Japan - August 2026

On 13 August, a law criminalizing the desecration of the national flag entered into force, after being enacted by the National Diet (parliament) on 17 July. The law prohibits publicly damaging, removing or defacing the national flag in a manner deemed to cause significant discomfort or disgust, with penalties of up to two years' imprisonment or a fine of JPY 200,000 (USD 1,250). The government argued that the measure was necessary to protect public sentiment towards the national flag and address a legal inconsistency, as Japanese law already criminalized the desecration of foreign flags but not Japan's own flag. Human rights organizations and constitutional scholars criticized the law as an undue restriction on freedom of expression, arguing that it criminalizes forms of symbolic political speech.  

Sources: Human Rights Watch, NHK World, Ministry of Justice