Japan’s Anti-A.I.D.S. Bill ‘draconian’ (Press, 12 March 1987)

On 12 March 1987, Peter McGill reported on a controversial anti-AIDS bill proposed in Japan, which has sparked significant debate about human rights and public health. Hoei Ohama, a spokesperson for the party behind the bill, defended its stringent measures by suggesting that safeguarding the rights of one individual could endanger the rights of many others. The proposed legislation included several severe provisions, such as prohibiting confirmed AIDS cases from engaging in sexual activity without preventive measures and enabling authorities to track their sexual partners—essentially establishing Japan as what could be perceived as the developed world's first "sex" police state. Medical professionals would be required to report the personal details of confirmed AIDS patients to the local government, with the potential for imprisonment for those who refused to comply. AIDs patients who knowingly participated in risky behaviours, such as blood or organ donation and promiscuity without precautions, would also face penalties. Although individuals identified as potential carriers were to undergo mandatory testing, the bill lacked clarity on how these individuals would be traced without doctors disclosing their identities. Since the announcement of the bill's outline, one Tokyo hospital saw a reduction in AIDS testing appointments, with many individuals requesting confidentiality regarding their conditions. As the AIDS epidemic began to spread beyond high-risk groups to the general population, the historical prejudices surrounding the disease continued to emerge, exacerbating Japan's already fragile progress away from isolationism and xenophobia. Several incidents highlighted this growing stigma; for instance, a Japanese waiter at a discotheque in Roppongi, identified as an AIDS victim, led to a ban on foreigners entering the venue. The Japanese Health and Welfare Ministry circulated pamphlets highlighting an association between AIDS and foreigners, illustrating this perception with a cartoon featuring a sweating Statue of Liberty looming over Mount Fuji. The pamphlet warned against sexual contact not only with high-risk individuals but also with those from countries with high AIDS cases. The narrative surrounding AIDS in Japan began with its first known case in 1985, a homosexual artist who had lived in the United States, establishing the narrative that AIDS was a “foreign disease.” This view was evident when a public bath refused entry to a foreigner based on fears of contamination and when a Filipino hostess diagnosed with AIDS was deported. The emergence of Japan’s first female AIDS victim, a 29-year-old prostitute, in January 1987 only deepened these prejudices as the media and health officials pointed to her past relationship with a foreign sailor as the source of her infection. Although there were still relatively few AIDS victims reported in Japan, estimates indicated that around 5,000 individuals were carrying the virus. Despite the xenophobic attitudes, the reality of the AIDS crisis began to dawn on the Japanese public, with health services reporting an overwhelming number of inquiries for advice. The prevalence of condom use in Japan, who have historically been less reliant on other forms of birth control, provided a degree of protection; however, high levels of male promiscuity and a robust sex industry placed Japan at significant risk of further spreading the virus.

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