Japan Eyes Tougher Measures Against Online Hate Speech; Xenophobia Growing Amid Surge in Foreign Workers, Tourists

The Yomiuri Shimbun

1:00 JST, October 3, 2025

The Justice Ministry intends to strengthen measures against online hate speech, amid a growing number of posts targeting specific ethnic groups and nationalities on social media and elsewhere, it has been learned.

A surge in foreign workers and tourists visiting Japan is also seen as a contributing factor. The ministry plans to conduct a fact-finding survey in fiscal 2026, as part of its efforts to urgently consider new measures.

In the survey, the ministry will collect and analyze social media posts, while also hearing from local governments about cases they have identified and the number of such incidents, among other matters. It also plans to conduct a survey on public awareness of online hate speech.

The ministry has allocated about ¥70 million for related expenses in its preliminary budget request for fiscal 2026.

Arrangements are being made for an expert panel to meet this month to prepare for the surveys. Experts including university professors specializing in human rights and the internet will be invited to discuss survey methods, categories and other issues. The ministry plans to decide on these matters within this fiscal year.

As examples of hate speech, the ministry cites statements that incite a blanket rejection of people of specific ethnicities or nationalities without reasonable justification; threaten to inflict harm; or view such people as deeply inferior. In the past, street campaigns and demonstrations against people such as Korean residents in Japan became a social problem, and legislation to respond to the situation was enacted in 2016.

In a 2024 survey conducted by the Immigration Services Agency on foreign residents in Japan, slightly under half of respondents said they had experienced hate speech or seen or heard about it.

Of this group, 65.5% cited experiences “on the internet,” double the figure from a similar survey in 2022. According to the ministry, posts targeting such people as Chinese nationals and Kurds have increased, in addition to those against Korean residents.

The law stipulates that discriminatory speech and behavior against people from other countries and regions will not be tolerated and calls on the central and local governments to implement measures to eliminate such discrimination. The law covers hate speech and behavior on the internet, but penalties have not been set, in consideration for the freedom of expression guaranteed under the Constitution.

Street campaigns and demonstrations have declined, but hate speech has grown on the internet apparently because people find it easy to post discriminatory messages in the highly anonymous environment, according to a ministry official.

Given that, the government also intends to make such efforts as advancing awareness campaigns from the perspective of human rights protection and providing relevant information to local governments.