Treaty with U.S. will allow police to cut diplomatic red tape

The Japan Times ^ | Aug. 2, 2003 | The Japan Times

[comnet]

Treaty with U.S. will allow police to cut diplomatic red tape

Japan and the United States will sign a treaty next week that allows their law-enforcement authorities to bypass diplomatic channels in exchanging information on criminal cases, Japanese officials said Friday. The mutual legal assistance treaty, to be signed Tuesday, paves the way for the Justice Ministry and National Police Agency to ask the U.S. Justice Department directly for cooperation and information, and vice versa.

Japanese law stipulates that the Foreign Ministry must serve as the window for international cooperation in investigating criminal cases. The government is hoping to secure Diet approval of the treaty in the Diet session expected this fall and to present a bill aimed at revising relevant legislation, the officials said.

The two countries agreed to sign the accord -- the first such bilateral pact for Japan -- in June at a meeting in Washington comprising officials from the Justice Ministry and the U.S. Justice Department.

Justice Minister Mayumi Moriyama has scheduled a weeklong visit to the U.S. beginning Sunday to coincide with the signing of the treaty, the officials said.

Talks extend to Friday WASHINGTON (Kyodo) Japan and the United States will continue talks Friday to strike a deal on the criminal procedures surrounding U.S. military personnel suspected of crimes in Japan. The two countries met Thursday at the Defense Department outside Washington in response to U.S. calls to improve the rights of its service members suspected of committing crimes in Japan. Specifically, the U.S. seeks the right to have one of its government officials present during Japanese police interrogations, according to the officials.

The two sides fell short of ironing out differences, however, and decided to hold another round of talks on Friday.

The Japan Times: Aug. 2, 2003