2022 Enactment of “Act for Establishment of the Child and Domestic Affairs Agency” and “Basic Act on Children”
On June 15, 2022, the “Act for Establishment of the Child and Domestic Affairs Agency” and the “Basic Act on Children” were passed and enacted. This means that we now have an administrative agency that is responsible for children's policy across the board and a basic act that comprehensively protects children's rights. The Act will come into effect in April 2023.
The Basic Act on Children's Rights is an act that comprehensively guarantees the rights of children in Japan. Until now, children's rights had been guaranteed by acts corresponding to each field, such as the aforementioned Child Welfare Act, the Child Abuse Prevention Act, and the Act on Measures to Cope with Child Poverty. The competent ministries also differed from each other, resulting in a “disjointed” situation. In addition, while the Basic Act for Persons with Disabilities and the Basic Act for Gender Equality guaranteed the rights of persons with disabilities and women through comprehensive “basic acts,” no “basic act” had been enacted for the rights of children. In such a situation, a “Basic Act” that defines the principles, basic policies, and principles for guaranteeing children's rights in the country was deemed necessary in order to protect children's rights in a broad and comprehensive manner through interrelated children's policies, and this led to the enactment of the Act. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has repeatedly recommended the enactment of a “Basic Act” that comprehensively guarantees the rights of the child.
The Act states the principles of “ensuring that all children are protected in their rights as autonomous individuals in accordance with the principles of the Constitution and the Convention on the Rights of the Child,” respect for the right of children to express their opinions, and the “best interests of the child” as its principles. The Act also stipulates that the national government is “responsible” for comprehensively formulating policies concerning children and for implementing such policies in cooperation with the national and local governments.
The Child and Domestic Affairs Agency will be established as an external bureau of the Cabinet Office, headed by the Director-General of the Agency, and will serve as a “command post” for government policies on children and child rearing, consolidating policies on children, youth and child rearing, which have been divided among various ministries and agencies. Until now, the Cabinet Office has been in charge of measures against child poverty and the declining birthrate, while the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has been in charge of measures to prevent child abuse and foster care facilities. Some fields related to children and child-rearing, such as anti-bullying measures and other areas under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, will be under joint jurisdiction or will have a certain degree of involvement in these fields. The Agency will coordinate within the government from the perspective of children and have the authority to make recommendations to other ministries and agencies, from a higher standpoint than other ministries and agencies in the policy of children and child rearing.