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Japanese Government, Ruling Party Study Steps on Crimes by Mentally Ill People
The Japanese government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) held separate meetings Monday to study steps against crimes committed by mentally ill people, in the wake of last Friday's slaying of eight schoolchildren in Osaka, western Japan, by a man with a history of psychiatric problems, Kyodo News reported.
The meetings were set at the request of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who wants to revise Japan's system to make sure that people with mental problems who commit crimes do not become repeat offenders, the report said.
In a meeting at the prime minister's official residence, high- ranking government officials agreed that ways to treat such people should be discussed further at a government panel on the issue established in January, the report quoted government officials as saying.
The officials of the Justice Ministry, the Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry and the National Police Agency also agreed to study ways to ensure the safety of public institutions such as schools and town halls.
Debate on how to treat mentally ill people who commit crimes came into focus after a 37-year-old man stabbed eight children to death and injured 15 others, including two teachers, at a state- run elementary school in Ikeda, Osaka Prefecture.
Although the man was arrested in 1999 for allegedly poisoning teachers with tea laced with tranquilizers at another school, he was not indicted because of his illness and was sent to a hospital. He was eventually released.
Meanwhile, an LDP panel on last Friday's stabbing case agreed in its first meeting to begin discussions on ways to deal with such people as well as steps for helping the victims of the incident.
"We should deal with this case from a comprehensive and multifaceted viewpoint," LDP Secretary General Taku Yamasaki told the meeting.
Koizumi said earlier in the day that both the government and the LDP should consider the possibility of revising the Penal Code to strengthen measures against mentally ill people who commit crimes.
Under Japan's law, those with mental illnesses are not held responsible for crimes. While many of those who commit offenses are hospitalized, they can be released from the institutions after a short period of time.
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