The great thing about Japanese laws is that they make explicit the whole Atlas Shrugged aspect of misguided attempts to compel good behavior. A human rights law in Tottori prefecture,
for example, “lists eight types of rights violations, including racial
discrimination, physical abuse, sexual harassment and slander.”
The prefecture will establish a five-member committee to deal with
complaints about rights violations. When the panel receives a
complaint, it will investigate and may advise alleged violators to
correct the situation.
It will disclose the names of alleged violators if they refuse to
comply with its orders for no justifiable reason. Violators who refuse
to comply will face fines of up to 50,000 yen.
But if the offending party is an administrative organization, it can
refuse to cooperate if the head of the body decides that disclosure
would hamper crime prevention or an investigation.
Needless to say, the Tottori bar association and others have
complaints about the arbitrary nature of the law; the exclusion of
administrative organizations, which “risks violating the Constitution;” and the potential impact on free speech.
