals.

Riot duty is not popular because it entails special sacrifices and much boredom in between irregularly spaced actions. Although many police are assigned riot duty, only a few are volunteers. For many personnel, riot duty serves as a stepping stone because of its reputation and the opportunities it presents to study for the advanced police examinations necessary for promotion. Because riot duties demands physical fitness—the armored uniform weighed 6.6 kilograms—most personnel are young, often serving in the units after an initial assignment in a koban.

Special police

In addition to regular police officers, there are several thousand officials attached to various agencies who perform special duties relating to public safety. They are responsible for such matters as forest preservation, narcotics control, fishery inspection, and enforcement of regulations on maritime, labor, and mine safety.

Cabinet Office

Imperial guard (皇宮護衛官)

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare

Narcotics agent (麻薬取締官)
Labor Standards Inspector (労働基準監督官)

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Authorized Fisheries Supervisor (漁業監督官)
Officers of Regional Forest Office, under Forestry Agency (林野庁森林管理局職員)

Coast Guard Officer (海上保安官)

The largest and most important of these ministry-supervised public safety agencies is the Japan Coast Guard

Japan Coast Guard

The , formerly the Maritime Safety Agency, is the Japanese coast guard. Comprising about 12,000 personnel, it is under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, and is responsible for the protection the coast-lines of Japan...

, an external agency of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport that deals with crime in coastal waters and maintains facilities for safeguarding navigation. The agency operates a fleet of patrol and rescue craft in addition to a few aircraft used primarily for anti-smuggling patrols and rescue activities. In 1990 there were 2,846 incidents in and on the waters. In those incidents, 1,479 people drowned or were lost and 1,347 people were rescued.

(船員労務官)

Officials working for public safety, except for Special judicial police officials

There are other officers having limited public safety functions.

Ministry of Justice

Immigration control officer (入国警備官)
Immigration inspector (入国審査官)

Public security intelligence officer (公安調査官)

They handle national security matters both inside and outside the country. Its activities are not generally known to the public.

Public prosecutor (検察官)
Public prosecutor's assistant officer (検察事務官)

Ministry of Finance

Customs official (税関職員)
Officers of National Tax Agency (国税庁職員)

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Animal Quarantine Officers (家畜防疫官)
Plant Protection Officer (植物防疫官)

Tables

Officers working for public safety
Officer	is Special judicial police officials (特別司法警察職員)	Salary schedule which is applied
Imperial guard (皇宮護衛官)		Public Security Service
Prison guard (刑務官)		Public Security Service
Narcotics agent (麻薬取締官)		Administrative Service
Labor Standards Inspector (労働基準監督官)		Administrative Service
Authorized Fisheries Supervisor (漁業監督官)		Administrative Service
Coast Guard Officer (海上保安官)		Public Security Service
Military police officer (警務官)		Officials of Ministry of Defense
Diet guard (衛視)		(議院警察職)
Immigration control officer (入国警備官)		Public Security Service
Immigration inspector (入国審査官)		Administrative Service
Public security intelligence officer (公安調査官)		Public Security Service
Public prosecutor (検察官)		Public Prosecutor
Public prosecutor's assistant officer (検察事務官)		Public Security Service
Customs official (税関職員)		Administrative Service
cf.) Police officer	(judicial police official)	Public Security Service

Special operations

The National Police Agency has a counter-terrorist unit known as the Special Assault Team

Special Assault Team

The is a paramilitary counter terrorism unit under the Japanese National Police Agency. The SAT is mandated, along with the Anti-Firearms Squad and the Counter-NBC Terrorism Squad, for counterterrorism missions and incidents involving firearms or criminals which require an armed response beyond...

, operating under police control.

A small number of anti-riot-trained police officers had been trained to handle incidents that can not be dealt with by regular police and riot police officers, but can operate independently or with SAT cooperation. These units include the Special Investigations Team of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, the Osaka Police's Martial Arts Attack Team and the Chiba Police's Attack Response Team.

Rank

Police officers are divided into nine ranks: superintendent general, superintendent supervisor, Chief Superintendent

Chief Superintendent

Chief superintendent is a senior rank in police forces organised on the British model.- United Kingdom :In the British police, a chief superintendent is senior to a superintendent and junior to an assistant chief constable .The highest rank below Chief Officer level, chief...

, senior superintendent, superintendent

Superintendent (police)

Superintendent , often shortened to "super", is a rank in British police services and in most English-speaking Commonwealth nations. In many Commonwealth countries the full version is superintendent of police...

, police inspector, assistant police inspector, police sergeant and police officer

Police officer

A police officer is a warranted employee of a police force...

.

The NPA Commissioner General holds the highest position of the Japanese police. His title is not a
rank but rather denotes his position as head of the NPA. On the other hand, the MPD Superintendent
General represents not only the highest rank in the system but also assignment as head of the Tokyo
Metropolitan Police Department.

Uniform

For much of the twentieth century up to the mid 1990s, police officers wore a formal work uniform consisting of a tunic

Tunic

A tunic is any of several types of clothing for the body, of various lengths reaching from the shoulders to somewhere between the hips and the ankles...

or Ike jacket with polished silver buttons, and trousers with a sewn in truncheon pocket. No stab vest

Stab vest

A stab vest, or stab proof vest is a reinforced piece of body armor, worn under or over other items of clothing, which is designed to resist knife attacks to the chest, back and sides...

was worn and much less equipment was carried than is today. Following concerns about the police uniforms safety it was suggested that the uniform should be changed.

From the 1990s it was generally accepted that the police could patrol in "shirt-sleeve order" which meant that they need not wear the jacket, as its widespread use was hampering in some situations. The NPA, in agreement with the government and on the cooperation of the Prefecture Chiefs of Police, changed the uniform from the business attire with no protection of the torso, to a uniform of button down shirt with trousers, stab vest

Stab vest

A stab vest, or stab proof vest is a reinforced piece of body armor, worn under or over other items of clothing, which is designed to resist knife attacks to the chest, back and sides...

, duty belt, and jacket when needed.

Although there are minor variations in the styling, pattern and insignia, the police forces all wear very similar uniforms. In general, these have taken their lead from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, due to it being the largest police service in Japan. The base color is a dark blue or a frosted grey for summer wear.

Female officers' uniforms have gone through a great variety of styles, as they have tended to reflect the women's fashions of the time. Tunic style, skirt length and headgear have varied by period and force. By the late 1980s, the female working uniform was virtually identical to male, except for headgear and sometimes neckwear.

Formal uniform comprises an open-necked tunic (with or without an attached belt, depending on the force and rank of the Officer) and trousers or skirt, worn with a white or light blue shirt and black tie (usually clip-on, so it cannot be used to strangle the wearer).

The normal working dress retains the shirt and trousers. In some forces short sleeved shirts may be worn open-necked. Long sleeved shirts must always be worn with a tie, worn with or without a jersey or fleece. If a jersey, fleece or jacket is worn over a short sleeved shirt, then a tie must be worn.

Today, female officers almost never wear a skirt in working dress, and frequently wear trousers in formal dress as well. Officers also frequently wear reflective waterproof jackets, which have replaced the old greatcoats and cloaks traditionally worn in inclement weather. Most officers now wear stab vests, a type of body armour, when on duty.

Basic headgear is a peaked cap for men, and a soft round bowler hat

Bowler hat

The bowler hat, also known as a coke hat, derby , billycock or bombin, is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown originally created in 1849 for the English soldier and politician Edward Coke, the younger brother of the 2nd Earl of Leicester...

for women. Traffic officers wear white cap covers or caps.

Most Japanese police wear white gloves while they are on duty. Some also wear white pistol belts, lanyards, helmets, boot laces or leggings.

Conditions of service

Education is highly stressed in police recruitment and promotion. Entrance to the force is determined by examinations administered by each prefecture. Examinees are divided into two groups: upper-secondary-school graduates and university graduates. Recruits underwent rigorous training—one year for upper-secondary school

High school

High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....

graduates and six months for university graduates—at the residential police academy attached to the prefectural headquarters. On completion of basic training, most police officers are assigned to local police boxes called Kobans

Koban

. Promotion is achieved by examination and requires further course work. In-service training provides mandatory continuing education

Continuing education

Continuing education is an all-encompassing term within a broad spectrum of post-secondary learning activities and programs. The term is used mainly in the United States and Canada...

in more than 100 fields. Police officers with upper-secondary school diplomas are eligible to take the examination for sergeant after three years of on-the-job experience. University graduates can take the examination after only one year. University graduates are also eligible to take the examination for assistant police inspector, police inspector, and superintendent after shorter periods than upper-secondary school graduates. There are usually five to fifteen examinees for each opening.

About fifteen officers per year pass advanced civil service examinations and are admitted as senior officers. Officers are groomed for administrative positions, and, although some rise through the ranks to become senior administrators, most such positions are held by specially recruited senior executives.

The police forces are subject to external oversight. Although officials of the National Public Safety Commission generally defer to police decisions and rarely exercise their powers to check police actions or operations, police are liable for civil and criminal prosecution, and the media actively publicizes police misdeeds. The Human Rights Bureau of the Ministry of Justice solicits and investigates complaints against public officials, including police, and prefectural legislatures could summon police chiefs for questioning. Social sanctions and peer pressure also constrain police behavior. As in other occupational groups in Japan, police officers develop an allegiance to their own group and a reluctance to offend its principles.

Ground

In Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, there are about 40,000 police vehicles nationwide with the average patrol cruisers being Toyota Crown

Toyota Crown

The Toyota Crown is a line of full-size luxury sedans by Toyota. The range was primarily available in Japan and some other Asian countries, originally designed to serve as a taxi...

s and Nissan Crew

Nissan Crew

The Nissan Crew was a midsize sedan manufactured by Nissan Motors, sold only in Japan and available only as a rental or taxicommercial vehicle only....

s and similar large sedans, although small compact and micro cars are used by rural police boxes and in city centers where they are much more maneuverable. Pursuit vehicles depend on prefectures with the Honda NSX

Honda NSX

The Honda NSX, or Acura NSX, is a sports car that was produced between 1990 and 2005 by the Japanese automaker Honda. It is equipped with a mid-engine, rear-wheel drive layout, powered by an all-aluminium V6 gasoline engine featuring Honda's Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control ...

, Subaru Impreza

Subaru Impreza

Introduced in November 1993, the Impreza was offered in either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive versions and as a four-door sedan/saloon or five-door station wagon/estate. According to a Motor Trend article written March 1992 on page 26, the name of Subaru's new compact was, initially, to be...

, Subaru Legacy

Subaru Legacy

The Subaru Legacy is a mid-size car built by the Japanese company Fuji Heavy Industries, and manufactured by its division Subaru since 1989, and is available as a sedan or wagon. Part of the original design goals for the Legacy model was to provide Subaru a vehicle in which they could compete in...

, Mitsubishi Lancer

Mitsubishi Lancer

The Mitsubishi Lancer is a family car built by Mitsubishi Motors. It has been known as the Colt Lancer, Dodge/Plymouth Colt, Chrysler Valiant Lancer, Chrysler Lancer, Eagle Summit, Hindustan Lancer, Soueast Lioncel, Mitsubishi Carisma, and Mitsubishi Mirage in various countries at different times,...

, Nissan Skyline

Nissan Skyline

The first Skyline was introduced in April 1957, by the Prince Motor Company, and was marketed as a luxury car. It featured a 1.5 L GA-30 engine producing 44 kW @ 4400 rpm. It used a de Dion tube rear suspension and was capable of 140 km/h . The car weighed around 1300 kg...

, Mazda RX-7

Mazda RX-7

Series 1 is commonly referred to as the "SA22C" from the first alphanumerics of the vehicle identification number. This series of RX-7 had exposed steel bumpers and a high-mounted indentation-located license plate, called by Werner Buhrer of Road & Track magazine a "Baroque depression."In 1980...

, and Nissan Fairlady Z are all used in various prefectures for highway patrol

Highway patrol

A highway patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is primarily concerned with such duties.Duties of highway patrols or traffic...

s and pursuit uses.

With the exception of unmarked traffic enforcement vehicles, all Japanese police forces are painted and marked in the same ways. Japanese police vehicles are painted black and white

Black and white (slang)

Black and white is an American slang term for a police car that is painted in large panels of black and white or generally any "marked" police car. Historically, this scheme was much favored by North American police forces because it allowed the unambiguous recognition of patrol units from a...

with the upper parts of the vehicle painted white. Motorcycles are usually all white and riot control and rescue vehicles are painted a steel blue.

Aviation

Helicopters are extensively used for traffic control surveillance, pursuit of suspects, rescue and disaster relief. Total of 80 small and medium-sized helicopters are being operated in 47 prefectures
nationwide.

Watercraft

Japanese police boats are deployed to major ports, remote islands and lakes, where they are used for
water patrol and control of illegal immigration, smuggling and poaching. Ranging from five to 23 meters long, there are about 190 police boats nationwide.

Police-community relations

Despite legal limits on police jurisdiction, many citizens retain their views of the police as authority figures to whom they can turn for aid. The public often seeks police assistance to settle family quarrels, counsel juveniles, and mediate minor disputes. Citizens regularly consult police for directions to hotels and residences—an invaluable service in cities where streets are often unnamed and buildings are numbered in the order in which they have been built rather than consecutively. Police are encouraged by their superiors to view these tasks as answering the public's demands for service and as inspiring community confidence in the police. Public attitudes toward the police are generally favorable, although a series of incidents of forced confessions in the late 1980s raised some concern about police treatment of suspects held for pretrial detention.

Historical secret police organizations

Tokko (Investigated and controlled political groups and ideologies deemed to be a threat to public order)
Kempeitai
Kempeitai
The was the military police arm of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1881 to 1945. It was not an English-style military police, but a French-style gendarmerie...

(Military Police
Military police
Military police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...

of the Imperial Japanese Army
Imperial Japanese Army
-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...

)
Tokeitai (Military Police
Military police
Military police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...

of the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...

)

External links

Regional Bureaus

Police communications Bureaus

Kobans

Pictures

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