Japan: Proposed Flag Desecration Law Threatens Freedom of Expression

Last updated: 5 October 2026

Photo: Japanese Flag - yagisu

Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, announced on March 17, 2026 their intention to introduce a bill criminalising the desecration of the national flag during the current Diet session. Human Rights Watch warned on March 25 that such a law would be incompatible with international human rights standards on freedom of expression, noting that similar laws have been used worldwide to stifle dissent and persecute activists.

The Proposed Legislation

Currently, Japan's penal code makes it a criminal offence to damage foreign flags but contains no equivalent provision for the national flag. The ruling coalition described this as a "contradiction" and pledged to correct it in their October 2025 coalition agreement. Prime Minister Takaichi has pursued this legislative goal for over a decade — a 2012 attempt would have imposed up to two years' imprisonment and a fine of 200,000 yen (US$2,500) for "damaging, removal, or defacement" of the Japanese flag with "intent to insult Japan." That bill was scrapped, as was a second attempt in 2021.

Under international human rights law, any restriction on freedom of expression must meet the three-part test of legality, legitimate aim, and necessity and proportionality. The UN Human Rights Committee has specifically expressed concern regarding laws on "disrespect for flags and symbols," and human rights organisations argue it is difficult to envision a flag desecration law that would meet these standards.

International Precedents

In the United States, flag burning has been constitutionally protected since the Supreme Court's 1989 ruling in Texas v. Johnson, which found it a form of free speech under the First Amendment. Congress passed the Flag Protection Act the same year, but the Supreme Court struck it down in 1990 as "inconsistent with the First Amendment."

Hong Kong offers a cautionary example. Two laws criminalising the desecration of China's national flag and Hong Kong's regional flag have been used repeatedly against democracy activists. In 2019, a Hong Kong court sentenced a 13-year-old girl to 12 months of probation for burning a Chinese flag during a pro-democracy protest. Democracy activist Koo Sze-yiu has been convicted at least eight times under the anti-flag laws.

HRW's Assessment

HRW urged Japan's lawmakers to reject any bill that infringes on civil and political rights guaranteed under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Japan is a state party. The organisation noted that the right to engage in symbolic protest — including protest directed at national symbols — is a fundamental component of the freedom of expression protected under international law.

Source: Human Rights Watch — Japan's Flag Desecration Law Poses a Threat to Freedom of Expression (March 25, 2026)