NCJ Number
147882
Journal
International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice Volume: 17 Issue: 1/2 Dated: (Spring/Fall 1993) Pages: 29-41
Date Published
1993
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This paper examines factors that led to enactment of Japan's anti-prostitution law and establishment of women's guidance homes, the aspects of the system of prostitution that were the target of the law, how the homes fit into the equation, and explanations for the more recent sharp decline in the number of women sent to the homes.
Abstract
With enactment of the Anti-Prostitution Law in 1956, amended in 1958, street prostitution became subject to criminal sanctions in Japan. At the same time, women's guidance homes were established to deal with street prostitutes, for purposes of correction and protection, rather than punishment. Enactment of the Anti-Prostitution Law is remarkable when assessed within the context of Japanese traditions which shaped conventional relations between men and women. Licensing and relegation to red-light districts had been the official means of regulating prostitution. This paper outlines the obstacles to the law, summarizes unprecedented conditions which made possible enactment of the law, specifies to what extent the reform agenda was accomplished, and identifies the functions of the women's guidance homes in the new official policy. Table, endnotes, references